King Charles reportedly sent a warning to Prince Andrew just hours before a statement on Friday confirmed he was giving up his Duke of York title. While Andrew, 65, confirmed on Friday that he would give up his royal titles as continued accusations against him are a “distraction” from the work of the Royal Family, it is believed he showed some reluctance to do this.
This reportedly resulted in King Charles, 76, having to make it clear to Andrew that if he did not freely give up the right to use his titles, then action would be taken. This action, it is reported, would have seen Andrew have his title removed from him one way or another. It is believed the monarch made it clear that this would be done even if it required going through Parliament.
The Daily Mail reports that Andrew was “shocked” by the King’s warnings about taking action, with a source telling the publication that the monarch found the situation “intolerable”.
This is because accusations about Andrew keep being made surrounding his previous relationship with the late convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, with more set to be on the way.
One of the latest scandals that was believed to be a final straw for the Palace with Andrew was the emergence of an email allegedly sent by the prince to Epstein in 2011 – months after the date he initially claimed in his 2019 BBC Newsnight interview that he had stopped talking to him.
The email reportedly saw Andrew tell Epstein: “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.”
He also wrote “keep in close touch” and “we’ll play some more soon!!!!”
The email was sent on February 28, 2011, which was a day after a photograph of Andrew and his abuse accuser Virginia Giuffre was published. Andrew has always denied the claims made by Giuffre and, in the 2019 BBC Newsnight interview, said he had no recollection of ever meeting her.
In a statement on Friday, the prince said his decision to let go of his duke title was part of his “duty” to his family. He wrote: “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.
“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.”
