How Prince Andrew's Removal of Titles Means for Sarah Ferguson, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie
The Duke's exit from the last vestiges of monarchical duties has not only reshaped his future - it's sending ripples through his immediate relatives too.
Fergie's Title Change
The former spouse has now lost her duchess title and will now be referred to as Sarah Ferguson.
For Sarah, 66, the change will be the most visible.
For all these years, she has maintained the honorary royal divorcee title Sarah, York Duchess. Currently, she reverts to her birth name of Ferguson.
"She will have lost a certain prestige over this," noted one royal commentator. "She certainly utilizes the title – even her social media profile is @SarahTheDuchess."
But the relinquishment of her status may impact her much less than the scandal she's facing separately about her own links with the convicted financier.
Recently, several charities dropped her as patron after an email from over a decade ago showed that she referred to Epstein her "supreme friend" and appeared to express regret for her public criticism of him.
Business Ventures and Charity Work
Separate from her charitable activities, Ferguson also has various business ventures.
And these, too, are more probable to be affected by the Epstein scandal than any alteration in status, notes one royal commentator.
But Ferguson has been a great survivor in monarchical networks. She has continued recovering strongly.
"She's the supreme perseverer and expert at transforming," said one royal author.
The Daughters
For the couple's offspring, Beatrice, 37, and Eugenie, thirty-five, there's no formal change.
They will still be known as princesses, which they have been granted since birth.
Additionally there is no change to the line of succession.
Andrew remains eighth in line to the crown, succeeded by his daughters Beatrice and Eugenie, in ninth and twelfth position in that order.
But in reality their positions are "distant" and will probably become much further down as time goes on.
Future Prospects
The princesses are also currently non-working royals, and while they do sometimes accept positions – Princess Eugenie was recently named as a mentor for the King's Foundation network – experts also say they "don't envision a scenario" in which they would step up into royal duties.
"Regarding Beatrice and Eugenie go, I think there's an appreciation of the fact that this controversy doesn't involve them, and it's not fair for it to impact them directly in the independent lives they are carving out for themselves," says one monarchy analyst.
"The princesses are most unfortunate affected parties, they've had to suffer in silence and have been composed in their silence," states another royal author.
Final Impact
In the end, there appears to be little doubt that the individual who will be most affected by these developments will be the Duke himself.
For a man who consistently enjoyed the trappings of royalty, the pomp and the ceremony, the loss of his titles is deeply humiliating.
Therefore lacking those, on a individual basis, will significantly count.