What the Duke's Removal of Titles Means for Sarah Ferguson, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie

York Family Members

The Duke's removal from the last vestiges of royal life has not only altered his path - it's creating waves 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 kept the courtesy royal divorcee title Sarah, Duchess of York. Currently, she reverts to her birth name of Ferguson.

"She will have lost a certain prestige over this," noted one monarchy expert. "She certainly does use the title – even her Twitter bio is @TheDuchessSarah."

But the loss of her title may affect her much less than the controversy she's facing separately about her own links with Jeffrey Epstein.

Last month, multiple organizations dropped her as ambassador after an email from 2011 revealed that she called Epstein her "supreme friend" and appeared to express regret for her negative comments of him.

Professional Endeavors and Philanthropy

Away from her philanthropy, Ferguson also has multiple commercial enterprises.

And these, too, are more likely to be affected by the Epstein controversy than any change in title, says one monarchy analyst.

But Ferguson has been a great survivor in royal circles. She's kept bouncing back.

"She's the ultimate survivor and expert at transforming," said one royal author.

The Princesses

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

For the couple's two daughters, Beatrice, 37, and Eugenie, 35, there's no official alteration.

They continue to be known as royal princesses, which they have been granted since birth.

Additionally there is no change to the line of succession.

The prince stays eighth position to the crown, succeeded by his daughters Beatrice and Eugenie, in ninth and twelfth place respectively.

But in practice their standing are "low down" and will likely become even more remote as time goes on.

Coming Opportunities

The princesses are also presently non-official royals, and while they occasionally take on roles – The younger princess was recently named as a mentor for the King's Foundation network – experts also suggest they "don't envision a scenario" in which they would step up into royal duties.

"As far as Beatrice and Eugenie go, I think there's an understanding of the reality that this scandal doesn't involve them, and it's unjust for it to impact them personally in the independent lives they are carving out for themselves," explains one royal commentator.

"The princesses are particularly unlucky affected parties, they've had to endure quietly and have been composed in their silence," adds another monarchy writer.

Final Impact

In the end, there appears to be little doubt that the individual who will be most impacted by these developments will be the Duke himself.

For someone who always liked the royal privileges, the pomp and the ceremony, the loss of his titles is profoundly embarrassing.

So to not have those, on a personal level, will significantly count.

Martin Oconnor
Martin Oconnor

A passionate writer and lifestyle enthusiast, sharing insights on creativity and everyday inspiration.