Prince Andrew reeling: Duke left ‘shell-shocked’ after Queen’s extraordinary statement
On Thursday, Buckingham Palace announced that the Duke of York’s military titles and royal patronages have been returned to the Queen. The Queen’s decision to remove these came just one day after it emerged that a judge refused to throw out a civil case launched against Andrew by Virginia Giuffre.
The Duke also won’t use his His Royal Highness style in any official capacity.
Buckingham Palace issued a brief statement that focused on Andrew’s public role and titles on Thursday evening.
It read: “With The Queen’s approval and agreement, The Duke of York’s military affiliations and Royal patronages have been returned to The Queen.
“The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen.”
On Thursday morning, prior to the news breaking, the Duke was spotted being driven from his property Royal Lodge for a meeting with the Queen.
It comes as the royal family is said to be “furious” with the prince over the claims and dragging the family into the matter.
A source close to Andrew on Thursday evening described him as “shell-shocked” by the Queen’s statement move.
The source added: “Given the robustness with which Judge Kaplan greeted our arguments, we are unsurprised by the ruling.
