Prince Andrew was ‘left in tears after the Queen told him his titles were being stripped away

Prince Andrew was reportedly left in tears when he was stripped of his military titles. The Duke of York, who can no longer be known as His Royal Highness ‘in any official capacity’, is expected to write to his former regiments to express his remorse at having to leave, the Sunday Mirror reported.

On Thursday, Andrew was stripped of his remaining patronages and honorary military roles after he lost his bid to have the sex lawsuit against him thrown out.

The Duke of York was said to be ‘utterly devastated’ by the Queen’s decision but has accepted it was the ‘right thing to do.’

The Prince was tearful when told the news even though he had expected it. He feels that he has let so many people down, not least his mother, during her Platinum Jubilee year,’ a senior defence source said.

Andrew, who spent 21 years in the navy, is now no longer Colonel of the Grenadier Guards – one of the most senior infantry regiments in the British Army, and has also been forced to drop his HRH style as he faces life as a private citizen.

A source close to the duke told The Times he was taking it on the chin. ‘He is quite sanguine about it. He was mindful of the intense pressures building on the institution and recognised it was the right thing to do.’

Andrew was said to have hosted a shooting party at his Royal Lodge home in Windsor the day after the bombshell announcement was made.

The news comes as the prince was said to have hosted a shooting party for about 12 friends and relatives on Friday – a day after the monarch’s decision to remove the titles. 

Around a dozen friends and family gathered at the mansion on Friday night before going on to shoot in nearby Windsor Great Park, as part of a Christmas gift the Queen gave to Princess Eugenie, The Sun reported.

The duke’s position was said to have become untenable after his former friend, Ghislaine Maxwell, 60, was found guilty of trafficking offences in New York.

His titles will now have to be distributed among the remaining members of the family, a process made all the more difficult by Prince Harry’s decision in 2020 to step away from royal life, meaning he also relinquished his positions.

The Mirror’s defence source said: ‘Andrew is a victim of very poor decision-making. There is no way he could continue as the honorary head of distinguished military regiments.’

They added: ‘He could not be present at parades, visit units or welcome troops home from operations because the story would always be about sex scandals and not about the regiments.’