Eugenie: a caring, fun royal with a cheeky side

Eugenie: a caring, fun royal with a cheeky side

Princess Eugenie – the Queen’s granddaughter – is the spirited, art-loving royal who is proving to be a relaxed royal bride.

Keen to make her nuptials stress-free, the youngest daughter of the Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York has been taking the arrangements in her stride.

“I’m not stressed at all,” she told British Vogue. “It’s very nerve-wracking because you want it to be perfect but then you realise that you’re going to be with the person you love forever and nothing else really matters.”

Princess Eugenie Victoria Helena of York was born on March 23 1990 at the exclusive Portland Hospital in London

In a week-long name game, Andrew and the duchess kept the nation guessing as to what they would call their daughter.

Their unusual choice generated much surprise and was inspired by the Victorian era.

D&DofY/Portland/Eugenie
The Duke and Duchess of York outside the the Portland Hospital with Eugenie (Martin Keene/PA)

She became the first royal baby to have a public christening when in 1990 she was baptised during morning service at the church of St Mary Magdalene, Sandringham.

The Duchess of York
The princess’s christening (Martin Keene/PA)

They divorced in May 1996 and had joint custody of Eugenie and Beatrice.

Eugenie’s first proper day at Winkfield Montessori School, Berkshire, at the age of two in 1992 sent the media into a frenzy – but more because of her mother.

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Eugenie with the duchess on her first full term at nursery (PA)

Eugenie began her school education at Upton House School and Coworth Park School, both in Berkshire, and then enrolled as a day girl at St George’s in Windsor in 2001.

Princess Eugenie St George’s School
Eleven-year-old Eugenie with her parents on her first day at St George’s School (Tim Ockenden/PA)

She is now patron of the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital.

In September 2003, the princess, both academic and sporty, started at posh Wiltshire private school Marlborough College.

The Duchess of Cambridge, then Kate Middleton, also studied at Marlborough but had left by the time Eugenie arrived.

Eugenie’s teenage years were relatively well-protected from the media and she was said to be considerate and cheeky.

Keen to live as normal a life as possible despite her royal heritage, Eugenie avoided a public photocall when she started at Marlborough, choosing not to have the cameras there.

She was described as having “great energy”, being a “lot of fun” and less shy than her sister.

She was also head of the poetry society at school.

At the time of her 18th birthday, she said of her parents: “They are the best divorced couple I know. They just always went out of their way to make us feel loved and secure.”

She has also admitted to bickering with sister “Bea” from time to time.

Ultimate Luxury Travel Related Awards – London
Firm friends and sisters Beatrice and Eugenie (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The princess took A-levels in art, English literature and history of art.

The York family
Eugenie with her family in fancy dress for sister Beatrice’s 18th birthday ball in 2006 (Mark Stewart/PA)

It was claimed she was caught frolicking naked in the grounds of the boarding school.

It was reported that a senior staff member was woken by playful shrieks and found about a dozen young women dancing around without any clothes in the college grounds.

A gap year trip after her A-levels, in which she got two As and a B, took her to to Thailand and South Africa, among other destinations.

But it sparked criticism because of the funding of her police protection during her travels which was said to have cost about £100,000.

At one point, Eugenie and two friends had to be whisked to safety by bodyguards when one friend was targeted by muggers in Cambodia.

She chose Newcastle for university, joined in with freshers week, lived in £96-a-week halls and then in a student house with seven female friends, and managed to complete her degree under the radar.

She graduated with a 2:1 in combined studies of English, history of art and politics, and is now is a director at the contemporary art gallery Hauser & Wirth in London.

The princess is passionate about art, and cites Jean-Michel Basquiat, the pioneering prodigy of the 1980s New York art scene, as a hero.

She is also patron of several charities including the Elephant Family, the Teenage Cancer Trust, the Coronet Theatre and The European School of Osteopathy.

Royal visit to Alder Hey Hospital
Eugenie talks to Louise Buckley, from Liverpool, during a visit to the Teenage Cancer Trust ward at Alder Hey Hospital (Peter Byrne/PA)

Eugenie posed for fashion magazine Harper’s Bazaar, and shared the secrets of a day in her life, revealing she shops at Waitrose, does her make-up in the car, finds heels tricky to walk in and likes to watch zombie drama The Walking Dead.

She listed chips, Diet Coke and cashew nuts as her indulgences, and vodka with soda and lime as her favourite tipple.

Her romance with Stowe-educated Jack Brooksbank, a brand manager for George Clooney’s tequila firm, began after they fell in love at first sight on a ski trip.

Eugenie is close to both her parents, calling them Mumsy and Papa.

She recently launched her own Instagram account, delighting royal fans with snaps from her past.

In one she poked fun at an image of her as a youngster “stifling a yawn on the steps of St Paul’s in a full pink suit”.

But she is not a full-time working royal and taxpayers no longer fund police protection for Eugenie and Beatrice – a cost that was the source of criticism for many years.

The bill is now paid by their father from his private income.

Andrew issued a rare statement in 2016 saying there was “no truth” in rumours of a rift between him and the Prince of Wales over his daughters’ participation as members of the royal family.

The duke said: “It is a complete fabrication to suggest I have asked for any future husbands of the princesses to have titles.

“There is no truth to the story that there could be a split between the Prince of Wales and I over my daughters’ participation as members of the royal family and any continued speculation is pointless.”

Andrew’s response came after reports claimed he would seek to persuade the Queen or Charles to make any future son-in-laws earls.

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