by Susan Flantzer
Jack Brooksbank and Princess Eugenie of York; Photo Credit – https://twitter.com/RoyalFamily
On January 22, 2018, Buckingham Palace announced the engagement of Princess Eugenie of York and Jack Brooksbank. Princess Eugenie is a granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and the younger of the two daughters of Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York. Jack and Eugenie were introduced by mutual friends in 2010 during a skiing holiday in Verbier, Switzerland. The couple dated for seven years before becoming engaged.
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Jack and Princess Eugenie in 2010
Born on May 3, 1986, Jack Brooksbank is the elder of the two sons of George Brooksbank, an accountant and company director, and the former Nicola Newton. He has a younger brother Thomas born in 1988. Jack attended Stowe School, an exclusive independent school in Stowe, Buckinghamshire, England.
Jack skipped university and started working in the hospitality trade. He first worked in pubs including the Admiral Codrington in Chelsea, London then got a job at the trendy restaurant, the Markham Inn, also in the Chelsea area of London, which has since closed. Then Jack worked as the manager of the nightclub Mahiki in Mayfair, London, frequented by the younger royals. Currently, he is the brand ambassador of Casamigos Tequila, which was co-founded by George Clooney, Rande Gerber, and Mike Meldman. In 2017, Jack set up a wholesale company for the sale of wine, beer, and other alcoholic beverage called Jack Brooksbank Limited.
Jack and Eugenie are third cousins twice removed via their mutual descent from Thomas Coke, 2nd Earl of Leicester. Eugenie’s mother Sarah, Duchess of York is the great-great-granddaughter of Lady Julia Coke, the daughter of Thomas Coke, 2nd Earl of Leicester who is Jack’s great-great-grandfather. For more information about Jack Brooksbank’s ancestors see Marlene Koenig’s 2016 article at Royal Musings: Perhaps an engagement…
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Jack and his future mother-in-law Sarah, Duchess of York at the 2017 Royal Ascot