London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Prince Andrew: Which military roles has he lost - and what else could he be handing back?

Prince Andrew: Which military roles has he lost - and what else could he be handing back?

Prince Andrew has had his military titles and royal patronages taken away as a civil sexual assault court case against him in the US moves forward.
What has Buckingham Palace said?


"With the Queen's approval and agreement, the Duke of York's military affiliations and Royal patronages have been returned to the Queen," the palace said in a statement on Thursday.

"The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen."

The civil case has been brought by Virginia Giuffre, who claims Andrew "committed sexual assault and battery" upon her when she was a teenager.

Virginia Giuffre says she was 17 when she was trafficked to have sex with Prince Andrew - claims he denies.


Ms Giuffre alleges that she was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein to have sex with Andrew when she was a minor under US law, claims strongly denied by the duke.

Andrew failed in a legal bid to get Ms Guiffre's case against him thrown out.

Which military roles are being handed back?


Following a 22-year career in the Royal Navy, Andrew held several honorary military titles.

These were suspended after he stepped back from public duties in 2019, but he had retained the roles, effectively leaving the affected regiments in limbo.

The positions he is now relinquishing are:

• Colonel of the Grenadier Guards

• Royal colonel of the Royal Highland Fusiliers

• Colonel-in-chief of the Royal Highland Fusiliers, (Canada)

• Colonel-in-chief of the Yorkshire Regiment

The Duke of York, pictured in 2003, was colonel-in-chief of the Royal Irish Regiment


• Colonel-in-chief of the Royal Lancers

• Colonel-in-chief of the Small Arms School Corps

• Colonel-in-chief of the Royal Irish Regiment

• Colonel-in-chief of the Princess Louise Fusiliers of Canada

• Colonel-in-chief of the Queen's York Rangers

• Colonel-in-chief of the Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment

• Honorary air commodore of RAF Lossiemouth

• Commodore-in-chief of the Fleet Air Arm

Prince Andrew was also an honorary Royal Navy vice admiral, but it is unclear what will happen to that role.

What will happen to the military titles?


The military posts have been handed back to the Queen with immediate effect and they will be redistributed among other members of the Royal Family.

The Queen is head of the armed forces and honorary military appointments are in her gift.

The military posts will not be returned to the Duke of York.

What other patronages could the duke lose?


Although many charities relinquished their ties with him after 2019, Andrew was still listed on the Royal Family's website as being a patron or member of around 100 charities and organisations, including hospital trusts, cricket clubs and schools.

They included the Army Officers' Golfing Society, Berkshire County Cricket Club, Killyleagh Yacht Club, Horris Hill School in Hampshire, and the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust.

On Thursday it was revealed he had lost his honorary titles at Royal Portrush and Royal County Down golf clubs in Northern Ireland.

It is thought Andrew will still be known as the Duke of York


What else will change?


The Duke will no longer use the style "His Royal Highness" in any official capacity.

Will he still be called The Duke of York?


It is not known if the palace's announcement covers the Duke of York title but it's thought to be unlikely.

Royal commentator and biographer Christopher Warwick has previously told Sky News that while the Queen can appoint dukes, it takes an act of parliament to remove their titles "which wouldn't cover Andrew or the monarchy in glory".

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Macron and his wife to provide 'scientific photographic evidence' that she is a real woman
US Tech Giants Pledge Billions to UK AI Infrastructure Following Starmer's Call
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
DeepMind and OpenAI Achieve Gold at ‘Coding Olympics’ in AI Milestone
SEC Allows Public Companies to Block Investors from Class-Action Lawsuits
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates by Quarter Point and Signals More to Come
Effective and Impressive Generation Z Protest: Images from the Riots in Nepal
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Trump: Cancel quarterly company reports and settle for reporting once every six months
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
×