Their parents are in disgrace, what now for Beatrice and Eugenie?

After a bruising week, it's hard to overstate the mess that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson find themselves in.

But increasingly it appears it's a mess their daughters also can't escape.

The newly released emails indicate that Jeffrey Epstein had a bigger presence than previously thought in the lives of Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.

One exchange suggests they had lunch with him in Miami, just days after his release from prison for prostituting minors. Elsewhere, it appears they were called upon by him to entertain his contacts and give tours of Buckingham Palace.

For Beatrice, now 37, and Eugenie, 35, these new revelations could put their future under scrutiny.

"It will raise questions from the public about just what they were doing," says royal commentator Richard Palmer.

But royal journalist Victoria Murphy says while the emails make for "really, really uncomfortable reading", there continues to be sympathy towards the princesses.

And there's no doubt that seeing a picture apparently of your father on all fours, crouching over a young woman, can only be deeply embarrassing.

It should be said Andrew has always denied any wrongdoing, and being named among the Epstein files is not an indication of wrongdoing.

So after the York family brand has been dragged through the mud, where do the princesses now fit within the Royal Family?

Both princesses are repeatedly mentioned in the latest dump of Epstein files.

Media reports of the alleged lunch in Miami have often referred to "the girls", suggesting they were younger than they were.

At the time of that visit Eugenie was 19 and Beatrice was 21.

They weren't five-year-old girls when they were taken to see Epstein. They were grown ups," argues author Andrew Lownie, who wrote the book Entitled about Andrew. "There's a big campaign to say they are innocents caught up in the shellfire, but they're not, they're deeply involved.

But Murphy disagrees with that portrayal, arguing it's understandable to see why they went along with it.

It's easy to be critical of that decision now that Epstein's crimes are front and centre, but if no-one was raising any flags for them at the time you can see how they would just have gone on the trip their mother organised.

The perks of being friends with Jeffrey Epstein are also apparent.

An exchange between Epstein and his assistant seems to suggest he paid for the family's flights, totalling "for all tickets: $14,080.10".

But it was not all one way.

On several occasions Epstein appears to ask Ferguson if her daughters can meet people, and on one appears to ask for them to show the redacted person Buckingham Palace.

Once, Ferguson apologises, saying they were not around and explaining their whereabouts.

In another extraordinary exchange, a "Sarah" appears to refer to Eugenie's love life - saying she is returning from a "shagging weekend".

In some of the emails, Epstein's contacts also refer to the princesses.

One email, sent to Epstein from a friend, reads: "Just spoke to Duchess of Pork. She is at this wild lunch with Beatrice. I just introduced myself to her. Told her 1 know (barely) her father and how terrific he is...more later."

Ferguson's representatives have been asked for comment.

But for Palmer, the repeated mentions of both princesses in the emails "makes it difficult to distance themselves" from the saga. "There's no avoiding the links between the Yorks and Epstein," he says.

Neither of the sisters are working royals. Both are married with children, and have their own careers. But like other royals both princesses also have philanthropic endeavours.

Eugenie co-founded the Anti-Slavery Collective, a charity whose focus includes victims of sex trafficking.

"It's a preposterously inappropriate cause for [Eugenie] to be involved with," said Lownie.

According to the most recently available accounts, donations have slumped - from £1.5m in 2024 to £48,000 in the year ending 2025, although it has a healthy sum of money in reserves. No income was raised from events or auctions in the year to 2025, compared with the previous financial year when a major gala fundraiser was held.

The charity has said that it hopes to hold a similar gala every three years. But a source from the sector has said it is "difficult optically to do anything high profile like that again".

"Unsurprisingly, it's keeping a low profile," they added.

BBC News has approached the Anti-Slavery Collective multiple times to ask for a comment in light of the latest controversy surrounding Andrew and Epstein, but it has not responded.

We also approached a number of other charities the princesses are involved with, asking whether they retain their confidence in light of the recent emails.

Outward Bound said Princess Beatrice is involved with the group "in her honorary role as Deputy Patron".

