The family of Virginia Giuffre, the woman who accused Prince Andrew of sexual assault, has welcomed the prince’s decision to renounce his Duke of York title. According to her family, the removal of the title “vindicates” Giuffre and is a testament to the years of work she put into bringing her allegations to light. Giuffre’s brother stated that his late sister “would be very proud” of the development, adding that they have shed “a lot of happy and sad tears today”.
The decision comes after further revelations about Prince Andrew’s ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on charges of trafficking underage girls for sex. Giuffre alleges that Epstein used her as a sex slave and that she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew on three separate occasions, including when she was under 18. Prince Andrew has repeatedly denied the allegations and settled a civil lawsuit with Giuffre for an undisclosed amount.
The removal of Prince Andrew’s royal title is seen as a significant step in distancing the royal family from the scandal. King Charles III, Prince Andrew’s brother, is reportedly “glad” about the decision, which further banishes Andrew from royal life. The move comes ahead of King Charles’s state visit to the Vatican next week, where he will pray alongside Pope Leo XIV in a service not seen for centuries.
Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, “Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice,” is set to be published next week, detailing her allegations against Prince Andrew and Epstein. The book’s release is expected to reignite the scandal and put further pressure on the royal family to take action.
