The original idea of this article was just a list of snappy little facts and trivia about the Duchess of York. However, as I began to write, each section just expanded with extra information and with my own thoughts and opinions - this is the effect Sarah has on me - pushing me on and inspiring my creativity!! So it's longer than originally intended, but I hope you enjoy it...
1. Royal ancestry
Sarah can trace her ancestry back through 11 generations to King Charles II (above) through his illegitimate son, Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond. She is also related to the Royal family through her paternal grandmother, Marian Montagu Douglas Scott, the first cousin of Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, an aunt of the Queen.
(I don't know how this relates her to Prince Andrew - x cousin, x removed etc. - if anyone can help, please drop me a line!)
2. American connection
She is also the seventh cousin, seven times removed of the sixth U.S. President, John Quincy Adams (above).
In fact, the Duchess has often talked of her love for the USA and the way that her American fans supported her in the toughest times of her life!
3. Polo playmates
Sarah and Andrew actually knew each other as children, and would play together at polo matches (Sarah's father was a polo manager for the Duke of Edinburgh). But they lost touch until meeting again at Royal Ascot in 1985.
4.Worldwide wedding
Half a billion people around the world watched the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of York on TV! And 100,000 people gathered outside Buckingham Palace to witness them kissing on the balcony!
6. Green for Ireland
Sarah is proud of her Irish ancestry! She told Piers Morgan in a 2018 interview that she wore green at Princess Eugenie' s wedding "for Ireland"! Her maternal great-grandfather was Mervyn Wingfield, 8th Viscount Powerscourt. The Viscounts of Powerscourt used to own the magnificent Powerscourt estate near Dublin (see picture below).
7. The bee and the thistle
Sarah's family coat of arms shows a thistle and a bumblebee, and the motto "ex adversis felicitas crescit" (from adversity grows happiness) - highly appropriate, considering the way she has overcome so much adversity in her life, to achieve the happiness she seems to be enjoying now!
These heraldic devices of the thistle and bumblebee were worked by designer Lindka Cierach into the embroidery of her beautiful, iconic wedding gown!
8. Author, author
The Duchess is an incredibly talented and prolific author, and has written (by my estimate) around 50 books!! (It's hard to find a definitive list of all of them).
These include her children's stories, featuring charachers she created, like Budgie the Little Helicopter, Little Red and Ballerina Rosie. Then, there are her autobiographical / self-help books like "Finding Sarah" or "What I Know Now". She has even produced a beautiful coffee table book of her photographs ("Moments") and a recipe book ("Dining with the Duchess").
9. Escape to the slopes
The Duchess loves skiing and has often talked of how much she loves "the freedom of the mountains". Her favourite place to ski is the exclusive Swiss resort of Verbier, where she has been going year after year since her early 20s. After marrying Prince Andrew, she and husband often joined the Prince and Princess of Wales in Klosters (also in Switzerland) or again in Verbier. When the stress got too much, Sarah would often feel the need to escape to the mountains, and she always had friends in Verbier. As she says in her autobiography, "skiing kept me sane".
And from a family perspective, ever since Beatrice and Eugenie were little, skiing has been one of the most important ways for the Yorks to have fun together. That's why, in 2016, Andrew and Sarah made a joint $17m purchase of a luxury ski chalet in Verbier, for them and their daughters to enjoy regular getaways to the show!
10. My kingdom for a horse
The other sport that Sarah loves is horse riding. Ever since her childhood she has loved her equine companions. In "My Story" she writes: "Many are the things I love about horses: the are large and safe and they never answer back. I love the way they smell [and] ... their loyalty, their consistency, their companionship".
In 1996, she completed the gruelling Qatar Horse Marathon. You can read her story of this amazing achievement here: https://www.chickensoup.com/book-story/48387/a-duchess-in-the-desert
11. Flying with Budgie
Inspired by her naval helicopter pilot husband, the Duchess gained her chopper pilot licence in 1988, making her the first female Royal to hold a pilot's licence of any kind. In December 2018, she tweeted her intention to renew it in 2019!
And of course it was her helicopter lessons that inspired her most famous children's books! That vivid, fertile imagination of hers transformed her aircraft into a character with a name and a personality: Budgie the Little Helicopter!
12. Portrait of the Duchess
In 2014, Sarah had her portrait painted by Dutch artist Christian Hook (above). Mr. Hook is a highly talented artist who has also painted the likes of HRH the Earl of Wessex, Sir Alex Ferguson and Sir Ian McKellan. Personally, I think he achieved something truly stunning - her face is perfectly captured and her red hair... well, we use the expression "flame-haired" and that really is the effect we see here. For me, this painting seems to catch something of her energy and spirit - it's beautiful!
13. Royal love ...and creativity!
But the Duchess has not only inspired art, but - alongside Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie - she actually helped to create it! In 2016 the three York ladies collaborated with artist Teddy M to create a painting called "Royal Love" (see below). You can see that all three of them have included little details, inspiring personal messages and their signatures on the painting. I think it's fascinating to see the different elements of creativity that each of them brought to the project! (Sarah is also a talented photographer and watercolour artist).
14. "I'll be there for you..."
In 1998, the Duchess appeared on one of the all-time best ever sitcoms, the wonderful "Friends"! You can see the clip here: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.refinery29.com/amp/en-us/2018/10/213624/sarah-ferguson-friends-cameo
Apparently, she was really nervous when they filmed the scene, as Beatrice and Eugenie were big fans of the show. But Matt Le Blanc and Matthew Perry were really supportive and helped her go through the lines!
This cameo put the Duchess in exalted company, since the show also featured guest appearances by megastars such as Brad Pitt, Winona Ryder, George Clooney, Susan Sarandon and so many more!
"Friends" was one of my absolute favourite shows (I still love it!) so you can imagine my joy and pride to see them honour my idol with a cameo! I remember watching that episode for the first time - I was so excited!
If I could choose a current TV show for Sarah to pop up on... it would have to be "Doctor Who"! Seeing her alongside the wonderful Jodie Whittaker would be a dream!
15. Growing up in Jane Austen country
Sarah grew up in the village of Dummer, Hampshire - in "Jane Austen country", very close to Steventon, where Jane was born! The author would certainly have known Dummer well (she had friends there) and may have been to weddings at Dummer's historical church. By the way, it's an absolutely beautiful village, an easy trip from London, and can't have changed much since Jane Austen's days!
To me, this kind of upbringing that Sarah (and most of Austen's heroines) had - the country house, horses, picturesque villages, miles of open fields - seems so charming and idyllic! (Sarah's childhood home is pictured above). Perhaps because it's so different from my own childhood - I grew up in an average semi-detached house in a working class residential area in a small Nothern town.
So Sarah's childhood seems very "Austen", and for me she has a lot in common with one of my favourite literary characters, Elizabeth Bennett! Both are strong, intelligent, independently minded women who take no nonsense from anyone, and they both ended up with a dream marriage to a handsome man with a high status in society! Of course, that makes Prince Andrew her "Mr. Darcy", and I don't think Sarah would disagree - she's always been proud of her "handsome prince"!
