King Charles III strips Prince Andrew of titles and evicts him from
royal residence
[October 31, 2025]
By BRIAN MELLEY and JILL LAWLESS
LONDON (AP) — King Charles III on Thursday stripped his disgraced
brother Prince Andrew of his remaining titles and evicted him from his
royal residence after weeks of pressure to act over his relationship
with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Buckingham Palace said.
After the king’s rare move, which follows years of shameful scandals, he
will be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor and not as a prince, and he
will have to vacate his Royal Lodge mansion near Windsor Castle.
Demand had been growing on the palace to oust the prince from Royal
Lodge after he surrendered his use of the title Duke of York earlier
this month over new revelations about his friendship with Epstein and
renewed sexual abuse allegations by one of Epstein's victims, Virginia
Roberts Giuffre, whose posthumous memoir hit bookstores last week.
But the king went even further to punish him for serious lapses of
judgment by removing the title of prince that he has held since birth as
a child of a monarch, the late Queen Elizabeth II.
“These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he
continues to deny the allegations against him,” the palace said. “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.”
It is almost unprecedented for a British prince or princess to be
stripped of that title. It last happened in 1919, when Prince Ernest
Augustus, who was a U.K. royal and also a prince of Hanover, had his
British title removed for siding with Germany during World War I.
Toppling a prince
Giuffre's brother declared victory for his sister, who died by suicide
in April at the age of 41.
“Today, an ordinary American girl from an ordinary American family,
brought down a British prince with her truth and extraordinary courage,”
her brother Skye Roberts said in a statement to the BBC.
Andrew faced a new round of public outrage after emails emerged earlier
this month showing he had remained in contact with Epstein longer than
he previously admitted.
That news was followed by publication of “Nobody's Girl,” by Giuffre,
who alleged she had sex with Andrew when she was 17. The book detailed
three alleged sexual encounters with Andrew, who she said acted as if he
believed “having sex with me was his birthright.”
Andrew, 65, has long denied Giuffre’s claims, but stepped down from
royal duties after a disastrous November 2019 BBC interview in which he
attempted to rebut her allegations.
Andrew paid millions in an out-of-court settlement in 2022 after Giuffre
filed a civil suit against him in New York. While he didn’t admit
wrongdoing, he acknowledged Giuffre’s suffering as a victim of sex
trafficking.
King couldn't avoid the controversy
Although Charles was involved in discussions with Andrew before he
announced he would relinquish his dukedom two weeks ago, the king had
largely managed to steer clear of the scandal until this week.
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Britain's Prince Andrew, left, and Britain's King Charles III leave
after the Requiem Mass service for the Duchess of Kent at
Westminster Cathedral in London, Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025. (AP
Photo/Joanna Chan, File)
After attending an event at Lichfield Cathedral on Monday, the king
was heckled by a man who shouted questions about how long he had
known about his brother and Epstein and then asked: “Have you asked
the police to cover up for Andrew?”
The king did not respond and it wasn’t clear if he even heard the
man, who was shouted down by others and eventually pulled from
sight.
But video of the incident made the evening news and was the source
of embarrassing headlines the next morning.
It’s the most dramatic royal departure since 1936, when King Edward
VIII abdicated the throne so he could marry twice-divorced American
socialite Wallis Simpson. The couple were given the titles Duke and
Duchess of Windsor and lived the rest of their lives in exile
outside Britain.
Prince Harry, despite renouncing his royal role, feuding with his
family and moving to California, remains a prince and the Duke of
Sussex.
The move by the king means Andrew will no longer be a prince or
known as His Royal Highness, the Duke of York, Earl of Inverness or
Baron Killyleagh — all titles he held until now. Also gone are
honors that include Order of the Garter and status as Knight Grand
Cross of the Victorian Order.
From favored son to tabloid fodder
Andrew, who was said to be his mother's favorite child, had once
been the poster boy of the royal family, and his romantic links to a
number of models and starlets during his youth were widely
chronicled in the British press.
His star status peaked after he flew missions as a helicopter pilot
in the Royal Navy during the 1982 Falklands War when British forces
sailed to the south Atlantic to eject the Argentine military that
had invaded the U.K. overseas territories.
But he has also been dogged by decades of tawdry headlines about
shady business deals, inappropriate behavior and controversial
friendships.
Even as the Epstein scandal swirled, news broke that showed his
damaged reputation and need for money led him to become entangled
with a suspected Chinese spy.
Andrew is expected to move to a property on the king's Sandringham
estate near the northeast coast and receive private financial
support from his brother.
His ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, who had been living with him in the
30-room mansion, will have to find a new home.
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