Charles III stripped his brother of his last royal titles. What you need to know

King Charles III of Great Britain finally took away the remaining honorary titles from Prince Andrew. He was excluded from the list of members of the Order of the Garter and the Royal Victorian Order. These awards were previously bestowed upon him by his mother— the late Queen Elizabeth II. How this will affect the British monarchy and how it works is described in the Izvestia article.

Deprivation of titles

• British monarch Charles III took away all remaining insignia from his brother Andrew, which was a continuation of the scandal related to his relationship with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. The King ordered the cancellation of Andrew's award of the title of Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, awarded to him on April 23, 2006, and also to remove his name from the list of members of this order. The Order of the Garter is considered one of the most ancient and prestigious chivalric societies in the UK. In addition, Charles III ordered Andrew to be stripped of the status of a knight of the Royal Victorian Order, to which the ex-prince was awarded in early 2011.

Andrew has already lost the title of Prince and other titles. Since 2019, he has not actually participated in the life of the royal court due to the resonance caused by the Epstein case. Like the controversial financier, he was accused of sexual assault, but he denied the allegations. In addition, the authorities of the district of Mid and East Antrim in Northern Ireland decided to rename the street in Carrickfergus, which had been named Andrew since 1986. A new name was proposed to perpetuate the memory of Queen Elizabeth II.

The Epstein Scandal

• During Andrew's daughter Princess Beatrice's coming-of-age masquerade party in 2006, Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and Harvey Weinstein, who were already involved in sexual abuse investigations, arrived at the prince's private home. Their presence in the private residence has increased doubts about the nature of Andrew's contacts with Epstein and raised new questions about the means by which the prince maintains his usual lifestyle. Shortly after this holiday, Epstein was detained in Florida, which further complicated the situation around the prince's connections.

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• Public discussions intensified again after Virginia Giuffre released a memoir in which she described alleged meetings with Andrew, which he categorically rejects, stating that he does not even remember meeting her. Photographs and evidence that have emerged in recent years indicate that Epstein and Maxwell have repeatedly visited the residences of the royal family since the late 1990s.

• Maxwell and Weinstein subsequently received lengthy sentences for sexual offenses, and Epstein himself died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial. Despite numerous claims of innocence, the prince has found himself at the center of criticism, which continues to intensify as archives and witness memoirs are published.

Succession to the throne

• Among the restrictions that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been subjected to is that he will no longer use the title of Duke of York. However, renouncing this status does not deprive him of his place in the line of succession to the throne. Formally, he still holds the eighth position among possible contenders for the British throne.

• In the United Kingdom, royal power is transferred according to the procedure established by law, based on consanguinity with the current monarch. The main principle is continuity in a straight line. So, the first in line is the eldest child of the monarch, then his own children in the order of birth, followed by the brothers and sisters of the reigning sovereign and their descendants.

• Since 2013, the rule of absolute primogeniture has been in effect, in which gender does not affect the place of the heir. The heirs must belong to the Windsor dynasty and be legitimate. They should also not violate the conditions of religion, since the monarch simultaneously holds the position of supreme ruler of the Anglican Church. Deprivation of titles, renunciation of duties, or residence abroad do not exclude a person from the line of succession.

• At the same time, you can give up power. So, Edward VIII abdicated the throne in 1936 because of his desire to marry a divorced American woman, Wallis Simpson. The Anglican Church, of which the King is the head, did not recognize such unions. Also, such a marriage could cause a wide public outcry. As a result, Edward declared that he would not be able to rule the country without the right to marry the woman he loves. After signing the act of abdication, the throne passed to his brother George VI, and Edward received the title of Duke of Windsor.

The main contenders

• After the death of Elizabeth II, royal power passed to her eldest son Charles, who, according to historical tradition, was named Charles III. All subsequent applicants automatically advanced one position. The late queen's reign was the longest in British history, so the moment of her death marked the beginning of a new era for the dynasty.

Charles III was previously married to Diana Spencer, who bore him two sons— William and Harry. After Diana's tragic death, he married Camilla Parker Bowles, who, at the behest of Elizabeth II, received the title of Queen Consort. The eldest son of the new monarch, William, is now the first heir and holds the title of Prince of Wales; his three children, 12—year-old George, ten-year-old Charlotte and seven-year-old Louis, follow him in the order of succession.

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• Next in the chain of succession are Harry and his two children, Archie and Lilibet, who live outside the UK after the couple refused to perform royal duties. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is next after them.

Scandalous cases

The turmoil in the British royal family is not unique to European monarchies. For example, Marius Borg Heiby, the 28-year-old son of Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit, is now charged with a number of crimes, including rape, sexual assault, assault and threats. The Oslo police decided not to place him in custody pending trial, citing the lack of risk of loss of evidence and the likelihood of recidivism. Habey has no official duties or titles, and his lawyer says he pleads not guilty to most of the charges.

• Queen Letizia of Spain also faced accusations. She found herself at the center of a scandal after the publication of books by journalist Jaime Penafiel, in which he claims that she repeatedly cheated on King Philip, including with the ex-husband of her sister Thelma del Burgo, and manipulated her husband in order to strengthen her own position. The Queen allegedly had no love for her husband and aroused the hostility of family members. After the books were published, the public noticed that Letizia began to attend ceremonies without the king, which increased rumors of a marriage breakdown.