King Charles has stripped Andrew of his Prince and Duke of York titles after weeks of pressure from the public to act over his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
Buckingham Palace considers that there have been “serious lapses of judgment” from Andrew after further allegations of sexual abuse were detailed in Virginia Giuffre’s memoir last week. Andrew strenousouly has denied all allegations.
He has also been evicted from the Royal Lodge and will move to a property on the Sandringham Estate.
What titles has he formally been lost?
Andrew will no longer have his Prince or Duke of York title, and will be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, effectively having the status of a commoner.
He was born with his prince title and given the title of the Duke of York by his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, on the morning of his wedding. It was a title for which the Queen had a great personal affection, being the one held by her beloved father, King George VI, before he acceded the throne.
A statement from the palace on Thursday said: “His Majesty has today initiated a formal process to remove the Style, Titles and Honours of Prince Andrew.
“These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him.
Which titles did he relinquish earlier this month?
Earlier this month, Andrew was forced to relinquish the use of his duke title – the highest rank in the British peerage – amid the long-running fallout of the Epstein scandal. Up until Thursday, he still retained the title, but was unable to use it.
He also had to give up his knighthood as a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO), and his Garter role as a Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.
The disgraced prince was also no longer using his other subsidiary titles that were given to him on his wedding day – the Earl of Inverness and Baron Killyleagh.
In a statement at the time, he said: “I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.
“With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.”
Which titles did he lose in 2022?
While Andrew has now relinquished and been stripped of his last remaining titles and honours, he first ceased some of his titles in 2022.
He stopped using the style of His Royal Highness (HRH) in an official capacity in January 2022, amid a civil case with Mrs Giuffre, which he eventually paid millions to settle.
All of Andrew’s military titles and royal patronages were also returned to his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth, including Colonel of the Grenadier Guards, which is one of the highest infantry regiments in the British Army, and he lost most of his charity affiliations.
Often touted to be the Queen’s favourite child, he was stripped of more than 12 military titles in total, including overseas honorary titles such as colonel-in-chief of The Royal Highland Fusiliers of Canada, and colonel-in-chief of the Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment.
Andrew stepped down from public life in 2019 after a disastrous interview on Newsnight, in which he said he “did not regret” his friendship with Mr Epstein, who had trafficked Ms Giuffre.
He announced at the time he would be “stepping back from public duties for the foreseeable future.”
Sarah Ferguson, his ex-wife, whas also relinquished her title as the Duchess of York, while the titles of his daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, will remain active.
The stripping of Andrew’s last remaining titles and honours comes after weeks of pressure to act over Andrew’s relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
An extract of Virginia Giuffre‘s memoir was released last week, in which Ms Giuffre, who was the central figure in the downfall of Mr Epstein, laid out new details about the prince. She claimed that Andrew believed having sex with her was “his birthright.”
Prince Andrew has always vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.independent.co.uk ’
