Overview

• Andrew Lownie’s biography, Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, uses four years of research to detail Ferguson’s fiscal excess following her 1992 separation
• By 1994 her debts had surpassed £3.7 million as she splurged on staff, luxury holidays and high-end shopping beyond her resources
• Palace records confirm Queen Elizabeth II covered multiple six-figure sums, including settling a £500,000 Coutts demand in April 1994
• A 1996 Buckingham Palace statement formally ended royal financial responsibility and directed Ferguson to resolve her debts privately
• The book reveals how Ferguson leveraged her royal status to rack up unpaid accounts at Harrods and hotels and lent her name to several ventures that later collapsed