LONDON (Realist English). King Charles III has stripped his brother Prince Andrew of his remaining royal titles and evicted him from his residence at Royal Lodge, marking the most severe royal censure in over a century.
In a statement released Thursday, Buckingham Palace said the king had “initiated a formal process to remove the Style, Titles, and Honours of Prince Andrew.” Following the decision, Andrew will now be known simply as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, and will relocate to private accommodation on the Sandringham estate.
The move comes amid renewed scrutiny over Andrew’s friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and new sexual abuse allegations from Virginia Roberts Giuffre, whose posthumous memoir Nobody’s Girl was published last week.
The palace called the king’s decision “necessary,” adding that it reflected “serious lapses of judgment” on Andrew’s part.
“Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies remain with the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse,” the statement said.
The last time a British royal was stripped of a princely title was in 1919, when Prince Ernest Augustus of Hanover lost his status for supporting Germany during World War I.
Pressure on the palace had been mounting since Andrew surrendered his title as Duke of York earlier this month. Newly uncovered emails suggested that Andrew maintained contact with Epstein longer than he had publicly admitted.
Giuffre’s brother, Skye Roberts, welcomed the move, calling it “a victory for truth and courage.”
“An ordinary American girl brought down a British prince with her truth and extraordinary bravery,” he said.
In her book, Giuffre described three alleged encounters with Andrew when she was 17, writing that he “acted as if having sex with me was his birthright.” Andrew has denied all allegations, though he reached an out-of-court settlement with Giuffre in 2022 for an undisclosed sum.
The king’s decision means Andrew will no longer hold or use any of his previous titles — including His Royal Highness, Duke of York, Earl of Inverness, and Baron Killyleagh — nor his royal honours such as the Order of the Garter and the Royal Victorian Order.
Andrew, 65, is expected to move to a smaller residence on the king’s estate and receive private financial support from his brother.