But Salvation Army, which has a long-standing partnership with Eugenie, struck a more cautious note. "We place victims and survivors at the heart of all our decision making and we are closely monitoring this story," a spokesperson said.

Away from their charity work, the princesses both also have jobs.

Beatrice founded advisory firm BY-EQ, while Eugenie works as a director at the art gallery Hauser & Wirth in Mayfair.

It has recently faced legal challenges regarding alleged breaches of Russian sanctions, though it strongly contests these accusations. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Eugenie. Southwark Crown Court told BBC News the trial date had been set for 2028.

Last year, around the time her father lost his prince title, Beatrice was pictured at an investment summit in Saudi Arabia. Her family have long-held links to the Middle East and she also recently appeared in a promotional picture for a UAE bank.

Beatrice and her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi have also been involved in some of her father's business activities. They were present at Pitch@Palace, Andrew's start up business network, and were pictured meeting the then-Chinese ambassador to the UK in 2020, alongside her parents.

Palmer suggests there may have been a blurring of royal role and personal profit.

The princess, he said, built her career off the back of her royal status and introductions her parents gave her, "meeting all sorts of business contacts and members of royal families abroad".

Both princesses have independently wealthy husbands, and two children each.

Beatrice's husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi is a property developer, descended from Italian nobility, while Eugenie's, Jack Brooksbank, has worked in hospitality and marketing.

Beatrice splits her time between her Cotswolds property and an apartment in St James' Palace. Eugenie lives between Portugal and Ivy Cottage, in the grounds of Kensington Palace.

It is understood the princesses do pay rent on their royal properties. But the Palace would not confirm if it is paid at a market rate. It comes at a time of mounting calls for wider transparency about royal finances, following the outcry over Andrew's lease agreement at his former Windsor mansion.

This week, Andrew moved to the King's Sandringham estate in Norfolk, which means he is no longer close to his daughters and grandchildren. At present Ferguson's whereabouts are unknown, although there has been speculation she may move to Portugal to live with her younger daughter.

Privately, the princesses remain in touch with their parents, says Palmer. "From what I understand, they are still speaking to them," he says, "and want to remain loyal to them."

But in public, he says, they will keep their distance. "They need to separate themselves publicly from their parents otherwise risk the toxicity spreading further to them."

When Andrew lost his titles, Beatrice and Eugenie kept theirs. There is also no change to the line of succession.

But some have questioned where they now fit within the wider Royal Family.

The sisters have always been said to be close to the Prince of Wales and Duke of Sussex and have shared what it is like to grow up in the limelight.

Eugenie is reported to have been particularly close to Harry, and travelled to California to visit him.

Footage in the Harry and Meghan documentary showed her attending the Super Bowl, going on bike rides with her cousin and playing with his son Archie on a beach.

Like Harry, both Beatrice and Eugenie have now found themselves on the outskirts of the family. But even in recent years, with their father's disgrace hanging over them, they have continued to attend, and be part of, royal occasions.

The biggest question mark for many, was where they would spend this past Christmas.

Until the last minute, it was unclear whether the princesses would appear at Sandringham. But in the end, they did - choosing to spend Christmas Day with the wider Royal Family, rather than with their parents in disgrace at Royal Lodge.

For Lownie, it's a clear sign that a deal was struck between Andrew and the King - that he and Ferguson would "go quietly", so long as their daughters were protected.

But what's also clear is that they wouldn't have been there if King Charles had not wanted them there. Their appearance gives us an insight into how the Palace is seeing things: Beatrice and Eugenie are still members of the Royal Family. They are still in the firm, and will be looked after.

As the Royal Family walked the short distance from Sandringham House to St Mary Magdalene Church for the Christmas Day service, both Beatrice and Eugenie, alongside their husbands, were prominent among the group, just behind the King and Queen.

It is, perhaps, a sign of how they intend to move forward amid the Epstein fallout.

Until now, the princesses have always been seen as part of a package, together with Andrew and Ferguson as part of the House of York.

Whatever happens next, Beatrice and Eugenie will need to step out from their shadow if they are to continue to be an active part of the Royal Family.

Source: BBC
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