Meghan Markle’s life is about to radically change with her engagement to Prince Harry, as preparations get underway for her wedding with everyone’s favourite red-haired prince.

Speculation was rampant about an imminent engagement after their first official (and affectionate) public outing together at the Invictus Games in Toronto this fall. Markle added more fuel to the fire when she moved out of her Toronto home amid reports she left her acting gig on the television series “Suits.”

But, now that the world knows the two are engaged, there are still plenty of logistics to consider before the wedding day. To break it down, royal commentators Richard Berthelsen and Victoria Arbiter answered CTVNews.ca’s questions about what the engagement and subsequent marriage may look like for the lovebirds.

A carefully timed engagement announcement

As expected, the Royal Family waited a full week after the Queen and Prince Philip’s 70th wedding anniversary to announce Harry and Meghan Markle’s engagement. It’s the first time a British Monarch has reached the platinum wedding anniversary milestone and the prince and his girlfriend were likely being careful not to upstage it, Arbiter explained.

Additionally, the Queen’s family Christmas festivities and annual message to the public on Christmas Day are important events in her calendar so it made sense to make the announcement before then, Arbiter said.

As for Markle’s schedule, CTV’s royal commentator Berthelsen says the writing was on the wall when Markle parted ways with the American television series “Suits.”

“Once ‘Suits’ wrapped up, once she moved to London, the speculation was so intense,” he told CTV News Channel on Monday.

A busy announcement day

The prince and Markle made their first public appearance as an engaged couple Monday afternoon at a brief photocall in the Kensington Palace Gardens. Markle held Harry’s hand and briefly flashed her ring, but details of its craftsmanship were not made immediately available.

They made few remarks, saying only that they are “happy” when questioned by reporters. They held hands through much of the appearance, with Markle’s ring hand clasping Harry’s.

“Was it romantic?” one reporter asked of the proposal.

“Of course it was,” Prince Harry replied.

BBC aired a pre-taped interview with the couple at 6 p.m. U.K. time (1 p.m. ET).

In the interview, the couple discussed their courtship, their future plans and details of the ring, which is made from a Botswana diamond with jewels from Diana, the Princess of Wales.

Did Prince Harry need permission to wed?

Thanks to the Succession to the Crown Act 2013, the Queen only has to approve of the marriages of the first six in line to the throne.

Prince Harry is currently the fifth successor to the throne. He will drop down to sixth once the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge welcome their baby, who is due in April, which means he required his grandmother’s permission to marry Markle.

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Harry

Despite the formality, Berthelsen and Arbiter agree that it was doubtful the Queen would have opposed the union.

“There’s a lot of residual guilt that still lingers over the death of Diana and what William and Harry endured and I think the Queen, like everybody else, just wants to see him happily married,” Arbiter said.

Does Markle’s divorce affect the engagement?

Despite the incessant tabloid gossip pointing to Markle’s two-year marriage to Trevor Engelson in 2011 as a possible obstacle to her future with Prince Harry, the royal commentators believe her divorce will have no bearing on her current relationship.

Meghan Markle

Berthelsen said the Church of England’s position on divorce was settled in 2002, when it finally agreed to remarry divorced people in its churches. After some initial resistance, attitudes towards divorce have changed dramatically in the 15 years since the decision, including the Queen herself.

“Her own son is divorced, her daughter is divorced, her other son is divorced, her sister was divorced,” Berthelsen said. “Like any family, there’s divorce now. It’s a sad reality and I think the Queen realizes that.”

Arbiter notedthat, although it’s been 81 years since the Queen’s uncle King Edward VIII abdicated the throne to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson, divorce is still a delicate matter for the Queen.

“The last American divorcee to marry into the Royal Family led to an abdication crisis, led to her father becoming king, led to his untimely death as far as she’s concerned and led to what could have been the downfall of the monarchy,” she said.

When will they marry?

Kensington Palace says the wedding will be in the spring of 2018, although no day or month has been set.

