Editing Sarah, Duchess of York (section)

=== Separation and divorce ===
Biographer [[Sarah Bradford]] described how Andrew's duties as a naval officer required him to stay away from home for long periods.<ref name="Tribune-Divorce">{{Cite news|last=Moseley|first=Ray|date=17 April 1996|title=Andrew-fergie Union: Another Royal Divorce|newspaper=Chicago Tribune|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1996/04/17/andrew-fergie-union-another-royal-divorce/|access-date=13 May 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181011163103/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1996-04-17-9604170192-story.html|archive-date=October 11, 2018}}</ref> According to Sarah's account, the couple saw each other 40 days a year in the first five years of their marriage.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Kindelan|first=Katie|date=11 May 2011|title=Sarah Ferguson Reveals Her Road to Recovery in Documentary on OWN, Oprah Winfrey Network|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/sarah-ferguson-reveals-road-recovery-documentary-oprah-winfrey/story?id=13780411|access-date=6 December 2020|publisher=ABC News}}</ref> By 1991, the marriage was in trouble, as Sarah was finding life as a member of the royal family increasingly difficult. Her friendship with Texan multimillionaire Steve Wyatt (son of [[Lynn Wyatt]]) gained much publicity when photographs, including one of Wyatt with Sarah's toddler daughter, appeared in newspapers in January 1992.<ref>{{Cite news|date=3 June 2002|title=Royals, Part 3: Troubled times – 3&nbsp;June 2002|work=CNN|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/05/29/people.royals.3/|access-date=4 May 2010}}</ref> The Duke and Duchess of York announced their [[Legal separation|separation]] on 19 March 1992.<ref name="Separation">{{Cite news|date=19 March 1992|title=1992: Fergie and Andrew split|work=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/19/newsid_2543000/2543667.stm}}</ref> Following the separation, the palace announced that Sarah would no longer carry out public engagements on behalf of the Queen.<ref name="Separation" /> Furthermore, the Queen announced in a statement that she would not take responsibility for Sarah's debts.<ref name="Tribune-Divorce" /> Sarah separated her residence from her husband and moved to [[Wentworth Estate|Romenda Lodge]] on the Wentworth Estate, Surrey, in 1992.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Kenny|first=Peter|date=23 August 1992|title=Duchess of York leaves queen's holiday home|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1992/08/23/Duchess-of-York-leaves-queens-holiday-home/1411714542400/|access-date=6 December 2020|work=UPI Archives|quote=... she was driven through the gates of her rented home at Romenda Lodge.}}</ref>

[[File:Sarah Ferguson.jpg|thumb|upright|The Duchess of York at the [[Royal Welsh Show]], 1991]]

In August 1992, the British [[Tabloid (newspaper format)|tabloid]] ''[[Daily Mirror]]'' published surreptitiously taken photographs of John Bryan, an American financial manager, sucking on Sarah's toes as she sunbathed topless.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Andersen |first1=Christopher |author-link1=Christopher Andersen |title=William and Kate: A Royal Love Story |date=2011 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-4516-2145-7 |page=33 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1M3oGZ7RRH8C&pg=PA33 |access-date=1 March 2023 |language=en}}</ref> Sarah endured widespread public ridicule, contributing to her further estrangement from the British royal family.<ref>{{Cite news|date=15 October 1999|title=From outcast to US princess: Fergie at 40|work=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/474091.stm|access-date=4 May 2010|quote=The infamous toe-sucking incident, which came while Sarah was still married to Prince Andrew, outraged the British public...}}</ref> French magazine ''[[Paris Match]]'' was ordered to pay £84,000 in damages for publishing the photographs, though the original amount sought was £1.32 million.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/hunky-prince-is-exposed-to-public-gaze-1447414.html|title='Hunky' Prince is exposed to public gaze|work=The Independent|first=Rhys|last=Williams|date=7 September 1994|accessdate=18 July 2022}}</ref> On 28 March 1993, it was announced that the formal separation agreement between the Duke and Duchess had been settled, despite months of speculation that the couple might be reconciling.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pK5dAAAAIBAJ&dq=prince+andrew+sarah+reconciliation+speculation&pg=PA19&article_id=3346,4904525 |title=No reconciliation for Andrew, Sarah |work=Observer-Reporter |date=29 June 1993 |accessdate=17 April 2023 |language=en}}</ref> In 1995, Prince Andrew's aunt [[Princess Margaret]], who had received a bouquet of flowers sent by Sarah, reportedly wrote in a letter to Sarah: "You have done more to bring shame on the family than could ever have been imagined".<ref name="Margaret">{{Cite news|last=Alderson|first=Andrew|date=7 August 2010|title=Revealed: how the Duchess of York was led to the brink of ruin|newspaper=The Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/7932529/Revealed-how-the-Duchess-of-York-was-led-to-the-brink-of-ruin.html|access-date=24 January 2018|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

