What Prince Andrew's Titles Loss Means for Fergie, Princess Beatrice and Eugenie

Royal Family Figures

The Duke's exit from the final remnants of royal life has not only altered his path - it's sending ripples through his immediate relatives too.

Sarah Ferguson's Title Change

His ex-wife has now surrendered her ducal status and will simply be known as Sarah Ferguson.

For Ferguson, 66, the transition will be the most visible.

For all these years, she has maintained the honorary royal divorcee title Sarah, Duchess of York. Currently, she returns to her maiden name of Ferguson.

"She will have lost a bit of cachet over this," noted one royal commentator. "She definitely does use the title – even her Twitter bio is @TheDuchessSarah."

But the loss of her title may impact her much less than the scandal she's facing separately about her own connections to Jeffrey Epstein.

Recently, multiple organizations dropped her as patron after an email from 2011 showed that she called Epstein her "supreme friend" and appeared to express regret for her public criticism of him.

Business Ventures and Philanthropy

Away from her charitable activities, Ferguson also has various business ventures.

And these, too, are more probable to be impacted by the Epstein controversy than any change in title, notes one royal commentator.

But Ferguson has been a remarkable endure in monarchical networks. She's kept bouncing back.

"She's the supreme perseverer and master of reinvention," said one monarchy writer.

The Princesses

Princess Beatrice during occasion
Princess Eugenie and Princess Eugenie seen at a royal celebration in last year

For the couple's offspring, Beatrice, 37, and Eugenie, thirty-five, there's no formal change.

They will still be known as royal princesses, which they have been entitled to since their birth.

There is also no change to the royal succession order.

Andrew remains eighth in line to the crown, succeeded by his daughters Beatrice and Eugenie, in ninth and twelfth place in that order.

But in reality their positions are "distant" and will probably become even more remote as time goes on.

Future Prospects

The princesses are also presently non-official royals, and while they do sometimes take on roles – The younger princess was recently announced as a mentor for the monarch's charity network – experts also suggest they "don't envision a world" in which they would advance into royal duties.

"Regarding Beatrice and Eugenie are concerned, I think there's an appreciation of the fact that this scandal isn't about them, and it's not fair for it to affect them personally in the separate paths they are carving out for themselves," explains one monarchy analyst.

"Their daughters are most unfortunate victims, they've had to endure quietly and have been composed in their silence," states another royal author.

Final Impact

In the end, there seems to be minimal uncertainty that the person who will be most affected by these developments will be the Duke himself.

For someone who always liked the trappings of royalty, the pomp and the pageantry, the relinquishment of his honors is profoundly embarrassing.

Therefore lacking those, on a personal level, will significantly count.

Sandra Reed
Sandra Reed

A passionate traveler and writer sharing personal experiences and expert advice on Canadian destinations and outdoor activities.