LONDON -  Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have marked their engagement by sharing a series of portraits of them embracing.

The 33-year-old royal asked the former 'Suits' actress to be his wife last month, and ahead of the couple's much-anticipated wedding at Windsor Castle in May next year, the pair carried out a photoshoot with fashion photographer Alex Lubomirski at Frogmore House in the town in Berkshire, England.

A series of posts on Kensington Palace's Twitter read: ''Prince Harry and Ms. Meghan Markle have chosen to release official photographs to mark their engagement ... The photographs were taken by Alex Lubomirski earlier this week at Frogmore House, Windsor.''

The first picture of the loved-couple sees them cuddling on the steps of the property, with the brunette beauty's engagement ring, which Harry had custom made, on display.

Alongside the photo, the royal household wrote: ''Prince Harry and Ms Meghan Markle, December 2017.'' The same caption was added to a close-up black and white image of Meghan smiling as she held onto Harry's bearded chin.

The photographer also took to Instagram to thank the couple for choosing him to capture their love for each other in the stunning portraits.

Alex wrote on Instagram: ''A huge thank you to His Royal Highness Prince Harry and Ms Markle, for allowing me to take their official engagement portraits. Not only was it an incredible honour, but also an immense privilege to be invited to share and be a witness to this young couple's love for each other. I cannot help but smile when I look at the photos that we took.''

The love birds will tie the knot on May 19 next year, at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.

The Palace previously announced the news in a statement, which read: ''His Royal Highness Prince Henry of Wales and Ms. Meghan Markle will marry on 19th May 2018. Today's announcement follows earlier confirmation of the month of the wedding and its location at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.''