‘Over the moon’ Harry and Meghan welcome a baby boy

An overjoyed Duke of Sussex described how his baby boy "is absolutely to-die-for" as he announced that he and the Duchess of Sussex had welcomed a son.

A thrilled Harry, speaking on camera at Windsor Castle's Royal Mews, revealed that Meghan had given birth early on Monday morning and it was the "most amazing experience I could ever have possibly imagined".

The seventh in line to the throne baby boy – an eighth great-grandchild for the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh – arrived at 5.26am, weighing 7lb 3oz.

The as-yet-unnamed baby boy is believed to have been born in the sanctuary of Frogmore Cottage – the Sussexes' home on the Windsor Estate.

Harry added: "I'm very excited to announce that Meghan and myself had a baby boy earlier this morning, a very healthy boy.

"Mother and baby are doing incredibly well. It's been the most amazing experience I could ever have possibly imagined.

"How any woman does what they do is beyond comprehension but we're both absolutely thrilled and so grateful to all the love and support from everybody out there.

"It's been amazing so we just wanted to share this with everybody."

Harry was at his wife's side during the birth and was clearly moved by the experience.

"It was amazing, absolutely incredible and, as I said, I'm so incredibly proud of my wife," he said

"As every father and parent will ever say, you know, your baby is absolutely amazing, but this little thing is absolutely to-die-for, so I'm just over the moon."

The palace confirmed in a statement: "Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Sussex was safely delivered of a son at 0526hrs.

"The baby weighs 7lb 3oz.

"The Duke of Sussex was present for the birth."

The Queen and Philip, grandfather the Prince of Wales, and the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are all said to be delighted with the news.

The palace statement also mentioned the siblings of Harry's late mother Diana, Princess of Wales, who died in a car crash when he was 12.

"Lady Jane Fellowes, Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Earl Spencer have been informed and are delighted with the news," the statement said.

Meghan's mother is with the new family of three at Frogmore Cottage.

"The Duchess's mother, Doria Ragland, who is overjoyed by the arrival of her first grandchild, is with their Royal Highnesses at Frogmore Cottage," the palace said.

The duke and duchess's Instagram account @SussexRoyal also announced the birth saying: "It's a boy! Their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are overjoyed to announce the birth of their child."

The baby's sex was a surprise for the delighted couple, who chose not to find out what they were having.

The newest addition to the Windsor family is a first cousin of William and Kate's children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

Ahead of the birth, Harry and Meghan made a personal decision to keep their arrangements private, amid speculation that they had opted for a home birth at Frogmore Cottage, close to the Queen's Windsor Castle residence.

They also said they would only share the news of the baby's arrival once they had had a chance to celebrate privately as a family.

News that Meghan was in labour was announced by the palace at around 2pm on Monday, but in fact the baby was already more than eight hours old.

Baby Sussex's birth comes less than a year after Harry married American former actress Meghan in a glittering ceremony in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.

Harry, 34, and Meghan, 37, became engaged following a whirlwind 16-month romance after going on a blind date in London.

The duke had told how "all the stars were aligned" when they met.

News they were expecting a baby was announced in October at the start of the couple's busy 16-day tour to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga.

Harry branded the baby "our little bump" while Meghan said they "were nearly there" in the final weeks of her pregnancy.

Unless the Queen steps in at the last minute, the baby will not be an HRH or a prince due to rules limiting titles within the royal family which were introduced by King George V more than 100 years ago.