In just a matter of hours on Thursday, Prince Andrew was cut loose from the royal family, stripped of his status and henceforth to be called Andrew Mountbatten Windsor.
His abruptly-formed new life, without titles and banished to the King’s Norfolk home, is a dramatic contrast to the position he was born into as the favourite son of the late Queen – and with his shocking years-long public downfall now finally complete, he will reportedly be in “hell”.
“I think it will be pretty well a living hell for him, given his particular fondness for titles and his entitled attitude,” royal author Richard Fitzwilliams told The Guardian, adding that even before his latest round of scandal, his public image was in tatters.
“One of the troubles with him is that he has proven to be so greedy.
“People see him as entitled, greedy and also unbelievably bovine because of that extraordinary Newsnight interview.”
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The King’s decision to strip his brother of his titles and honours and formally evict him from his sprawling Royal Lodge in Windsor on Thursday amid mounting pressure over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein was nothing short of utter humiliation for Andrew.
The last time a title was removed was 106 years ago, when the Dukes of Cumberland and Albany were penalised for fighting for Germany in World War One.
Andrew has now broken that lengthy streak, joining the ranks of historic dishonour.
Moment that saw King finally snap
Pressure had been mounting slowly for years, then seemingly all at once in recent weeks as public calls for further action to be taken on Andrew grew louder.
He was infamously accused of having had sexual encounters with the late Virginia Giuffre, one of which she alleged occurred when she was just 17 years old, while she was being sex trafficked by Epstein.
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Andrew has always denied any allegations of wrongdoing.
With the release of Ms Giuffre’s posthumous memoir in October, which coincided with the leak of damaging emails from Andrew regarding his ties to convicted sex offender Epstein and the revelation that he had not paid rent on his palatial home in 22 years, the scrutiny reached unprecedented levels.
In a statement released two weeks ago via Buckingham Palace, designed to put a stop to the fallout, Andrew offered to give up the “use” of his Duke of York title so as to no longer “distract” from the royal family’s work.
His effort completely and utterly failed – and never was that more evident than in footage taken during the King’s visit to Staffordshire for an engagement at Lichfield Cathedral this week.
As he greeted members of the public, one voice could clearly be heard ringing out, demanding answers on the Andrew scandal.
“How long have you known about Andrew and Epstein? Have you asked the police to cover up for Andrew? Should MPs be allowed to debate the royals in the House of Commons?” the protester called out.
Royals are well-versed in smoothing over protest moments, but although the King’s smile and greetings to wellwishers didn’t falter in front of the cameras, according to the Mirror, that scene was what saw him finally swing the axe on Andrew.
“His Majesty has today initiated a formal process to remove the style, titles and honours of Prince Andrew. Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor,” read the official statement released via Buckingham Palace on Thursday.
“His lease on Royal Lodge has, to date, provided him with legal protection to continue in residence.
“Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease and he will move to alternative private accommodation.
“These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him.
“Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse.”
It came just 13 days after Andrew’s initial public message, offering to voluntarily fall on his sword in order to support the monarchy. This second statement could not have told a more different story.
“The King has judged the public mood and acted swiftly,” a royal source told the Mirror. “The situation could simply not be allowed to carry for one day longer, simply enough was enough. This was his way of saying he understood and had listened to the people.”
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.news.com.au ’
