Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie will not celebrate Easter with Royals | Royal | News
Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie will not join the King, the Queen and other senior members of the Royal Family for the traditional Easter Service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, on Sunday. The York sisters have made alternative plans for the Easter weekend, with the King’s agreement and understanding, royal sources confirmed on Monday afternoon.
The insider sought to clarify that Beatrice, 37, and Eugenie, 36, have not been frozen out of the royal fold and will attend future family celebrations. The daughters of disgraced Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson have been left in a difficult position following their parents’ association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Many believe the sisters have been tainted by association following the string of revelations in the Epstein files released by the US Department of Justice earlier this year.
Unlike their parents, the King has permitted them to retain their royal titles, but they have kept a relatively low profile since their father’s arrest last month.
The King and Queen will be joined by members of the Royal Family for the annual Easter Matins Service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, on Easter Sunday. The special service sees the Firm walk from Windsor Castle to the Church, and after the service, they often stop to greet well-wishers gathered on the grounds.
Last year, Beatrice and Eugenie attended the Easter service with their husbands. Their parents, Andrew and Fergie, were also present at the event, which is considered a private family event rather than an official engagement.
The attendance of other members of the Royal Family has not yet been confirmed, though it is expected that the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children will join the King and Queen for the Easter service. The family of five skipped the event last year, celebrating the holiday privately.
The decision to keep their distance from the Royal Family comes after reports suggested they would not be welcome at Royal Ascot this June and other high-profile royal events.
Beatrice and Eugenie were allowed to join the Firm for their Christmas celebrations at Sandringham last December, and were pictured attending church on Christmas morning with the King and Queen and other senior royals. However, this was before the release of the Epstein files.
Andrew, who moved to the Sandringham estate earlier this year, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. He was arrested in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office and was detailed by police for 11 hours.
His ex-wife, Sarah, has not been seen in public since December, when she attended the christening of her granddaughter in London.
