The Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York, will become the new owners of Queen Elizabeth II’s beloved corgis following her death.
The Queen died on Thursday in Balmoral Castle at the age of 96, leaving behind two dogs.
A spokesperson for Prince Andrew said he and Sarah will take on the animals, named Muick and Sandy. Both dogs were gifted to the late monarch by the prince.
The Queen was famously a big fan of the breed and owned more than 30 corgis during her lifetime.
In early 2021, she was given two new puppies, one corgi and one dorgi, a corgi-dachsund mixed breed.
The dogs were gifted to the monarch while she was staying in Windsor during lockdown to keep her entertained while the Duke of Edinburgh was in hospital.
They also arrived as Buckingham Palace and the royal family were dealing with bombshell claims made by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, which rocked the monarchy.
The Queen named the dorgi Fergus after an uncle, her mother’s brother, Fergus Bowes-Lyon, who was killed in World War I in 1915.
She named the corgi Muick, after a favourite spot near Balmoral Castle, where she traditionally spent her summers.
However, the late monarch was left devastated after the five-month-old Fergus died just weeks after she received him – shortly after Prince Philip also died, in April 2021.
The Queen in 1980 with some of her corgis walking the cross country course during the second day of the Windsor Horse Trials (PA)
(PA Wire)
He was later replaced with a new corgi puppy from Andrew and Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie for her official 95th birthday, who the Queen named Sandy.
Her dresser Angela Kelly said the puppies were a constant source of joy.
According to The Telegraph, a source close to Prince Andrew said: “The duchess bonded with Her Majesty over dog-walking and riding horses and even after her divorce, she would continue her great friendship with Her Majesty, by walking the dogs in Frogmore and chatting.”
Andrew appeared in the public eye on Saturday for the first time since his father’s memorial service in March this year.
The duke attended a prayer service for the Queen at Crathie Kirk near Balmoral alongside other members of the royal family, including his daughters.
The Queen has owned more than 30 corgis during her lifetime
(AFP via Getty Images)
He thanked people for visiting Balmoral and said in a short speech: “We’ve been allowed one day, now we start the process of handing [the Queen] on.”
He added: “It’s nice to see you, thank you for coming.”
Andrew’s appearance comes after he lost his role as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards, along with other military titles and royal patronages in January.
He stepped down from public life over his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and after he paid millions to settle a civil sexual assault case brought against him by Virginia Giuffre.
The duke vehemently denies all allegations against him and has consistently claimed he has never met Ms Giuffre.
He reached a £10m settlement with her in February, including damages to Ms Giuffre and a donation to charity to stop the case proceeding to a civil trial.
