Prince Andrew: All the royal titles the disgraced Duke of York has given up
Prince Andrew renounced several roles and titles, including that of Duke of York, on Friday after facing increasing pressure from King Charles over a series of scandals.
On the morning of his wedding, Andrew was approached by his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II. He was given the title of Duke of York by Elizabeth. It was a title for which the Queen had great personal affection, and was the title her beloved father, King George VI, had held before he ascended to the throne.
Nearly 40 years later, Andrew was finally forced to give up the dukedom, the highest rank among the British nobility, amid the lingering fallout from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.
Although Andrew is still a prince, he will no longer use the title of Duke of York, but will still retain the title of duke, which can only be abolished by Act of Parliament.
He will also relinquish his knighthood as a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) and his role as Garter as a Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. Both honors will continue to exist, but will not be used.
The disgraced prince will also no longer use the other subsidiary titles he was given on his wedding day: Earl of Inverness and Baron Killyleagh.
In a statement today, he said: “As always, I have decided to put my duty to my family and my country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stay away from public life.”
“With His Majesty’s approval, we think I must now go one step further. Therefore, I will no longer use my title or the honors bestowed upon me.”
It comes at the end of a week in which Andrew has been at the center of another string of scandals, with more details emerging about his relationship with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
An excerpt from Virginia Giuffre’s memoirs was published Wednesday; where Ms. Giuffre, the central figure in Mr. Epstein’s downfall, revealed new details about the prince. She claimed Andrew believed it was his “birthright” to have sex with her.
Prince Andrew has always vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
Recent reports have also revealed that Andrew met with a senior Chinese Communist Party official at the center of the Chinese spying scandal at least three times in 2018 and 2019.
Andrew now renounced the last of his titles and honors, other than being a prince. He first relinquished some of his titles in 2022.
He stopped using the style of Her Royal Highness (HRH) in an official capacity in January 2022, amid a civil lawsuit with Ms. Giuffre that he eventually paid millions to settle.
All of Andrew’s military titles and royal patronages, including that of Colonel of the Grenadier Guards, one of the highest infantry regiments in the British Army, were returned to his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth, and he lost most of his charitable relations.
The man, often referred to as the Queen’s favorite child, was stripped of more than 12 military titles in total, including honorary overseas titles such as colonel-in-chief of the Royal Canadian Highland Fusiliers and colonel-in-chief of the Royal New Zealand Army Logistics Regiment.
Andrew resigned from public life in 2019 following a disastrous interview on Newsnight in which he said he had “no regrets” about his friendship with Mr Epstein, who kidnapped Ms Giuffre.
He announced at the time that he would “step back from public office for the foreseeable future.”
His ex-wife Sarah Ferguson will also give up her title as Duchess of York, while the titles of her daughters Princess Beatrice and Eugenie will remain active.
