There’s been speculation over whether King Charles or Prince William, when he becomes monarch, could remove Prince Andrew’s royal title.

The Duke of York, 65, gained his dukedom title when he married his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, in 1986. He was known as His Royal Highness The Duke of York.

However, in 2019, Prince Andrew stepped away from royal duties following his disastrous Newsnight interview in which he addressed his alleged friendship with late convicted s3x offender Jeffrey Epstein.

In 2022, the palace confirmed that although Andrew would retain his HRH title, he would no longer use it in public capacity. At that time, he also lost his military titles and royal patronages as he faced a US civil lawsuit over s3xual assault allegations, which he has always denied.
The Duke of York is no longer a working royal (Credit: Cover Images)

Prince Andrew scandals

As well as the civil case, which was settled out of court between the prince and his accuser, Virginia Giuffre, in February 2022, Andrew has faced other scandals in recent years.

Last year, the duke became linked to an alleged Chinese spy, who was banned from the UK in 2023 on national security grounds.

Yang Tengbo, described as a “close confidant” of Prince Andrew, insisted that “widespread description of me as a ‘spy’ is entirely untrue”.

To remove Andrew’s Dukedom would require an Act of Parliament.

Meanwhile, Andrew’s representatives said he had “ceased all contact” with the Mr Yang following “advice” from officials.

Most recently, Andrew became the subject of a new explosive royal biography by author Andrew Lownie. Extracts of the book, serialised in the Daily Mail this week, contain allegations about Andrew and Sarah.

One allegation claimed that Andrew and his nephew, Prince Harry, ended up in a physical fight in 2013. However, a representative for Harry denied that this had happened.
Speculation is rife over whether Charles or William, when he’s king, could remove Andrew’s royal titles (Credit: Cover Images)

Could Prince Andrew lose his royal titles?

With Prince Andrew back in the headlines because of the book, discussion over his royal title has taken place online.

But, how likely is it that Andrew could lose his titles?

Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams has explained how such a move could happen. However, he warned that the royal family will likely “not welcome” a debate in Parliament.

Mr Fitzwilliams told Royal Insider: “To remove Andrew’s Dukedom would require an Act of Parliament. The precedent is the Titles Deprivation Act of 1917, which deprived enemy peers of British titles.

Read more: How ‘recluse’ Prince Andrew spends his days now following scandal

“The royal family would not welcome being debated in Parliament, and if the monarch acted to deprive Andrew by Letters Patent of the title Prince and of his HRH, the latter is currently in abeyance, but which I understand could happen, I do not think he would willingly open it up to parliamentary scrutiny. It would indeed be a huge news story.

“At 65, Andrew’s best future is long behind him. More embarrassments may follow, as hinted at by Andrew Lownie, the historian and author of Entitled, a biography of Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.”