Prince Andrew Is Giving Up His Royal Titles
On Friday, Prince Andrew announced he would be giving up his royal titles following years of scandal stemming from his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein and his alleged sexual abuse of Virginia Giuffre. “In discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family,” Andrew said in a statement published by the BBC. “I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.”
“With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further,” Andrew continued. “I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me. As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me.”
Andrew, who held the title Duke of York and was a member of the Order of the Garter, has not been a working royal since 2019, when he stepped back from public duties in the wake of Epstein’s arrest. But this announcement marks an escalation of the royal family’s attempts to distance themselves from him. The Telegraph reported that Andrew had come under “huge pressure” from King Charles to relinquish his titles. He will retain the title of prince, considering it was one given to him by virtue of being Queen Elizabeth II’s son. According to the BBC, Andrew’s daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, will also keep their titles. Andrew will reportedly get to stay in his Windsor home, Royal Lodge, but won’t be spending Christmas in Sandringham with the rest of the royal family.
The news comes mere days before Giuffre’s posthumous memoir is set to be released. She accused Andrew of raping her when she was a teenager being trafficked by Epstein, which he denied. In 2022, they settled out of court in a civil suit she filed against him. Giuffre died by suicide in April of this year.
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