What did Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie do during the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II
that is still serving as a point of confusion for the people that noticed?
Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice weren't able to make it to Balmoral to say goodbye
to their grandmother before she died, according to Hello!
magazine, but in the days leading up to the queen's funeral, they dutifully put in appearances
at numerous events honoring her life.
But their surprising exit from an event is what had Twitter in a tizzy.
Beatrice and Eugenie simultaneously vacated their seats at Queen Elizabeth's state funeral
at Westminster Abbey on September 19.
The two sisters left before their grandmother's coffin was carried out down the aisle.
They were also not seated together.
Beatrice and her husband, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, were on one side of the aisle, while
Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, were on the other.
When the princesses left, their husbands did not join them.
One viewer tweeted,
"Did you notice before [the] end of [the service] that Eugenie & Beatrice stepped away from
their seats and did not walk out at the end with their respective husbands?"
Others suggested that Sarah Ferguson looked like she wanted to join her daughters, but
didn't.
One tweet noted,
"Looked unscheduled.
Beatrice, then Eugenie and nearly Fergie but she was told to stay out."
While there were jokes aplenty that they possibly needed to use the ladies' room, there was
video evidence to support a different explanation.
A Twitter user noted,
"They seemed to be waiting at the Abbey entrance and curtsied when the coffin went past."
Footage from the funeral confirms they did just that.
While the reasons for Beatrice and Eugenie's exit are still unclear, it was certainly no
sign of disrespect for their grandmother.
Beatrice and Eugenie, the daughters of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, shared a close
bond with their grandmother, and what Eugenie said in the documentary "Our Queen At 90"
about the queen's life at Balmoral Castle in Scotland may bring mourners some comfort.
"I think Granny is the most happy there.
I think she really, really loves the highlands."
After the queen's death on September 8, 2022, Eugenie and Beatrice shared a joint message.
It read in part,
"Thank you for making us laugh, for including us, for picking heather and raspberries, for
marching soldiers, for our teas, for comfort, for joy."
Beatrice, in particular, has honored Queen Elizabeth many times over the past few years.
For instance, she named her daughter Sienna Elizabeth Mapelli Mozzi.
People notes that Sienna celebrated her first birthday one day before Queen Elizabeth's
funeral.
While the little girl is likely too young to know this milestone came during a time
of mourning, it's hard not to imagine that it had an emotional impact on her mother.
Beatrice also paid tribute to the queen when she got married in July 2020.
In addition to wearing one of her grandmother's gowns, she borrowed Queen Mary's diamond-encrusted
fringe tiara, which is the same sparkly headwear that Her Majesty chose for her own 1947 wedding,
according to Harper's Bazaar.
Beatrice's love for her grandmother was also evident after the monarch was laid to rest
at St. George's Chapel.
According to Express, Beatrice seemed to get emotional outside the chapel, prompting her
husband and mother to do their best to comfort her.
All of the queen's grandchildren, including Beatrice and Eugenie, participated in a September
17 vigil at Westminster Hall.
Along with Zara Tindall and Lady Louise Windsor, the sisters became the first-ever female grandchildren
of a king or queen to stand vigil while they were lying in state, according to Hello!.
Beatrice and Eugenie are not working royals, but they both moved up in the line of succession
upon the death of Queen Elizabeth.
As the older sister, Beatrice earned a special distinction: she became one of King Charles
III's counsellors of state, which means she could be asked to perform certain duties on
the king's behalf if he is ever unable to do so.
However, Charles is reportedly considering removing all non-working royals from their
positions as counsellors of state, and if he goes through with getting the law changed,
that would mean Beatrice, her father Prince Andrew, and Prince Harry would lose their
eligibility to hold the position.
It's unclear how Beatrice would feel about this, but according to a report by The Telegraph,
Andrew was trying to convince Queen Elizabeth to make Beatrice and Eugenie working royals
before her death.