LONDON: Britain’s Prince Andrew announced on Friday that he is relinquishing his royal title of Duke of York, following renewed public attention on his past association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
In a statement released by Buckingham Palace, the younger brother of King Charles III said the decision was made jointly with the royal family. “The continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the royal family,” he said.
“I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.
“With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.
“As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me.”
The announcement follows the release of excerpts from a forthcoming posthumous memoir by Virginia Giuffre, who has accused Epstein of trafficking her and claims she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew when she was 17.
Prince Andrew will remain a prince – but will cease to be the Duke of York, a title received from his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth.
Andrew had already ceased to be a “working royal” and had lost the use of his HRH title and no longer appeared at official royal events. His role now will be even more diminished, the BBC reported.
His ex-wife will be known as Sarah Ferguson and no longer Duchess of York, but their daughters will continue to have the title of princess.
There had been growing frustration in Buckingham Palace at the scandals that continued to surround the prince.
