Prince Andrew, once second in line to the throne, has seen his reputation collapse amid allegations of sexual assault and his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The 65-year-old was stripped of his titles and forced to leave Royal Lodge, marking a dramatic fall from grace for Queen Elizabeth's second son.
Born at Buckingham Palace in 1960, Andrew joined the Royal Navy as a trainee helicopter pilot and served in the Falklands War. He married Sarah Ferguson in 1986, becoming Duke of York, and they had two daughters before separating in 1992. After retiring from the navy, he served as a trade envoy until 2011.
Andrew was introduced to Epstein in 1999 through Ghislaine Maxwell. Photographs show them together at Balmoral and Mar-a-Lago. In 2001, Virginia Giuffre alleges Andrew sexually assaulted her when she was 17, claims he has consistently denied.
The scandal escalated after Epstein's 2019 death and Andrew's disastrous 2019 BBC interview, where he claimed he could not have assaulted Giuffre due to a Pizza Express visit and an inability to sweat. He stepped back from public duties, and in 2022, the Queen stripped him of military affiliations and patronages.
In 2022, Andrew settled a civil lawsuit with Giuffre, reportedly for £12 million, without admitting liability. The settlement ended the legal case but not the public scrutiny, leaving his reputation permanently damaged.