Reports and speculation about the couple reuniting continued into late 1995,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P1MwAAAAIBAJ&dq=prince+andrew+sarah+spain+wentworth&pg=PA7&article_id=5577,2325148 |title=Prince Andrew, Sarah Ferguson |work=Kingman Daily Miner |date=13 August 1995 |accessdate=17 April 2023 |language=en}}</ref> ending when the Duke and Duchess announced their mutual decision to divorce in April 1996. In the years after her divorce, Sarah claimed that she had received £15,000 a year as a divorce settlement and cited her deal as a spokeswoman with [[WW International|Weight Watchers]] as her main "source of income".<ref name="Margaret" /><ref>{{Cite news|last=Adam|first=Karla|date=25 May 2010|title=Will Sarah Ferguson's fall from royal favor be permanent this time?|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/24/AR2010052403858.html|access-date=24 January 2018|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Greene|first=Leonard|date=2 June 2010|title=Broke Fergie admits princess complex|newspaper=The New York Post|url=https://nypost.com/2010/06/02/broke-fergie-admits-princess-complex/|access-date=24 January 2018}}</ref> However, subsequent information given by senior officials to ''[[The Sunday Telegraph]]'' revealed that Sarah had received £350,000 in cash, £500,000 from the Queen to buy a new house for her and the children, and a monthly allowance that was estimated to have reached £500,000 in total by 2010.<ref name="settlement">{{Cite news|last1=Alderson|first1=Andrew|last2=Mendick|first2=Robert|date=29 May 2010|title=Duchess of York's divorce settlement was worth £3 million|newspaper=The Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/7782897/Duchess-of-Yorks-divorce-settlement-was-worth-3-million.html|access-date=24 January 2018|url-access=subscription}}</ref> The couple shared custody of their children.<ref name="divorced">{{Cite news|last=Glauber|first=Bill|date=17 April 1996|title=Now Fergie gets to walk royal plank Party's over: Attorneys in London announce divorce of Prince Andrew and Sarah, ending their nearly 10-year marriage.|newspaper=The Baltimore Sun|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/1996/04/17/now-fergie-gets-to-walk-royal-plank-partys-over-attorneys-in-london-announce-divorce-of-prince-andrew-and-sarah-ending-their-nearly-10-year-marriage/|access-date=24 January 2018|archive-date=25 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125135050/http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1996-04-17/features/1996108073_1_duchess-fergie-divorce-settlement|url-status=live}}</ref> In November 1996, Sarah published her autobiography ''My Story'' and embarked on a promotional tour to support it. On a US chat show she implied she and Andrew had had an open relationship, and that throughout the marriage and separation "He always knew exactly what was going on", she said. "It's not a one-way street. We respect each other's space."<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AmRPAAAAIBAJ&dq=sarah+duchess+sawyer&pg=PA6&article_id=3847,7416925 |title=The new Fergie |work=Toledo Blade |date=22 November 1996 |accessdate=19 April 2023 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ziemer |first=Laurette |date=14 November 1996 |title='Andrew knew about my affairs' Fergie tells American TV viewers |journal=Evening Standard |pages=3}}</ref> In a 2007 interview, as to why they finalised their divorce she said, "I wanted to work; it's not right for a princess of the royal house to be commercial, so Andrew and I decided to make the divorce official so I could go off and get a job."<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Collins|first=Nancy|year=2007|title=Sarah Ferguson: Diana, the Queen and I|url=https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/news/a730/sarah-ferguson-divorce-interview/|access-date=6 December 2020|magazine=[[Harper's Bazaar]]}}</ref>

The [[decree nisi]] was granted on 17 April 1996 and the divorce was finalised on 30 May 1996,<ref name="div-ind">{{Cite web|last=Victor|first=Peter|date=17 April 1996|title=Yorks bring marriage to an end|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/yorks-bring-marriage-to-an-end-1305213.html|access-date=11 December 2020|work=The Independent}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=30 May 1996|title=It's Over: Divorce Final for Fergie and Prince Andrew|url=https://apnews.com/article/53e4a388b8571a6bd88a092cd5dfce3f|access-date=11 December 2020|publisher=Associated Press}}</ref> after which she legally retained the style ''Her Royal Highness'' with the style of other divorced peeresses. However, it was announced in April that Sarah had chosen not to use the style ''Her Royal Highness'' and would relinquish it under the divorce terms.<ref name="div-ind" /> In accordance with [[letters patent]] issued in August 1996 regulating post-divorce royal titles, Sarah formally ceased being a ''Royal Highness''.<ref name="letterspatent"/>

