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It was the season of the grouse hunting in Scotland. As every year for decades, the Windsor family has been mbadively converging on its 50,000-acre estate in Aberdeenshire for quality family liaison time and the ability to kill small animals.
But in 1992, a very prominent member of the clan was absent: Sarah, the Duchess of York.
After a six-year marriage with the duke several months earlier, the couple had finally announced their separation. While his family enjoyed their annual Tweed-A-Thon, Prince Andrew's former wife was spending her own vacation, but a place that could not be more different – and that would have upsetting repercussions today.
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MARRIAGE MELTDOWN
The last two years had been difficult for York. After their happy marriage in 1986, Fergie had been hailed as a breath of fresh air among the royal family, carrying off some spiderwebs with her playful approach to her tasks and her seemingly inexhaustible appetite for fun.
However, the next few years will see the soil change dramatically.
Public opinion has returned to the preference of Diana, Princess of Wales, much more moderate. Fergie, meanwhile, had regularly taken her weight in the press and was left to the couple's children (Princess Beatrice born in 1988 and Eugénie in 1990), while her husband captain was at sea more than 300 days a year.
In the early 1990s, rumors circulated that Fergie would be involved in the Texas boulevard Steve Wyatt, son of the indomitable socialist Texas Lynn Wyatt. (He denied the allegations.) However, it was reported that it was through Mr. Wyatt that Fergie met John Bryan, an American businessman who was going to become his " business advisor ".
In March 1992, the York finally announced their long-term separation. People reports that, after the announcement of the news, Fergie and Mr. Bryan "packed their bags for a 36-day tour to Thailand and Indonesia, a five-day getaway to Argentina, a Paris getaway and a trip in Scotland".
All the while, Fergie was still saying that Mr. Bryan was his "financial advisor" – an allegation, according to Prince Andrew, allegedly alleged.
In August 1992, Fergie was ready to do what she did best: go on vacation.
SUNSHINE AND SHAME
In a private villa near Saint-Tropez, Fergie was sunbathing. Princess Beatrice (then four years old) and Princess Eugene (two) accompanied by only two bodyguards, the newly separated redhead was enjoying a break.
However, she was not the only one – and also joined her for what was to become one of the most infamous holiday in history, was Mr. Bryan.
As People pointed out that the choice of the villa was not great.
With only a low wall and an easily impregnated pine forest surrounding it, the pool was an easy target for all wandering paparazzi. Which, of course, is exactly what happened in early August.
An Italian snapper fired some of the most outrageous (if not the most) images of the royal family in history. There was the duchess getting her feet sucked by Mr. Bryan. (He would say later that he was kissing them.)
In other cases, they ran aground in the pool, the HRH jumped on Mr. Bryan's shoulders. The most shocking is perhaps the image of the couple kissing under the eyes of the Queen's granddaughter, Princess Eugenie.
(In another image, we see Fergie's bodyguards dozing by the pool.)
When the images were published in the Daily Mirror on August 20, the print run of 3.5 million copies ran out at 9 o'clock.
Unfortunately for Fergie, she was in the worst place when the shameful blows were released – Balmoral, surrounded by the horrified family of her husband.
Fergie wrote in his autobiography a few years later: "It would be correct to say that the porridge was starting to cool. Googly eyes and open mouth, the adults roamed the Daily Mirror. "
BANISHMENT AND BANKRUPTCY
This global public embarrbadment could not have come at a worse time for the besieged royal. According to reports, the Queen had invited Fergie to Balmoral at that time to discuss "her future".
While she and Andrew were officially separated, they had been seen together at Ascot and she had made public appearances alongside the Duke. Relations between the two were certainly cordial.
Arriving at Balmoral, the table was her future with the royal family, a huge sum of money for the cash-strapped duchess, the care of her two children and her title.
(As a result of the imbroglio, there was even talk that Fergie could give up her custody and be forced to move to the United States or on the "Continent", as it was commonly called. )
And then, the 20th of August has arrived.
The queen, in her living room, reading the papers, called for Fergie.
"The queen was furious, absolutely furious. I think partly because she loved Fergie so much, "Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty the magazine said. "She just could not believe that Fergie could have been so stupid to allow this to happen.
"When Fergie left the Presence in a deep revolt, she knew that her life as a king was well and truly over," writes the royal biographer, Tina Brown, in Diane's chronicles.
Brown also believes that the suspicion of who informed the press is based on very glamorous shoulders. She writes, "I'm told, Fergie thinks the Princess of Wales has divulged where the Duchess of York was in France. With the exception of the Fergie Police Protection Officer, the only person who knew where she was going was Diana. "
(Three days later, on August 23, the "Squidgygate" tapes, in which Diana and her alleged boyfriend, the gin heir, James Gilbey, chatted fondly. Daily mail was "Diana In Love Tape Mystery".)
However, on the morning of the 20th, Fergie left Balmoral with her children and nanny to fly to York's Surrey Estate. There, embarrbading, there was no one to open the door and the duchess was obliged to wait in the car while the paparazzi were turning.
Almost three decades later, Fergie still feels the benefits of these photos.
First, her status as a royal pariah still persists, not helped by examples, as in 2010, she was surprised selling her access to Andrew, then British diplomatic envoy, to a journalist infiltrated for $ 890,000.
Such is the persistent coldness of some members of the royal family (supposedly of Prince Philip). Fergie was not entered on the 2011 wedding guest list of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. (She was however invited to the open day of 2018 of the Duke and Duchess of Susbad.)
Although she may be accepted in certain situations, such as joining her ex-husband and daughters in the royal precincts at Ascot, Fergie still faces a very long way to being welcomed, even partially, into the family.
Secondly, there is his extremely precarious money situation.
It seems that Prince Philip urged the Queen to play football with Fergie during the divorce negotiations, leaving her with a much harsher regulation than Diana had received. The Duchess of York, it was learned, would have received about 890,000 USD to buy a new house, 600,000 USD in cash to spend as she pleased and trust funds had been created for her daughters . (The Princess of Wales waived her marriage with a settlement of approximately $ 30 million.) She also reportedly received a "modest" monthly stipend indexed to Andrew's Navy pension.
Over the years, she has had to deal with persistent financial problems. In 2009, his US company Hartmoor was in debt with a debt of $ 1.1 million. The following year, Fergie was bankrupt and owed between $ 3,550,000 and $ 8.8 million in personal debt.
NEW CHAPTER?
This week, Fergie was on the ultra exclusive island of Capri to celebrate the birthday of a billionaire friend. Next month, she will go on vacation, but it will have a much more symbolic weight.
It was announced that in August, while the Queen, her children, her grandchildren and her great-grandchildren would be leaving for Balmoral, there would be an additional name on the list – Fergie.
(This 59-year-old woman would have spent the last few years visiting the huge Scottish estate, a clear sign that she is slowly making her way into the family where she has suffered so much.)
It took Fergie 27 years to get to this point, an incredibly high price to pay for a series of summer photos.
Daniela Elser is a royal expert and freelance writer with 20 years of experience. She has written for some of Australia's best print and digital media brands | Continue the conversation @DanielaElser
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