Prince Andrew loses military roles and use of HRH title

The Queen has sought to distance the monarchy from the Duke of York by stripping him of his military affiliations and royal patronages as the fallout from his sexual assault case continues.

In a devastating blow to Prince Andrew, who was born His Royal Highness, Buckingham Palace also said he would no longer use the HRH royal style in any official capacity.

The move means Andrew has been completely removed from official royal life as he prepares to fight a civil lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre after a US judge rejected his attempt to have the case against him dismissed.

The Buckingham Palace statement does not say that the duke has been stripped of his HRH title, but that he will no longer use the style His Royal Highness in any official capacity.

As ninth in line to the throne, and the fourth-most senior adult in the line of succession, Andrew will remain as a counsellor of state, able to undertake official duties if the sovereign is temporarily incapacitated through illness or abroad.

Giuffre, now 38, says she was forced into sex at 17 with the duke by associates of his, the late sex offender and financier, Jeffrey Epstein, and Ghislaine Maxwell, the British media heiress who was convicted in New York last month of sex-trafficking girls for Epstein. The duke denies the allegations against him.

It is understood the decision was taken by mutual agreement between the Queen and Andrew, but the ultimate decision would have fallen to the monarch.

As a former Royal Navy officer who served in the Falklands war, the loss of his association with the military units and regiments, the most prestigious being colonel of the Grenadier Guards, will be keenly felt by Andrew.

But he still retained the roles, leaving eight British regiments, including the Grenadier Guards, where he had held the title of colonel, in limbo for more than two years.