Charles and William Won’t 'Punish' Beatrice and Eugenie For 'Things Beyond Their Control'
While Prince Andrew faces the final reckoning of his fall, his daughters have managed to earn the King and Prince William’s support.
In a week that saw Andrew Mountbatten Windsor's royal downfall, his daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, seem to have carried on with their lives, far away from the scandal and complications. Although Mountbatten Windsor faced the loss of his titles and the keys to his Windsor mansion, the sisters have reportedly been reassured that they will not be sharing the 'punishment'.
As per reports, the former Prince is moving to a smaller home on the Sandringham estate. The move is being privately funded by King Charles himself, but it effectively closes the chapter on Andrew's life as a senior royal. He will no longer share a residence with Sarah Ferguson, his ex-wife, who is now expected to make separate living arrangements. But as their parents' world seems to shrink, Beatrice and Eugenie's does not. Far from the tension in Windsor, Eugenie was photographed smiling in Paris recently with friends, while Beatrice flew to Riyadh to attend the Future Investment Initiative summit with her tech firm Affinity.
According to HELLO!'s royal editor Emily Nash, the sisters have the full support of both Charles and Prince William. Speaking on the latest episode of The Banishment of Andrew podcast, Nash explained why the two young women are seen as victims of circumstance rather than collateral damage. "You have to have some sympathy for them," she said. “I think we've seen that compassion coming from the King and the Prince of Wales. It's been made clear that they're not going to be punished for things beyond their control. This is not something of their doing,” she said.
Both Beatrice and Eugenie will retain their titles as princesses, a right afforded them as the daughters of the son of a sovereign. Nash stressed, "They're technically still princesses. That's not changing." Their relatively protected status also counters recent rumors that Prince William had threatened to revoke their titles if they didn't convince their father to vacate Royal Lodge; claims that Nash dismissed as 'categorically untrue.' "There was a story going around earlier in the week saying that he basically put pressure on them, saying, 'You have to persuade your father to leave or we'll look at your titles,'" she noted. "I'm told that's categorically untrue."
That said, the sisters' position within the royal ecosystem is still a delicate one: neither working royals nor entirely private citizens, and with the family's streamlining under Charles currently underway, their roles are unlikely to grow in any significant way. Still, sources say that both the King and the Prince of Wales appreciate their steady conduct through difficult times.
