Sarah Ferguson has said that royal titles 'don't make you the person you are' in an apparent dig at Meghan Markle following the row over their children's names.
In a new interview with the Independent, The Duchess of York spoke openly about her life in The Firm and expressed her sympathy for King Charles as he navigates frictions between his son Harry and the rest of the family.
She also passed comment on the importance of royal titles - only weeks after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at last had Archie and Lilibet's changed.
Since last month, the two children are now listed on the Royal Family as Prince Archie of Sussex and Princess Lilibet of Sussex.
Previously they featured on the line of succession page as Master Archie Mountbatten-Windsor and Miss Lilibet Mountbatten-Windsor.
Lilibet, one, and her older brother Archie, three, weren't given HRH titles at birth due to their position on the line of succession in sixth and seventh, respectively.
But a statement from Meghan and Harry later described their title as a "birthright", and they were given the new titles shortly after being baptised in the US.
While avoiding any direct criticism and saying that she doesn't judge other people, Fergie did offer her own experience about whether she ever thought about Princess Beatrice and Egenie's titles when they were young, commenting: “I didn’t think about it, then. And I don’t think about it now,”
“I believe that the title doesn’t make you the person you are. I believe that true humility comes from your heart.”
But the Duchess revealed that she also related to the Sussex couple's difficulties with the media, saying she had "struggled" herself after marrying into the Royal Family back in the 1980s and admitting the pressure is likely worse in the age of social media.
She however refused to be drawn on Prince Harry's comments in his memoir about the hardships he has experienced as a 'spare' to the throne, commenting that she would need to research the experiences of similar people in royal history before she gave her opinion.
Sarah also discussed how she along with children Beatrice and Eugenie had reacted to the impact of the allegations against ex-husband Prince Andrew, saying the three of them had "helped their father through a very tricky time".
