Try as they might, Princess Eugenie and Beatrice can’t outrun the headlines about their parents, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, in recent weeks. Wherever the disgraced former Prince and Duchess are mentioned, their daughters are soon brought into the conversation, especially as they have retained their titles.
It’s believed that King Charles’s "high affection" for his nieces led him to try and protect them from their parents’ fate. However, whilst they are not directly involved in the accusations being levelled against Andrew and Fergie regarding their association with Jeffrey Epstein, associating with them is a delicate issue for their wider family.
Royal expert Duncan Larcombe has suggested that Prince Harry and Meghan are "divided" over publicly supporting the York sisters, with the Duchess "very aware" of the sensitivities involved.
"Harry has always been close to Beatrice and Eugenie," he is quoted as saying. "They didn’t see a massive amount of each other growing up because they didn’t live very close to each other, but they’d always get together for Christmas at Sandringham."
Meghan has gone on to forge her own close bond with Harry’s cousins over the years, especially Eugenie, who’s been out to visit the Sussexes in California. Despite this, Duncan thinks there’s a "divide there" with her, adding "The Jeffrey Epstein situation is hugely sensitive, especially in America, and of course Epstein, Harvey Weinstein and Ghislaine Maxwell were photographed together at Beatrice’s 18th birthday."
In his view, media-savvy Meghan "will be very aware of the sensitivities" and "won’t want to be seen to be too sympathetic towards them, so will keep her distance". Duncan admits that behind closed doors things could be a little different, though.
"I don’t think she could object to Harry privately supporting them, but they will be on very different pages," he continued. "Neither Harry nor Meghan will want to be seen to be associated with Andrew or Sarah Ferguson. From Meghan’s point of view it’s probably a commercial thing, from Harry’s point of view it’s probably more of an emotional thing."
The York sisters have kept a low profile in recent weeks, as the King firstly confirmed that their father would no longer use his Duke of York title and then dealt the final blow of stripping him of his Princely title and his home at Royal Lodge.
Prince William is thought to have played a major part in these developments, with a reported meeting taking place between him, Beatrice and Eugenie over persuading Andrew to leave the Windsor residence.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s apparent “divide” over Eugenie and Beatrice surely isn’t the only one, as who knows how William’s relationship with the sisters is right now given the situation with their parents and his role in the decision.
Andrew continues to vehemently deny the accusations against him, though the scrutiny surrounding him shows no sign of slowing down. With Christmas just around the corner, many people will be keeping an eye out to see if Princess Eugenie and Beatrice celebrate with their parents or with the Royal Family.
Whichever choice they make, it will inevitably send a significant message.
