Buckingham Palace has confirmed that Prince Andrew will no longer be known as a prince and is being forced to leave his Windsor residence, Royal Lodge, as the fallout from his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein deepens.
The palace said on Thursday that the King had “initiated a formal process to remove the style, titles and honours of Prince Andrew.” The move, which strips him of his “Prince” title, as well as the Duke of York, Earl of Inverness and Baron Killyleagh titles, takes effect immediately.
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Andrew, 65, will now be known simply as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. He will also lose the right to be addressed as His Royal Highness and will be removed from the Order of the Garter and the Knight Grand Cross of the Victorian Order.
The King’s decision marks the most severe royal censure yet of his younger brother, whose relationship with Epstein has long cast a shadow over the monarchy. A palace source said the move followed “serious lapses of judgement” in Andrew’s conduct, though he continues to deny any wrongdoing.
“It is understood that Andrew did not object to the decision,” a senior royal aide said. “The process was formal, decisive, and necessary for the integrity of the institution.”
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Buckingham Palace confirmed that Andrew has been ordered to vacate Royal Lodge, the £30 million residence in Windsor where he has lived for two decades. His lease, which had provided him legal protection to remain on the estate, has been terminated.
According to palace officials, he will be relocated to the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, though the exact property has not been confirmed. One option under consideration is Wood Farm, a modest cottage where the late Prince Philip spent his final years after retiring from public life in 2017.
Andrew’s ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, who had continued to live at Royal Lodge despite their divorce, is also expected to move out and “make her own living arrangements,” palace officials said.
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The removal of Andrew’s titles comes after a renewed wave of scrutiny over his connection to Epstein. Earlier this month, emails from 2011 surfaced showing that Andrew had been in contact with the financier months after he claimed to have ended their friendship.
In her posthumous memoir Nobody’s Girl, Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre repeated her long-standing claim that, as a teenager, she was forced to have sex with Andrew on three occasions — allegations the former prince has always denied.
Despite the loss of his royal status, Andrew remains eighth in line to the throne. His daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, retain their royal titles under rules set by King George V in 1917.
In its statement, the palace added: “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.”
Public pressure on the monarchy had been mounting in recent weeks, with some protests calling on the King to resolve the issue once and for all.
“This is the final chapter in a long and painful saga for the Royal Family,” said one royal commentator. “But it’s also a clear signal from the King that accountability applies to everyone — even those born into privilege.”
