Prince Andrew is being stripped of his titles and must surrender his lease to Royal Lodge, the mansion in Windsor where he lives, according to a statement from Buckingham Palace.
“Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor,” the statement said. “Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease and he will move to alternative private accommodation.”
Andrew had recently said he would stop using his royal titles and honors, including the Duke of York, but Thursday’s statement on behalf of King Charles III and Queen Camilla initiated the formal process of revoking all his titles, including prince.
“These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him,” the statement said.
Andrew has come under intense scrutiny over his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and accusations from Virginia Giuffre that she was trafficked to engage in sex with the prince while she was underage. Andrew has denied the allegations. He reached a settlement with Giuffre in 2022. Giuffre died by suicide earlier this year.
“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,” the statement said.
In a memoir published posthumously, Giuffre detailed her alleged encounters with Andrew.
“He was friendly enough, but still entitled — as if he believed having sex with me was his birthright,” she wrote. “The next morning, [Ghislaine] Maxwell told me: ‘You did well. The prince had fun.’ Epstein would give me $15,000 for servicing the man the tabloids called ‘Randy Andy.'”
In 2022, Andrew gave up his military affiliations, royal patronages and official public duties. He also stopped using the title “His Royal Highness.”
Andrew had faced heavy criticism from the British public over his living arrangements, with many voicing concern that he continued to live in his mansion on a royal estate despite the accusations leveled against him and his retreat from royal duties.
His 75-year lease for Royal Lodge, signed in 2003, included an up-front payment of around 8 million pounds (around $10.5 million) and an annual rent described as a “peppercorn,” meaning an extremely small amount, according to BBC News.