Prince Andrew stripped of titles and must surrender lease to Royal Lodge in Windsor

Prince Andrew will be stripped of his titles and must hand over the lease to Royal Lodge, the mansion where he lives in Windsor, according to a statement from Buckingham Palace.

“Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor,” the statement said. “A formal notice to abandon the tenancy has now been served and he will move to alternative private accommodation.”

Andrey recently said he would stop using his royal titles and honors, including Duke of York, but Thursday's announcement on behalf of King Charles III and Queen Camilla initiated the formal process of revoking all his titles, including that of prince.

“These censures are deemed necessary despite his continued denial of the charges brought against him,” the statement said.

Andrew has come under scrutiny for his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and allegations from Virginia Giuffre that she was sold for sex with the prince when she was underage. Andrew denied the allegations. He reached settlement with Giuffre in 2022. Giuffre committed suicide earlier this year.

“Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies are and will remain victims and survivors of all forms of violence,” the statement said.

Giuffre's family said Thursday in a statement provided to CBS News affiliate BBC News: “Today, an ordinary American girl from an ordinary American family brought down a British prince with her truthfulness and extraordinary courage.”

“Today she declares victory. We, her family, along with her surviving sisters, continue Virginia's fight and will not rest until the same accountability is applied to all abusers and enablers associated with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell,” said the statement sent on behalf of her brother Skye Roberts and daughter-in-law Amanda.

IN memoirs published posthumouslyGiuffre detailed her alleged encounters with Andrew.

“He was friendly enough, but also entitled—as if he thought sex with me was his birthright,” she wrote. “The next morning, [Ghislaine] Maxwell told me, “You did well. The prince had fun. Epstein would give me $15,000 to serve the man the tabloids called “Randy Andy.”

In 2022 Andrey gave up his military affiliations, royal patronage and official public duties. He also stopped using the title “His Royal Highness”.

Andrew has faced intense criticism from the British public over his living conditions, with many expressing concern that he continues to live in his mansion on the royal estate despite the allegations against him and his withdrawal from royal duties.

His 75-year lease for Royal Lodge, signed in 2003, included a down payment of about 8 million pounds (about US$10.5 million) and an annual rent that was called “peppercorn”, meaning an extremely small amount, according to BBC News. Part of this payment was intended to renovate the building, which was in disrepair at the time, and Buckingham Palace felt it would be better for Andrew to pay for the cost of upgrading the property rather than use public funds, the BBC reported.

The lease had previously been described as “cast iron” and Buckingham Palace said it needed to negotiate with Andrew to remove him, but did not provide further information on the details of those negotiations.

Buckingham Palace said Andrew would leave the residence as soon as possible and move to the Sandringham estate, located about 100 miles north of London.