King Charles III ordered Prince Andrew to be stripped of his royal titles and evicted from Windsor amid renewed scrutiny over his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
King Charles III has taken the extraordinary step of beginning the process to strip his brother, Prince Andrew, of his royal titles and remove him from his Windsor residence — a decision Buckingham Palace described as “necessary censures.”
The move marks one of the deepest ruptures within the royal monarchy of the United Kingdom in decades and aims to protect the Crown’s reputation amid the long-standing scandal surrounding Andrew’s friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
At 65, the Duke—now officially Andrew Mountbatten Windsor—faces the full fallout of Virginia Giuffre’s allegations, which resurfaced following the posthumous release of her memoirs. Giuffre accused the prince of sexually assaulting her as a minor. Her family welcomed the King’s decision as “a powerful act of vindication.”
“Today, an ordinary American girl brought down a British prince with her truth and extraordinary courage,” said Giuffre’s brother, Sky Roberts, in an interview with CNN. “This is a moment of justice, a moment that says: we see you, we believe you.”
In a rare, blunt statement, Buckingham Palace announced: “His Majesty has initiated a formal process to remove the style, titles, and honors of Prince Andrew. He has been formally notified to surrender his Royal Lodge lease and will move to private accommodation.”
Andrew had previously tried to end the public scrutiny by giving up his titles earlier this month, but the gesture did little to quiet criticism or explain how he funded the multimillion-dollar settlement with Giuffre.
Although he remains eighth in line to the throne, that position could be changed through legislation requiring approval from Commonwealth nations.
Sources say the King will instead issue royal letters patent to remove Andrew’s titles associated with York, Inverness, and Killyleagh. His royal honors, including knighthoods in the Royal Victorian Order and the Order of the Garter, have also been revoked.
“The King’s thoughts and deepest sympathies remain with the victims and survivors of all forms of abuse,” Buckingham Palace stated. Meanwhile, the Giuffre family vowed to continue pursuing accountability for other Epstein associates.
The republican group Republic reacted strongly, saying that “losing titles is not justice.” Its director, Graham Smith, argued: “This isn’t accountability—it’s damage control. Prince Andrew must face justice like anyone else.”
Tensions rose further this week when a protester shouted, “How long have you known about Andrew and Epstein?” as the King of the United Kingdom visited a cathedral in northern England.
Andrew’s ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, who lived with him at Royal Lodge for the past two decades, will also move out. The pair, who divorced in the 1990s, remain on good terms and share two daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie.
According to CNN, the British government was consulted in advance and expressed full support for the King’s decision.
It is the first time in over a century that a royal prince has been stripped of his titles — the last being Prince Charles Edward in 1917, who lost his dukedom after fighting for Germany in World War I.
By taking this decisive step, King Charles III seeks to reaffirm a crucial principle for the royal monarchy: no member of the United Kingdom’s royal family is above the law.
