Britain’s Prince Andrew gives up royal title amid Epstein allegations

Following years of criticism for his actions and connections to the late American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Prince Andrew of Great Britain says he will no longer use the title of Duke of York.

In recent years, Andrew, 65, the younger brother of King Charles and the late Queen Elizabeth, has suffered a reputation, most notably as a result of his connections to Epstein.

However, it has been revealed that one of his close business associates was a Chinese spy, according to the government.

Andrew claimed in a statement on Friday that “the ongoing accusations about me” had slowed down his efforts to support King Charles and the British royal family in general.

Therefore, I will no longer use the title or honors that have been mys. I vehemently refute the accusations leveled against me, Andrew continued in his statement.

Andrew, the eighth-in-line to the throne, was once regarded as a charismatic naval officer and enlisted in the military during the Falklands War with Argentina in the early 1980s.

However, due to his connections to Epstein, he gained a reputation as a playboy prince, and in 2022, he was stripped of most of his titles and deposed from royal duties.

Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who claimed she was trafficked by Epstein and had sex with Andrew when she was underage, has been quoted in excerpts from her upcoming posthumous memoir.

Giuffre, 41, committed suicide in April. She allegedly had sex with Prince Andrew, whom she sued in 2021, in her memoir, claiming that they had sex when she was 17 years old. Andrew denied her assertions and claimed he had never met her.

In a BBC interview from November 2018, he unsuccessfully attempted to refute Giuffre’s allegations. A prince appeared to be showing no compassion for the women who claimed Epstein abused them and made curious rebuttals, such as disputing Giuffre’s claim that he was medically incapable of perspiring.

Andrew resigned from his royal duties shortly after the interview. Giuffre brought a lawsuit against him, and the outcome was an undisclosed settlement in 2022. The prince acknowledged Epstein’s role as a sex trafficker and Giuffre’s status as “an established victim of abuse,” according to a court filing.

Andrew will continue to be a prince, a right he has had since birth. And he won’t use his dukedom, which can only be revoked by an Act of Parliament.