 "Britain's King Charles has stripped Andrew, his younger brother, of his prince title and ordered him to leave Royal Lodge. File image/Reuters")
He was born a prince — into a life of royal privilege as the son of the late Queen Elizabeth II. However, on Thursday (October 30), Britain’s King Charles III stripped his younger brother Andrew of his royal titles, including prince, and ousted him from his long-term residence on the Windsor estate.
“Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor,” Buckingham Palace said, adding King Charles had begun the formal process to remove all his brother’s titles.
The King’s decision comes after weeks of fresh revelations over Andrew’s relationship with the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew continues to deny the allegations against him.
But what does this move mean for Andrew? What all does the former prince lose after being stripped of this title? Will he be given any perks of a royal now?
What exactly has happened now to Andrew?
On Thursday, Buckingham Palace announced that Andrew would be stripped of his prince title and he would have to evict his residence at the Royal Lodge.
In an unprecedented move, the Palace said: “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. 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,” the statement continued.
“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.”
The abuse that the statement refers to comes from 65-year-old Andrew’s friendship with the late convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein that reached a new intensity after the release of a posthumous memoir by Virginia Giuffre , who alleged that Andrew had sexually assaulted her as a teenager.
The title of prince being stripped comes just weeks after Andrew voluntarily gave up his other royal titles , including the Duke of York. On October 17, Andrew said he would stop using the titles because the “continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family”. “I vigorously deny the accusations against me,” he said.
Why has this happened now?
While King Charles’ move to strip Andrew of his prince title is unprecedented, it is not completely shocking.
Andrew has been engulfed in the Epstein scandal for a while and Virginia Guiffre’s posthumous memoir has only compounded his woes. In her book, Guiffre reiterated in shocking detail allegations that she was trafficked to have sex with Andrew three times, including twice when she was only 17.
In one extract from Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice by Virginia Roberts Giuffre, she wrote about her encounter with Andrew: “He was friendly enough, but still entitled – as if he believed having sex with me was his birthright. I drew him a hot bath. We disrobed and got in the tub, but didn’t stay there long because the prince was eager to get to the bed. He was particularly attentive to my feet, caressing my toes and licking my arches. That was a first for me, and it tickled. I was nervous he would want me to do the same to him. But I needn’t have worried. He seemed in a rush to have intercourse. Afterward, he said thank you in his clipped British accent. In my memory, the whole thing lasted less than half an hour.”
But this wasn’t the end of it. Andrew was at the receiving end of more outrage after it emerged last week that he paid $1 million for Royal Lodge , and only a peppercorn rent “if demanded” each year since then, according to his lease agreement.
A BBC report states that Prince William pushed for this action against Andrew. “I think this line had to be drawn and William was probably pushing for the King to do so,” said BBC’s former royal correspondent Jennie Bond. “William is about to go to Brazil on a very important tour - and the recent tour by the King and Queen to the Vatican was very nearly overshadowed by what was going on with Andrew, and that could not be allowed to continue.”
So, what all does Andrew lose now?
Firstly, Andrew loses all of his titles. This includes Prince, Duke of York, Earl of Inverness, Baron Killyleagh. He will no longer have the right to be called His Royal Highness. The honours of Order of the Garter and Knight Grand Cross of the Victorian Order will also be removed.
To do this, the King will send Royal warrants to the Lord Chancellor, who is David Lammy, to officially remove them.
Andrew will also lose residence at the Royal Lodge. Reports say that the former prince will move to Sandringham Estate in Norfolk. This isn’t too shabby a residence — it’s spread over 8,000 hectares and is often used to host family engagements, including Christmas. Sandringham was once a beloved retreat of Queen Elizabeth and is now a favourite of King Charles and Queen Camilla.
It has also been reported that Andrew’s accommodation will be privately funded by the British monarch.
Does Andrew get any perks?
But despite being stripped of his titles and being asked to move out, Andrew will retain two perks of being a royal.
He remains in the line of succession . He is eighth in line for the throne, according to Buckingham Palace, after Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis, Prince Harry, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
This remains because of his birthright. To remove him from the line of succession would require an act of British parliament. Moreover, it would also require the consent of the 14 other countries where Charles is King, including Canada.
Andrew is also still a Counsellor of State on paper. Counsellors of State are authorised to carry out most of the official duties of the Sovereign, such as attending Privy Council meetings, signing routine documents and receiving the credentials of new ambassadors to the United Kingdom.
However, Andrew won’t be able to act in the role because a 2022 law states that Counsellors of State to be working members of the Royal Family.
What comes next for Andrew and the royals?
According to royal family experts, Andrew will be shun from events and public life. He already isn’t invited for royal events — his presence is limited to private, family events, such as funerals or memorials.
But many want further action to be taken against Andrew. The anti-monarchy group Republic said it would launch a private prosecution against Andrew “over accusations of sexual offenses and misconduct in public office.”
“Let’s be very clear, Prince Andrew – now Andrew Mountbatton Windsor – is not facing justice. He’s not being held to account. Losing silly titles is not an answer to very serious accusations of sexual offenses and corruption in public office,” Graham Smith, chief executive of Republic, said Thursday following the palace’s announcement.
It’s still to be seen what comes next for the British royals. Historian and author Andrew Lownie told BBC that this “isn’t the end of it for the royals”. The Palace is “finally taking some decisive action” — but it “won’t completely satisfy the public disquiet”.
With inputs from agencies