“It’s going to be really tricky to see how the date was scheduled,” Berthelsen said, citing a busy slate ahead for the Royal Family, including the anticipated birth of Prince William and Kate’s child in April. “The royal year really heats up in May,” he added.

Prior to the announcement, Arbiter had predicted a late June or early July wedding, while Berthelsen had suggested mid-July.

“Once they’re past Easter until about the middle of July, there’s not a lot of room for adding another major event,” Berthelsen said.

With Easter on April 1 and the Duchess of Cambridge also due in April, timing may be tight unless “spring” means March.

Where will they wed?

Although the Queen and Prince Philip, and more recently Prince William and his wife Catherine, married in the grandeur of Westminster Abbey, the royal experts expect Prince Harry and Markle will settle on a more low-key location, such as St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle.

“It’s going to be at a really established location,” Berthelsen said.

Set outside London in the English county of Berkshire, the castle is a convenient hour’s drive from the city for potential wedding guests, Arbiter said.

“Harry loves Windsor. It’s a lovely location. It’s very close to London. It’s easy for dignitaries and various foreign royals to get to if Harry has to go ahead and invite them,” Arbiter said.

The chapel itself is a very contained area which would allow the couple to keep the guest list in check and make it easier to provide security for, Berthelsen said.

Additionally, Arbiter said the public would be able to congregate along a carriage procession route if the wedding was held at Windsor Castle.

“The public will be involved. Harry’s incredibly popular and there’s nothing like a royal wedding to boost morale,” Arbiter said.

However, Berthelsen predicts it will be a “smaller affair,” with fewer guests than Prince William’s wedding. A large contingent of Americans can also be expected, he said.

Will the ceremony be religious?

Berthelsen said it would be “inconceivable” for Prince Harry to not be married in the Church of England.

“That’s his family’s church and his brother will be head of the church, his father will be head of the church, his grandmother’s head of the church,” he said.

The couple could opt for a civil service, like Prince Charles and Camilla had, but Arbiter said she expects they will have a traditional ceremony in St. George’s Chapel.

“It’s very clear it’s going to be a church wedding,” Berthelsen said, adding that he expects Prince William to be the best man.

Where would they live together after the wedding?

Once Prince Harry and Markle are married, Arbiter and Berthelsen said it’s likely they will live together in Kensington Palace. Until then, it appears they’ll live together at Harry’s Nottingham Cottage, on the Kensington Palace grounds. Markle reportedly moved into the cottage with Harry last week.

Will Markle become a princess?

Berthelsen said Markle will become a princess by virtue of the fact that her husband is a prince, but she won’t have the official title of “Princess Meghan” because she wasn’t born a princess, such as the Queen’s daughter Princess Anne for example.

Instead, Markle will take the name of her husband once she marries into the Royal Family. If Prince Harry is given a royal dukedom on his marriage, which is the custom, then Markle will become “Her Royal Highness the Duchess of wherever,” Berthelsen explained. If for some reason the prince isn’t given a new title, Berthelsen said Markle would be called “Her Royal Highness Princess Harry.”

Berthelsen said Harry could become duke of either Sussex or Connaught, as those titles are currently vacant. He added that granting Harry a dukedom would be good for Markle, because it would “spare her the ignominy of being referred to as Princess Harry.”

Will Markle have to change her citizenship?

In order for Markle to claim her royal title, she must be a citizen of one of the countries in the Queen’s Commonwealth realm. Berthelsen said it makes the most sense for her to become a citizen of the U.K. because she would be living in London as she carries out her royal duties.

It may be possible for Markle to retain her U.S. citizenship by becoming a dual citizen, but she can’t be an American alone, Arbiter explained.

She suspects the Royal Family is still working out the details for obtaining citizenship for Markle. They have to ensure she follows all of the same citizenship rules as anyone else, Arbiter said.

“Just because she’s marrying into the Royal Family they can’t be seen to have special favours because that would have everyone up in arms,” she said.

Arbiter said the British public will welcome the engagement  in a news cycle dominated by negative headlines.

“There’s nothing like a royal wedding to boost morale,” Arbiter said. “The world could certainly use that right now.”