What Prince Andrew's Removal of Titles Signifies for Fergie, Beatrice and Eugenie
The Duke's removal 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 lost her duchess title and will simply be known as Sarah Ferguson.
For Sarah, 66, the transition will be the most visible.
For all these years, she has kept the courtesy royal post-marital designation Sarah, Duchess of York. Now, she reverts to her maiden name of Ferguson.
"She will have lost a bit of cachet over this," noted one royal commentator. "She definitely utilizes the title – including her social media profile is @TheDuchessSarah."
But the relinquishment of her status may affect her much less than the controversy she's facing separately about her own links with Jeffrey Epstein.
Recently, multiple organizations dropped her as ambassador after an email from over a decade ago showed that she referred to Epstein her "supreme friend" and seemed to apologise for her public criticism of him.
Business Ventures and Charity Work
Separate from her charitable activities, Ferguson also has various business ventures.
And these ventures, are more probable to be impacted by the Epstein controversy than any change in title, says one royal commentator.
But Ferguson has been a remarkable endure in royal circles. She's kept bouncing back.
"She is the ultimate survivor and expert at transforming," said one royal author.
The Princesses
For the couple's offspring, Beatrice, thirty-seven, 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 position to the throne, followed by his children Beatrice and Eugenie, in ninth and twelfth place respectively.
But in reality their positions are "low down" and will probably become even more remote as years pass.
Future Prospects
Beatrice and Eugenie are also currently non-official royals, and while they occasionally accept positions – The younger princess was recently named as a mentor for the King's Foundation program – experts also suggest they "don't envision a scenario" in which they would advance into royal duties.
"As far as Beatrice and Eugenie go, I think there's an appreciation of the fact that this scandal doesn't involve them, and it's unjust for it to impact them directly in the independent lives they are carving out for themselves," says one monarchy analyst.
"The princesses are particularly unlucky victims, they've had to suffer in silence and have been dignified in their silence," states another monarchy writer.
Final Impact
In the end, there appears to be minimal uncertainty that the person who will be most affected by all of this will be Prince Andrew himself.
For someone who always liked the royal privileges, the ceremony and the ceremony, the relinquishment of his honors is deeply humiliating.
Therefore lacking these, on a individual basis, will really matter.