Sarah Ferguson has broken 'major bond of trust' with Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice

Sarah Ferguson is likely to have broken "a major bond of trust" with daughters Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice, it is said.

The Duke and Duchess of York have become engulfed in the latest crisis as it emerged Sarah, 65, sent an email to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein calling him a "supreme friend". She has since been dropped by seven charities, including Teenage Cancer Trust, British Heart Foundation and Children's Literacy Charity.

In the fawning email, the Duchess of York apologised to Epstein for disowning him in the media in 2011 but, after this communication came to light this week, Fergie claimed she had actually been trying to protect Beatrice and Eugenie, who were in their early 20s at the time.

As the scandal continues to unfold, a royal expert has said the sisters will have "as many questions as the rest of us" about her mum's relationship with the disgraced paedophile. The insider said: "Revelations that their mother was much closer to Epstein, and for longer than claimed, will break a major bond of trust. Exactly what hold did Epstein have over her? Are there more skeletons hidden? The girls will have as many questions as the rest of us."

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The Duchess of York has faced fierce criticism for her behaviour, including from one source who said she showed "craven greed" and "shameless grovelling" which betrays many of Epstein's victims. Sarah's spokesman insisted she sent her email after a" chilling call" in which a "menacing and nasty" Epstein threatened to "destroy the York family" in "a Hannibal Lecter-type voice".

But it is unclear which view Beatrice and Eugenie have taken as, in recent years, they have, publicly at least, appeared to distance themselves from dad Prince Andrew amid allegations he had sex with Virginia Giuffre when she was 17. The Duke of York denies this.

The princesses knew Epstein as "nice" Jeffrey, though, it is claimed today. Beatrice and Eugenie were little girls when, in around 1998, they went to the financier's private Caribbean island, Little St James, with their parents on holiday.

It is reported bolthole was later dubbed "Paedo Island" on account of the debauched sex parties and orgies held there and often attended by underage teenage girls. Epstein was awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges when he was discovered dead in a New York prison cell in 2019, apparently having ended his own life.

While Beatrice and Eugenie have appeared to distance themselves from Andrew in the years since, their bond with their mum has seemingly been close. However, the duchess' lies - exposed this week in the press - have left her daughters with questions, reports Daily Mail.

Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine, told the publication: "They probably knew what a state she was in when that email was sent 14 years ago. I think their first instinct will be to protect her. They've got no alternative but to support her even though they've already had to put up with a lot."