Sarah Ferguson could lose duchess title over Prince Andrew scandal

The future seems grim for Sarah Ferguson in terms of her royal title following news that Prince Andrew has again lost another royal honour.

The Duke of York has been stripped of his “Freedom of the City of York” honour, which according to Entertainment Daily he held since 1987. A council meeting that occurred on Wednesday, April 27, ended with the unanimous approval of a motion that he be stripped of the patronage.

The York Liberal Democrats, the largest group on the council, said that Prince Andrew was already made aware of the motion prior to the meeting. Rachael Maskell, a Labour MP and member of the council, said that the 62-year-old is the first person ever to have been stripped of the “Freedom of the City of York” honour.

It is understood that there have also been calls for him to relinquish his “Duke of York” title so he can no longer have any links to the city. If he refuses to do so, then an act of parliament would be needed. Darryl Smalley, a Liberal Democrat member of the council, urged the Royal Family to step in to remove his title.

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He said, “The removal of this honorary title sends the right message that we as a city stand with victims of abuse. The next logical step is now for Prince Andrew to do the right thing and relinquish his Duke of York title. If he fails to do so, the Government and Buckingham Palace must step in to remove his title to finally end Prince Andrew’s connection to York.”

It is believed that when this happens, his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson will no longer retain the title of Duchess of York as well. Instead, this will be passed down to their eldest daughter, Princess Beatrice.

Prince Andrew lost his “Freedom of the City of York” just a few months after Queen Elizabeth II stripped him of his royal patronages and military titles in January this year. Prior to that, he withdrew from public life since 2019 because of the scandal his ties to the late convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein brought on the royal family.

However, he was front and centre during Prince Philip’s memorial at Westminster Abbey on March 29. It reportedly marked his return to public life with his second engagement believed to be at the Epson Derby on June 5 with Her Majesty.