How the Duke's Titles Loss Signifies for Fergie, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie
The Duke's exit from the last vestiges of monarchical duties has not only reshaped his future - it's creating waves through his family too.
Fergie's New Status
The former spouse has now surrendered her ducal status and will now be referred to as Sarah Ferguson.
For Sarah, sixty-six, the change will be the most apparent.
For all these years, she has kept the courtesy royal divorcee title Sarah, Duchess of York. Currently, she reverts to her maiden name of Ferguson.
"She has lost a certain prestige over this," noted one monarchy expert. "She definitely does use the title – even her social media profile is @SarahTheDuchess."
But the loss of her title may impact her much less than the controversy she's facing separately about her own links with the convicted financier.
Last month, several charities dropped her as ambassador after correspondence from over a decade ago revealed that she referred to Epstein her "greatest ally" and seemed to apologise for her public criticism of him.
Business Ventures and Philanthropy
Separate from her charitable activities, Ferguson also has multiple commercial enterprises.
And these, too, are more likely to be affected by the Epstein controversy than any alteration in status, says one monarchy analyst.
But Ferguson has been a remarkable endure in royal circles. She's kept bouncing back.
"She's the supreme perseverer and expert at transforming," commented one royal author.
The Daughters
For the couple's offspring, Beatrice, 37, and Eugenie, 35, there's no formal change.
They continue to be known as princesses, which they have been granted since birth.
There is also no change to the royal succession order.
The prince stays eighth position to the throne, succeeded by his daughters Beatrice and Eugenie, in ninth and twelfth position in that order.
But in practice their positions are "distant" and will probably become much further down as time goes on.
Coming Opportunities
The princesses are also presently non-official royals, and while they occasionally take on roles – Princess Eugenie 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 official responsibilities.
"As far as Beatrice and Eugenie are concerned, I think there's an understanding of the fact that this controversy doesn't involve them, and it's not fair for it to impact them personally in the separate paths they are building for themselves," explains one monarchy analyst.
"The princesses are most unfortunate victims, they've had to suffer in silence and have been dignified in their silence," states another monarchy writer.
Ultimate Consequences
Ultimately, there seems to be little doubt that the individual who will be most impacted by all of this will be the Duke himself.
For a man who consistently enjoyed the royal privileges, the pomp and the pageantry, the loss of his titles is deeply humiliating.
Therefore lacking those, on a individual basis, will significantly count.