Prince Andrew is expected to give up all his royal titles, including the Duke of York, following reports that palace officials were “considering all options” about his future. The decision comes after evidence surfaced that King Charles’s brother had lied about his continued contact with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
According to The Telegraph, Andrew agreed to relinquish his titles after coming under pressure from the King. This move marks another major setback in his public life, which has been overshadowed by years of scandal involving Epstein and an alleged link to a Chinese spy.
In January 2022, the late Queen Elizabeth had already removed Andrew’s military titles and royal patronages while he faced a civil sex assault lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre. He later reached a multimillion-pound settlement in that case.
Newly revealed emails from February 2011 show Andrew telling Epstein, “we are in this together,” directly contradicting his claim during a 2019 BBC Newsnight interview that he had cut off contact months earlier. During that same interview, Andrew said he did not remember meeting Ms Giuffre and stated he had no regrets about his friendship with Epstein.
Since then, he has been banned from performing royal duties, forbidden from using his HRH title, and has remained largely out of public view. Despite ongoing controversy, Andrew continues to deny all allegations of sexual misconduct.
Fresh scrutiny has arisen following the release of excerpts from Ms Giuffre’s forthcoming autobiography, Nobody’s Girl, written before her death earlier this year. In it, she repeats her claim that she was trafficked to Andrew as a teenager and describes three encounters, including one where she says he thanked her afterward.
Sources within the palace said frustration had grown after The Sun published new revelations about Andrew’s contact with Epstein, prompting officials to conclude it was time to end his royal role completely. They said Andrew had a “small window of opportunity” to step down voluntarily before stronger measures were taken against him.
His downfall has been compared to that of former King Edward VIII, who was forced into exile after his abdication and spent his later years away from the royal family.
Andrew’s troubles began in 1999 when he was introduced to Jeffrey Epstein by Ghislaine Maxwell. Two years later, Virginia Giuffre, then 17, alleged she had been trafficked to London to have sex with him. In 2008, Epstein was convicted of child sex offences. Despite the scandal, Andrew stayed at Epstein’s home in New York in 2010 and resigned as the UK’s trade envoy the following year. His 2019 Newsnight interview was widely condemned, leading him to withdraw from royal duties. In 2022, the Queen stripped him of his remaining titles and roles, and in 2025, leaked messages exposed that he had continued to communicate with Epstein, resulting in his final removal from royal life.
Earlier this year, Andrew also faced allegations of involvement in a Chinese espionage scandal. Documents revealed he had private meetings with Chinese officials, including an alleged spy named Yang Tengbo, raising fears that he had used his royal connections for personal gain and potentially risked national security.
With this latest decision, Prince Andrew’s royal career is effectively over, marking a humiliating end to years of controversy that have damaged both his reputation and the image of the monarchy.
Source: The Sun, UK on 17 October 2025
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