[[File:2004-02-16 Eugenie Beatrice Sarah Verbier 052.JPG|thumb|Sarah and her daughters in Verbier, 2004]]
Since her divorce, Sarah has attended some functions with her daughters, such as the investitures of the Duke of York into the [[Royal Victorian Order]] and the [[Order of the Garter]], and [[Royal Ascot]], and on those occasions, she is afforded the courtesy of treatment as a member of the royal family.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Rayner|first=Gordon|date=19 June 2015|title=Duchess of York completes reconciliation with royal family as she curtseys to the Queen at Ascot|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/11687777/Duchess-of-York-completes-reconciliation-with-Royal-family-as-she-curtseys-to-the-Queen-at-Ascot.html|access-date=9 January 2017|work=The Telegraph|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Sarah hinted at the idea of remarrying Andrew in several interviews.<ref name="bbc3">{{Cite news|date=16 October 1999|title=Fergie: "Charles abandoned me"|work=BBC News Online|place=London|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/476459.stm|access-date=9 October 2012}}</ref> In August 2013, she was invited to stay at [[Balmoral Castle]] with Prince Andrew and their daughters as guests of the Queen, and in September 2013, in response to a question about the possibility of remarrying Andrew, Sarah said, "He's still my handsome prince, he'll always be my handsome prince."<ref>{{Cite news|last=Wilson|first=Christopher|date=12 August 2013|title=Her Majesty requests... the presence of Fergie|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|location=London|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/10238819/Her-Majesty-requests...-the-presence-of-Fergie.html|access-date=31 October 2013|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Furness|first=Hannah|date=29 September 2013|title=Duchess of York hints of remarriage to Prince Andrew and says 'he'll always be my prince.'|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/10343160/Duchess-of-York-hints-of-remarriage-to-Prince-Andrew-and-says-hell-always-be-my-prince..html|access-date=31 October 2013|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

She was not invited to the [[Wedding of Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones|1999 wedding]] of [[Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh|Prince Edward]] and [[Sophie Rhys-Jones]] or the [[Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton|2011 wedding]] of [[Prince William]] and [[Catherine Middleton]],<ref name="bbc3" /><ref>{{Cite news|date=20 February 2011|title=Royal wedding: Couple invite 1,900 guests|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12513620}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Quinn|first=Ben|date=10 May 2011|title=Sarah Ferguson tells Oprah Winfrey: 'Diana and I both weren't there'|newspaper=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2011/may/10/oprah-winfrey-sarah-ferguson|access-date=13 May 2015}}</ref> but she attended the [[wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle|wedding]] of [[Prince Harry]] and [[Meghan Markle]] in 2018. However, she did not receive an invitation to the evening reception at [[Frogmore House]] hosted by [[Prince Charles]], and was reportedly "deeply upset" by her exclusion.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Brean|first1=Joseph|date=10 May 2018|title=Sarah, Duchess of York 'deeply upset' over snub from 'inner sanctum' royal wedding party|work=National Post|url=https://nationalpost.com/news/world/sarah-duchess-of-york-deeply-upset-over-snub-from-inner-sanctum-royal-wedding-party}}</ref>

The [[Lord Chamberlain's Office]] has listed Sarah as a member of the royal family, along with other extended family members such as [[Daniel Chatto]] and [[Mike Tindall]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Royal Family|url=https://www.royal.uk/sites/default/files/media/annex_d_-_royal_family_14.pdf|access-date=27 November 2022|publisher=royal.uk|quote=Members of the Royal Family... Annex D - Royal Family}}</ref> {{As of|2023|June}} she is not, however, listed on a section of the royal family's website titled "Members of the Royal Family".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Royal Family|date=24 February 2016 |url=https://www.royal.uk/royal-family|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211211222705/https://www.royal.uk/royal-family|archive-date=11 December 2021|access-date=11 December 2021|publisher=royal.uk}}</ref> She attended the [[state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II]] in September 2022, and was seated by her daughters' side, but she was not invited to the [[coronation of King Charles III]] in May 2023.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://people.com/royals/sarah-ferguson-wore-touching-symbol-safe-journey-queen-elizabeth-funeral/|title=Sarah Ferguson Wore a Touching Symbol of Safe Journey at Queen Elizabeth's Funeral|work=People|first=Aaron|last=Parsley|date=20 September 2022|accessdate=3 October 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-65275486|title=Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, not invited to coronation|work=BBC News|first=Sean|last=Goughlan|date=14 April 2023|accessdate=17 June 2023}}</ref>

On 25 December 2023, Sarah joined the royal family for Christmas at [[St Mary Magdalene Church, Sandringham]] for the first time since 1992.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/sarah-ferguson-duchess-duke-christmas-sandringham-royal-family-b1129187.html | title=Sarah, Duchess of York 'grateful' for royal invite to Sandringham on Christmas Day | work=The Standard | first=Ayan | last=Omar | date=27 December 2023 |access-date=29 January 2025 }}</ref>