King Charles takes British monarchy on a new course with handling of Prince Andrew scandal

After years of speculation and growing public frustration over his connection to a convicted sex offender, the British monarchy has finally taken decisive action regarding Prince Andrew, who has agreed to relinquish his remaining royal titles.

Buckingham Palace released a statement from the reigning King’s brother on October 18, following the emergence of an email demonstrating that the Prince had misled the British public when he claimed to have severed all ties with the disgraced financier, according to reports by The Telegraph.

"In discussion with the King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family," his statement read. "I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first."

The decision to stop using his titles was reportedly made in consultation with William, Prince of Wales, as well as the King.

According to media reports, Prince Andrew will remain a prince but will no longer hold the title Duke of York, which was bestowed upon him by his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II. Andrew had already ceased being a "working royal" in 2019 and lost the use of his HRH title after his controversial BBC Newsnight interview, during which he addressed his relationship with the disgraced US financier Jeffrey Epstein for the first time.

The interview was met with overwhelming public backlash, and just days after it aired, Buckingham Palace announced that Andrew would step down from all 230 of his patronages and withdraw from official royal engagements. Before his royal duties, Andrew spent over 20 years serving as an officer in the Royal Navy.

The move comes as King Charles, 76 and currently undergoing treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer, seeks to safeguard the monarchy’s long-term stability under his son and heir, Prince William. The next leader of the British monarchy has recently outlined his vision for the future of the monarchy, emphasizing that the institution “needed to change to make sure that it is a force for good.”

Emails suggest years-long deception by Prince Andrew

The leaked email was published by the Mail on Sunday and The Sun on October 11 and undermines Prince Andrew’s longstanding defence that he and the disgraced American financier were no longer friends once he had learned of the legal accusations against Epstein.

The message, allegedly written by Andrew to Epstein three months after he claimed in the BBC interview to have ended their association, reads: “I’m just as concerned for you! Don’t worry about me! It would seem we are in this together and will have to rise above it,” before adding that they would “play some more soon!!!!”.

Dated February 28, 2011, the email tells a different story from what Andrew stated in his 2019 Newsnight interview, where he told reporter Emily Maitlis: “I left, I think it was the next day and to this day I never had any contact with him from that day forward.” The message surfaced three months after his alleged final meeting with Epstein in New York in December 2010, during which he claimed to have ended their friendship.

For years, Andrew maintained that he had cut ties with Epstein and played no part in his crimes. However, British media outlets argue that the email raises serious questions about his judgment, loyalty, and credibility—at a time when he should have been working to distance himself from the disgraced financier.

By Nazrin Sadigova