There can be few modern falls from grace as clear as that of Prince Andrew, Duke of York. This week, it was announced he will not use any of the titles he has been given, including the Duke of York. Other titles, including the Knight of Garter and the Earl of Inverness, will also not be used. As such, his banishment from any vestige of public life is now complete.
Andrew was born in 1960 at Buckingham Palace. He was the third child of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He was reported to have been Elizabeth II’s favourite child.
Like his father and brothers, he was educated at Gordonstoun School in Scotland. Following this, he attended the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth and became an officer in the Royal Navy. In 1982, he fought in the Falklands War, reportedly insisting that he be allowed to go despite the security risks associated with a senior royal being on active service.
In 1986, he married Sarah Ferguson and was given the title the Duke of York. Traditionally, the Duke of York is a title given to the second son of the British monarch. After leaving the Royal Navy, Andrew played a role as a ‘working royal’ and in 2001 became the UK’s Special Representative for International Trade and Investment.
In 2010, however, Andrew was photographed in Central Park with Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender. Over the next few years, increasing questions were asked about his relationship with Epstein. This became particularly problematic for Andrew when a woman called Virginia Giuffre stated that she had been ordered by Jeffrey Epstein to have sex with Andrew, something she said had happened on a number of occasions.
In November 2019, Andrew decided to take this issue head on by giving an interview to BBC Newsnight. This interview with Emily Maitlis was a catastrophe for Andrew:
ITV news summary:
The full interview:
Following the interview, it was announced that Andrew would step back from royal duties “for the foreseeable future”. In the meantime, a civil case against Andrew was launched in the United States, with Giuffre suing for sexual assault and battery. The issue risked becoming a distraction to the Royal Family in the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee year of 2022. In February 2022, under pressure from the Palace, Andrew reached an out-of-court settlement with Giuffre. It was reported that he had paid Giuffre £12 Million to settle the case, whilst continuing to claim he had never met her.
Last week, Andrew agreed with the palace to stop using his remaining titles, including the Duke of York. This followed emails being made public that showed that he was still in contact with Jeffrey Epstein three months later than he had claimed in his Newsnight interview. Questions continue to be asked about the fact that he remains resident in Royal Lodge, Windsor, part of the Crown Estate. Yet, whilst Andrew remained privately part of the royal family (for example, attending Christmas at Sandringham), it appears his banishment may now be both private and public.
Despite the most recent changes, Andrew will formally remain the Duke of York. A dukedom is the highest rank within the nobility. It is held by a Duke or Duchess. It is superior to the other noble titles which rank:
- Duke/Duchess
- Marquess/Marchioness
- Earl/Countess
- Viscount/Viscountess
- Baron/Baroness
The Dukedom of York is a royal dukedom and is conferred by the Monarch. It passes down the male line under the process of male-preference primogeniture. As Andrew has no male children, the title will become extinct on his death. At that point, Prince Louis, the second son of Prince William, would historically have inherited the title. However, such is the besmirchment of the title by Andrew in the eyes of the public, it is questionable whether a future King William would want to bestow the title on his own child.
It is quite clear that in the eyes of senior royals, it would be much easier if Andrew were no longer Duke of York, even though the title is now not being used. There will be public pressure for the title to be formally stripped of him, just as there will be public pressure for him to be forced out of his property that sits on Crown Estate land.
Historically, titles in the peerage can only be forfeited via Parliament passing an Act of attainder. This is an act stripping a noble of their lands, titles and ancient privileges. The last time this happened in the eighteenth century, however. The government may find itself under pressure to do this, but they will not want to interfere in what they see as a private matters for the royal family. Andrew could give up the title formally himself, however, there appears to be now very little leverage that can be placed over him, especially if his residency at Royal Lodge is found to be legally watertight. As such, it is likely that Prince Andrew will formally retain the title of the Duke of York, which will carry on in abeyance.
What is frustrating to many people is that whatever he is called, and wherever he lives, Andrew remains a Prince and will continue to live a life of immense privilege. For every story about Andrew, and the scandal that he has ultimately bought on himself, the risk is that the real victims of Jeffrey Epstein are forgotten. This week, Virgnia Giuffre’s voice is being heard. Giuffre died in April 2025. Before her death, she had been working on a book that has now been published. It is called ‘Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice’. It is a harrowing story, but an essential one to be heard as questions are asked about how trafficking can still take place in the 21st century.