Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie have had a 'stability' in their lives that William and Harry haven't, according to royal biographer

Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie

It's fair to say that Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, and their cousins Prince William and Prince Harry, have led very different lives - despite being members of the same family.

The two sets of siblings both call the Queen their grandmother, but their experiences growing up have been very different.

And now, royal biographer Ingrid Seward has revealed in a new issue of PEOPLE magazine that Harry and William's turbulent childhood has meant that Beatrice and Eugenie have had a stability the two boys saw little of.

She said, “Beatrice and Eugenie have had a stability that William and Harry have found painfully lacking in their lives. Although their early childhood was not good, those girls have had a very secure upbringing.”

MORE:Baby Archie’s christening details reportedly revealed as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle go down traditional route

Of course, Princes Harry and William dealt with a heartbreaking tragedy at a young age, the death of their mother, Princess Diana. So it's no surprise that their lives were uprooted in a way Beatrice and Eugenie never experienced.

But the lives of the royal cousins mirror each other in the breakdown of their parent's marriages - Princess Diana and Prince Charles divorced in August 1996, while Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson's relationship came to an end that same year.

While Diana and Charles' marriage ended somewhat turbulently, with Diana speaking out publicly against her ex-husband, Prince Andrew and Fergie have managed to carve out a strong friendship in the years since their split.

(Image credit: PA Archive/PA Images)

Seward added, “The girls love that their parents get on so well.” You can see the history of Prince Andrew and Fergie's relationship here...

But of course, there's no doubt that Harry and William were adored by their mother, with pictures proving that they enjoyed a joy-filled childhood before her untimely death. They've also always had a close relationship with Prince Charles too.

The Princesses lives have without doubt veered off in a different direction to that of Princes William and Harry in the years since their childhood. While the Dukes are compelled to carry out official royal duties in support of the Queen, and their father, Prince Charles, Beatrice and Eugenie have been able to establish private lives outside of the monarchy.

MORE:Princess Eugenie shared a previously unseen wedding photo showing sweet moment with Prince Andrew

While Beatrice works in business, Eugenie is director of London art gallery Hauser & Wirth. However, the sister do regularly complete charitable work, and attend royal events - such as Royal Ascot - in support of the Queen, and their dad, Prince Andrew.

But Prince Harry and Prince William appear to be more settled than ever - with the pair now having happy family's of their own.

Amy Hunt

Amy Hunt is an experienced digital journalist specialising in homes, interiors and hobbies. She began her career working as the features assistant at woman&home magazine, before moving over to the digital side of the brand where she eventually became the Lifestyle Editor up until January 2022. Amy won the Digital Journalist of the Year award at the AOP Awards in 2019 for her work on womanandhome.com.