What the Duke's Titles Loss Means for Fergie, Beatrice and Princess Eugenie
Prince Andrew's removal from the final remnants of monarchical duties has not only altered his path - it's creating waves through his immediate relatives too.
Sarah Ferguson's New Status
His ex-wife has now surrendered her ducal status and will now be referred to 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. Now, 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 – including her social media profile is @SarahTheDuchess."
But the loss of her title may impact her much less than the scandal she's dealing with independently about her own connections to Jeffrey Epstein.
Last month, several charities removed her as ambassador after correspondence 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.
Professional Endeavors and Philanthropy
Away from her philanthropy, Ferguson also has various business ventures.
And these, too, are more probable to be impacted by the Epstein controversy than any change in title, says one royal commentator.
But Ferguson has been a great survivor in monarchical networks. She has continued recovering strongly.
"She is the supreme perseverer and expert at transforming," commented one monarchy writer.
The Princesses
For Andrew and Sarah's two daughters, Beatrice, thirty-seven, and Eugenie, thirty-five, there's no official alteration.
They continue to be known as princesses, which they have been granted since birth.
Additionally there is no change to the royal succession order.
Andrew remains eighth position to the crown, succeeded by his children Beatrice and Eugenie, in ninth and twelfth place respectively.
But in practice their standing are "distant" and will likely become much further down as years pass.
Future Prospects
Beatrice and Eugenie are also presently non-official royals, and while they do sometimes accept positions – Princess Eugenie was recently announced as a advisor for the King's Foundation program – commentators also suggest they "can't see a world" in which they would step up into official responsibilities.
"Regarding Beatrice and Eugenie are concerned, I think there's an appreciation of the reality that this controversy isn't about them, and it's unjust for it to affect them directly in the independent lives they are building for themselves," explains one royal commentator.
"The princesses are most unfortunate victims, they've had to endure quietly and have been composed in their silence," states another royal author.
Final Impact
Ultimately, there appears to be minimal uncertainty that the person who will be most affected by these developments will be Prince Andrew himself.
For a man 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 really matter.