Prince Andrew has suffered another blow, a week after he announced he would no longer use his royal titles, including Duke of York.
The shocking decision came after a discussion with King Charles III amid renewed scrutiny of his past ties to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Giving up the use of his title and honours is a severe step for a royal as it signals a major loss of status.
Prince Andrew’s ceremonial banner has now reportedly been removed from its place in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.
The banners represent members of the Order of the Garter.
Founded around 1348 by King Edward III. It is a prestigious and exclusive order, and is Great Britain’s oldest and most senior order of chivalry.
Andrew’s banner has his coat of arms on it and he was inducted 19 years ago.
The removal of a banner only usually occurs when high treason has been committed, or rebellion against the crown.
Photographs published by The Sun show that it was on display on Saturday, but was gone by Wednesday.
The allegations against Prince Andrew
News that Andrew would give up his royal titles came following the release of excerpts of a posthumous memoir from Virginia Giuffre called Nobody's Girl, who claimed she was 17 when she was trafficked by Epstein and had sex with Andrew.
Giuffre, who died by suicide in April aged 41, details alleged encounters with Andrew in the book.
Before her death in April this year, Virginia Giuffre accused Prince Andrew of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager, alleging that financier Jeffrey Epstein trafficked her and forced her to have sex with the prince on several occasions in the early 2000s.
Giuffre said the encounters took place when she was 17 and went on to become one of Epstein’s most prominent accusers.
The King’s brother has consistently denied the allegations, saying he has no recollection of ever meeting Giuffre and maintains that the incidents she described did not occur.
After Virginia Giuffre filed a civil lawsuit against him in the United States, he reached an out-of-court settlement in 2022, bringing the case to an end and preventing a civil trial from taking place there.
Prince Andrew and Prince William at Katharine, Duchess of Kent's Requiem Mass service on September 16, 2025. Credit: Max Mumby/Indigo / Getty
Which titles has Prince Andrew given up
In a statement released last Friday (October 17) by Buckingham Palace, Andrew said that “the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the royal family.
“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.”
He will stop using the Duke of York title and give up his status as Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order, as well as his role as Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.
While technically retaining the dukedom (which requires an Act of Parliament to remove), he will not use it.
Although he has stepped back from using his titles and honors, he will continue to be known as Prince Andrew, a status derived from his birth as the son of Queen Elizabeth II.
This designation is part of his identity and would only change through extraordinary constitutional measures.