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Prince Andrew will be stripped of his royal titles<\/a>, meaning he will no longer be called \u201cprince\u201d or \u201cHis Royal Highness\u201d.<\/p>\n A statement<\/a> from Buckingham Palace said:<\/p>\n His Majesty has today initiated a formal process to remove the style, titles and honours of Prince Andrew. <\/p>\n Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor [\u2026] These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The statement also noted Andrew will have to leave his current home, Royal Lodge, and move to alternative private accommodation.<\/p>\n These moves follow allegations, which Andrew continues to \u201cvigorously deny<\/a>\u201d, surrounding his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.<\/p>\n But how can a prince \u2013 who is, after all, the son of a queen \u2013 be stripped of the title \u201cprince\u201d? <\/p>\n Here\u2019s how it works \u2013 and what it might mean for succession.<\/p>\n This is within the remit of the monarch, Charles III. The monarch issues an official document called a letters patent<\/a>. <\/p>\n They are typically used to grant a title or a right, but this is doing the opposite: withdrawing it from Andrew.<\/p>\n There are precedents for monarchs removing titles in this way. When Diana and Charles divorced, she lost the use of \u201cHer Royal Highness\u201d<\/a>, as did Sarah Ferguson, the former wife of Andrew. So a royal losing their title doesn\u2019t always have to be scandalous or unusual.<\/p>\n But what\u2019s not happened yet \u2013 because it\u2019s not within the remit of the king \u2013 is the removal of Andrew\u2019s position as eighth in line to the throne. <\/p>\n That requires parliamentary legislation to do \u2013 and not just the Westminster parliament, either.<\/p>\n To do that, the Westminster parliament would have to introduce a bill and pass it. However, the move would also require virtually identical legislation in all of the Commonwealth parliaments (such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada and so on).<\/p>\n That\u2019s not beyond the realm of possibility.<\/p>\n A bit over a decade ago, with what came to be known as the Perth agreements, the Commonwealth parliaments agreed to change the rules around succession and gender. No longer would older princesses be leapfrogged by younger brothers to get a spot on the throne.<\/p>\n It happened very smoothly, so it is certainly possible for all Commonwealth parliaments to agree to coordinate on something. However, the Westminster parliament cannot instruct other parliaments to pass such legislation.<\/p>\n So, could all the Commonwealth parliaments coordinate to remove Andrew from the line of succession? I have not seen any mention of this in media reports so far, but I would be highly surprised if this didn\u2019t happen in future.<\/p>\n It seems incompatible that Andrew would lose his title and still be in line for succession. <\/p>\n <\/a> By custom, yes, the son of a queen is known as a prince. But as we have seen, that title can be removed.<\/p>\n The best example is in 1936, when King Edward VIII abdicated<\/a> so as to marry divorcee Wallis Simpson, and he lost the title of king.<\/p>\n He was thereafter no longer entitled to the title \u201cHis Royal Highness\u201d and he got a new title: Duke of Windsor. He had some prestige, but was no longer entitled to use his royal title.<\/p>\n Edward VIII (who was also Andrew\u2019s great uncle) did not have any children. But if he had, they wouldn\u2019t have been entitled to inherit the throne. <\/p>\n And that was an actual reigning king, not just a prince.<\/p>\n\n
How do you actually strip a prince of his titles?<\/h2>\n
\n AP Photo\/Joanna Chan, File<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\nBut is the son of the queen not always a prince?<\/h2>\n
Acting in a moment of crisis<\/h2>\n