Prince Andrew Stripped of Military Roles and Use of HRH Style, Buckingham Palace Announces
Yesterday a judge announced a pivotal ruling in the sex abuse civil case against Prince Andrew, refusing to throw it out based on legal arguments made by the Prince’s attorneys. And today, Buckingham Palace has issued a statement about his future as they seek to distance the monarchy further from the increasing reputational damage being done by the allegations against him.
“With The Queen's approval and agreement, The Duke of York’s military affiliations and Royal patronages have been returned to The Queen. The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen,” the statement read.
A royal source emphasized that these patronages will be redistributed to other royals and never returned to the Prince. The source also said that Andrew will no longer use the style ‘His Royal Highness’ in any official capacity and that these decisions had been widely discussed within the royal family.
The statement sends a powerful signal that the royal family understands that the latest court ruling has escalated the repetitional damage that these allegations have done to the Prince and the monarchy. His accuser, Virginia Giuffre, filed a civil case against him in August and has claimed that she was forced to have sex with him while under 18 and being trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein. The Prince has repeatedly denied all the allegations and told the BBC in 2019 that he has no recollection of ever meeting her.
“Given the robustness with which Judge Kaplan greeted our arguments, we are unsurprised by the ruling. However, it was not a judgement on the merits of Ms Giuffre’s allegations. This is a marathon not a sprint and the Duke will continue to defend himself against these claims," a source close to the Prince said today.
In preventing Andrew from using his HRH style and removing his military affiliations Buckingham Palace has now done almost everything they can to distance themselves from him, although he continues to live within the grounds of royal residence Windsor Castle. Crucially, he is also a member of the family and the son of the Head of State which means that the case will continue to affect the monarchy regardless.
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