Prince Andrew, formerly known as the Duke of York, has announced that he will relinquish his royal titles and honors after discussions with King Charles III, amid renewed public outrage over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and new attention surrounding the late Virginia Giuffre. The decision represents the most dramatic step yet in his long attempt to distance himself from the Epstein sex-trafficking scandal, coming just days before the release of Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, which is expected to reignite global debate about Prince Andrew’s alleged involvement in Epstein’s circle of abuse.
Statement from the Duke of York
In a formal statement issued Friday, the prince said the choice was made “in discussion with the King, and my immediate and wider family,” acknowledging that “the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family.”
“I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first,” he wrote. “With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honors which have been conferred upon me. As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me.”
Prince Andrew reaffirmed that he “stands by” his 2020 decision to withdraw from public life. His latest move follows years of mounting public and political pressure for Buckingham Palace to act over his association with Epstein, and comes soon after his decision to resign from the Order of the Garter, Britain’s oldest and most senior chivalric order.
The prince’s decision to relinquish his titles, including Duke of York, follows years of outrage surrounding his connection to Epstein and allegations made by Virginia Giuffre, who accused him of sexually abusing her when she was 17 years old.
Giuffre alleged that she was trafficked by Epstein and forced to have sex with the prince on three occasions — at Ghislaine Maxwell’s London home in 2001, inside Epstein’s New York townhouse, and on his private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands. She filed a civil lawsuit in 2021, which was settled in 2022 for an undisclosed sum. Andrew has consistently denied all allegations.
Sky Roberts, Giuffre’s brother, told BBC Newsnight that his sister “would have been very proud” of the latest development.
“We’ve shed a lot of happy and sad tears today,” he said. “All the years of work she put in are now coming to some sort of justice — the truth will find its way out.”
Roberts called on the monarch to go even further:
“We would call on the King to take out the ‘Prince’ in the Andrew. Anybody implicated in this should have some sort of responsibility and accountability for these survivors.”
Fellow Epstein survivor Haley Robson described the loss of Andrew’s titles as “long delayed but very appropriate.”
“I have moments of joyous tears,” she told reporters. “I’m flabbergasted that something finally broke and someone is finally being held accountable. This is why King Charles is King — he’s showing the world what accountability looks like.”
The announcement comes just ahead of the release of Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, following her death earlier this year. The book revisits her experiences as one of Epstein’s victims and includes new details about her 2022 civil settlement with Andrew.
“I agreed to a one-year gag order, which seemed important to the prince because it ensured that his mother’s Platinum Jubilee would not be tarnished any more than it already had been,” Giuffre writes, referencing the late Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
The memoir’s publication is expected to bring renewed scrutiny to both Prince Andrew and the Epstein trafficking network, intensifying media focus on how the royal family has handled the scandal.
Continuing Questions Over Epstein Ties
Prince Andrew’s longstanding friendship with Jeffrey Epstein remains one of the most damaging associations in modern royal history. In a widely criticized BBC Newsnight interview in 2019, Andrew claimed he had severed all contact with Epstein after the two were photographed together in New York in December 2010.
However, emails from early 2011 later surfaced showing he remained in touch, including one message that read:
“Keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon!”
These revelations reignited accusations that Andrew had misled the public and fueled calls for transparency about the full extent of his relationship with the disgraced financier.
Royal Titles and Future
Although the prince has relinquished his formal titles and honors, he remains a prince by birth, as the son of Queen Elizabeth II. Under British constitutional law, that birthright can only be removed through a formal Letters Patent issued by King Charles III — a step with no modern precedent.
Prince Andrew is expected to remain at Royal Lodge in Windsor, a property he holds under a private lease until 2078. He will no longer perform public engagements or appear at official royal events.
His former wife will be known simply as Sarah Ferguson, without the Duchess of York title, while their daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, will continue to retain their royal styles.
A Diminished Role Within the Royal Family
Prince Andrew had already stepped down as a “working royal” several years ago and relinquished his HRH style. Friday’s announcement cements his near-total withdrawal from royal duties, leaving him with no formal role in the monarchy.
The decision underscores King Charles III’s determination to protect the integrity of the Royal Family and to demonstrate that accountability applies even at the highest levels.
For survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking network, the move is being hailed as a long-overdue act of justice — and a signal that royal privilege no longer guarantees protection from public accountability.
