Buckingham Palace has confirmed that King Charles III has begun a formal process to remove the style, titles and honours of the King’s brother. The statement said Andrew “will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor” and that formal notice has been served to surrender his lease on Royal Lodge at Windsor. The Palace added that these steps are considered necessary while reiterating that he denies the allegations linked to Jeffrey Epstein.
This announcement follows a separate statement issued on 17 October in which Andrew said, after discussions with the King, that he would “no longer use” his title and honours. Today’s move goes beyond non‑use: it initiates the legal instruments required to change how he is formally styled in public records.
In UK practice, changes to royal styles and titles are implemented under the royal prerogative using formal instruments. The Palace’s reference to a “formal process” points to Royal Warrants (signed by the Sovereign and countersigned by a minister) authorising the preparation of Letters Patent, which are then sealed with the Great Seal and entered on the public record. The House of Commons Library notes that titles and the HRH style are conferred-and may be altered-by such prerogative instruments. The Great Seal is in the custody of the Lord Chancellor, and sealing occurs on the Lord Chancellor’s authority via the Crown Office.
The current Lord Chancellor is David Lammy, appointed on 5 September 2025. As Keeper of the Great Seal he is the minister who oversees the sealing of Letters Patent that give legal effect to changes in styles and titles. This is an administrative role in constitutional terms; the decision is the Sovereign’s under the prerogative, exercised on advice.
Peers’ dignities are different. The House of Lords Library explains that, as a rule, peerages such as the Dukedom of York are not removed by prerogative and would ordinarily require legislation (historically via the Titles Deprivation Act 1917 in wartime cases). A Commons private member’s Removal of Titles Bill was trailed last week to create a modern statutory route, but ministers have indicated legislation would proceed only if the Palace requested it. Until any statute is passed, “ceasing to use” a dukedom has effect in practice rather than in law.
The status of Andrew’s daughters is unchanged. Under King George V’s 1917 Letters Patent-updated in 2012 for the children of the then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge-the children of a son of a Sovereign remain Princes or Princesses with HRH. Any alteration to Andrew’s style does not affect Princess Beatrice or Princess Eugenie’s titles or their places in the line of succession, which can only be changed by legislation across the Commonwealth realms.
The Palace statement also confirmed action on Andrew’s residence. Royal Lodge is held on a 75‑year lease from the Crown Estate agreed in 2003. Documents and contemporary reporting show that Andrew paid an upfront premium and renovation costs-around £8.5m in total-with a nominal ‘peppercorn’ rent thereafter, alongside extensive repair and maintenance obligations. Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease, with a move to alternative private accommodation expected “as soon as practicable”.
Scrutiny of the lease has intensified. On 29 October, Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee wrote to the Crown Estate Commissioners and HM Treasury seeking information on the status and rationale of the arrangement, citing “considerable and understandable public interest” in any public money implications. The Committee said it will consider next steps once responses are received.
Reporting indicates the alternative accommodation will be on the Sandringham estate and funded privately by the King-distinct from the Sovereign Grant. The Royal Trustees’ 2023 review reduced the Grant’s percentage from 25% to 12% of Crown Estate profits; the 2025–26 Grant is set at £132.1m. Crown Estate profits themselves flow to the Treasury, not the Royal Household.
The honours dimension will be handled through established channels. Orders and decorations can be withdrawn: the Cabinet Office’s Forfeiture Committee advises on state honours, and notices are normally published in The London Gazette. For honours in the personal gift of the Sovereign (such as the Garter and the Royal Victorian Order), the Monarch may direct annulment and the return of insignia.
Context remains relevant to the Palace’s decision. London’s Metropolitan Police has confirmed it is “actively looking into” media reports that, in 2011, Andrew asked a protection officer to obtain personal information about Virginia Giuffre. Meanwhile, renewed attention followed the publication plans for Giuffre’s posthumous memoir; she died in April 2025. Andrew has consistently denied wrongdoing and settled a US civil case in 2022 without admitting liability.
Finally, the surname reference in the Palace statement aligns with existing guidance. “Mountbatten‑Windsor” has been the family surname available to the late Queen’s descendants since a 1960 Privy Council declaration; those holding HRH and princely titles rarely need a surname, but it is used where required. Today’s change means public documents will refer to Andrew as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor.