The erasure of all titles held by Andrew, the scandal-ridden Windsor outcast, began immediately after last night's historic announcement by King Charles that he was punishing and removing from the public eye his embarrassing brother, closely linked to American fixer-pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The title of Duke of York, previously awarded to the black sheep of the British royal family, has been officially removed from the Roll of the Peerage, the United Kingdom's register of noble titles.
By issuing royal warrants to Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister David Lammy, who is acting as Lord Chancellor and updating the Crown Office's records, the sovereign is purging the titles and titles of 65-year-old Andrew, no longer a prince or even "His Royal Highness," but a "commoner," an ordinary citizen, and even evicted from the luxurious Royal Lodge residence in Windsor. His departure is not expected to be imminent, despite the TV crews stationed outside the gates. But all this has been done too late, as is being emphasized by many in the media, some political figures, and the public, while Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour government, already grappling with numerous internal problems and a serious crisis of support, has given its full support to the sovereign's actions.
According to the popular tabloid The Sun, the royal family should have acted more quickly, considering that the defamatory accusations against Andrew have been known for years, starting with the sexual abuse accused of him by Virginia Giuffre, who committed suicide last April.
"An ordinary American girl brought down a British prince with her sincerity and extraordinary courage," the family of Epstein's victim declared, commenting on Buckingham Palace's edict against Andrew. Some point out that the Windsors acted only in extremis to save their reputation from an unmanageable situation, with Charles III publicly criticized in recent days for his brother's wrongdoing. Her intervention was intended to ensure that William, now seen as inflexible toward his uncle, would not be left with a heavy burden when he ascends the throne. Moreover, relations between Charles and Andrew have always been frosty, with Queen Elizabeth's third son protected by his mother for many years.
The sovereign now hopes the former Duke of York will remain in quiet seclusion in Norfolk, where he will be assigned accommodation on the royal estate of Sandringham, paid for privately by Charles, with his daughters Beatrice and Eugenie, who remain princesses for the time being. But this may not be the case. "I don't think it's over for him," said Andrew Lownie, author of the recent shocking biography on Andrew. In addition to possible new details about the black sheep scandals, in addition to those emerging from Giuffre's posthumous memoir, "Nobody's Girl," calls are mounting to bring the former prince to justice. The anti-monarchist group Republic has announced a legal initiative aimed at initiating criminal proceedings against him on charges of sexual abuse, corruption, and misconduct in public office.
Meanwhile, Giuffre's brother, Sky Roberts, from the US has called for an investigation into Andrew, who he believes deserves prison time for what he did to his sister when she was 17, and has even asked King Charles to pressure US President Donald Trump to release all the sensitive files related to the Epstein scandal, in addition to expressing his desire to meet the sovereign in London. But the problems aren't over for the royal family either.
Everything possible has been done to avoid an embarrassing parliamentary stage in Andrew's defenestration proceedings: for this reason, the former prince continues to occupy his place (eighth) in the line of succession to the throne. To deprive him of that as well would require a specific law. Some MPs, however, are calling for greater transparency and a voice, breaking the taboo in the House of Commons against a debate on the royal house. This has led to the extreme case of Zarah Sultana leaving the Labour Party, busy launching a new left-wing party, which has openly spoken of abolishing the monarchy.
(Unioneonline)