Noor NanjiCulture reporter
Reuters
Prince Andrew is to lose his ‘prince’ title and leave his Windsor mansion, Royal Lodge, following weeks of intense scrutiny over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
In a statement on Thursday night, Buckingham Palace said the King’s brother will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor.
Andrew gave up his other royal titles earlier this month, including the Duke of York, after facing more questions about his private life.
In a posthumous memoir published earlier this month, Virginia Giuffre repeated allegations that, as a teenager, she had sex with Prince Andrew on three separate occasions. Andrew has always denied the claims.
Reacting to the latest developments, Ms Giuffre’s family said she “brought down a British prince with her truth and extraordinary courage”. Giuffre took her own life earlier this year.
In its statement, the Palace said the King “has today initiated a formal process to remove the style, titles and honours of Prince Andrew”.
As well as the title, the Palace said “formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease” on Royal Lodge.
He will be moved into private accommodation in Sandringham Estate, which is understood to be privately funded by King Charles.
“These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him,” the statement continued.
The Palace also expressed its support for victims of “any and all forms of abuse”
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Prince Andrew has lived at Royal Lodge since 2004 but will now move out
Andrew’s two adult daughters, Eugenie and Beatrice, will retain their titles as princesses and Andrew is still eighth in line for the throne.
It is understood that Sarah Ferguson, his ex-wife, will also move out of Royal Lodge and will make her own living arrangements.
Until this month, she kept the title Sarah, Duchess of York – but she reverted to her maiden name of Ferguson after Andrew voluntarily gave up the usage of the Duke of York title.
It is understood that the government was consulted on the decision to strip Andrew of his prince title, and made clear it supported the decision.
Reacting to the news on BBC Question Time, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said it sent a “very powerful message to the victims of grooming and sex offences”.
“This is a huge development and a big step for the King to take. I have to say, just, you know, as an initial response, I really support the step that he’s taken.”
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Sarah Ferguson, pictured here with Andrew, will also move out of Royal Lodge
The stripping of Andrew’s titles caps off weeks of mounting pressure on the Royal Family.
The scandal over his connections to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was reignited by sexual abuse allegations in Ms Giuffre’s memoir.
While Andrew has always strenuously denied abusing Ms Giuffre, earlier this month, emails from 2011 re-emerged, showing Andrew in contact with Epstein months after he claimed their friendship ended.
Details about Andrew’s living arrangements have also come under the spotlight, with fresh questions being asked in recent days about how he is able to fund his lifestyle despite not being a working royal.
The revelation that he paid a token annual rent on his sprawling 30-room Windsor lodge intensified the scrutiny over his living arrangements – even though he made large payments up front, including for renovations.
In a separate development, it emerged this week that Prince Andrew hosted Jeffrey Epstein at Royal Lodge as part of his daughter Beatrice’s birthday celebrations in 2006 – two months after a US arrest warrant had been issued for Epstein for the sexual assault of a minor. Andrew did not respond to a request for comment.
For the Palace, Thursday’s announcement is an attempt to draw a line under the scandals surrounding the former Prince Andrew – now simply Andrew Mountbatten Windsor.