The Duke of York’s social media accounts are being taken down as he continues his legal battle to fight a sexual assault lawsuit filed against him in the US.
The Queen last week stripped her second son of his honorary military affiliations and royal patronages, and he agreed not to use his royal HRH style in any official capacity.
Prince Andrew’s official Twitter account, The Duke of York, now leads to a blank page. His YouTube page is also no longer accessible. While his Instagram account, hrhthedukeofyork, still appeared on Wednesday, it is understood that this is also being deleted, along with his Facebook account, but some accounts are taking longer to filter.
Royal aides have also updated the British monarch’s official website as Buckingham Palace seeks to steer the institution away from Andrew’s legal battle.
While the prince still appears in the section titled Members of the Royal Family, the list of his military affiliations and patronages has been removed. Buckingham Palace announced last week that the roles would be shared between the other members of the royal family. The decision was made after discussion between the elders of the family.
The website also includes details of the Queen’s statement, namely: “In January 2022, Buckingham Palace issued a statement announcing that with the Queen’s approval and consent, military affiliations and The Duke of York’s royal patronages have been returned to the Queen, and the Duke will continue to hold no public office.
Under Supporting the Queen, Andrew’s official duties are listed in past tense, such as attending Trooping the Color and his Diamond Jubilee tour of India on behalf of the monarch. The website states: “An important part of the Duke of York’s role was to support the Queen’s work as Head of State.”
Prince Andrew was reportedly introduced to Epstein through Maxwell in 1999, and Epstein reportedly visited the Queen’s private retreatnin Aberdeenshire.
Some have suggested the introduction was made earlier. A 2011 letter to the Times of London from the prince’s then private secretary, Alastair Watson, suggests Andrew and Epstein knew each other from the early 90s.
","unixDate":915148800000},{"title":"","date":"2000","body":"nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnAndrew, Maxwell and Epstein are seen together at DonaldnTrump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. Later that year, Epstein and Maxwellnattend a joint birthday party at Windsor Castle hosted by the Queen.
","unixDate":946684800000},{"title":"","date":"2001","body":"Andrew and Epstein holiday together and are pictured on a yacht in Phuket, Thailand, surrounded by topless women. The Times of London reported the prince’s holiday was paid for by Epstein.
In the same year, Virginia Giuffre, then 17, claims to have had sexnwith Andrew in Maxwell’s home in Belgravia, London. Giuffre, whose surname was nRoberts at the time of the alleged incidents, says she slept with Andrewn twice more, at Epstein’snNew York home and at an “orgy” on his private island in the Caribbean.
","unixDate":978307200000},{"title":"","date":"2008","body":"nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnEpstein is jailed for 18 months by a Florida state court after pleading guilty tonprostituting minors.
","unixDate":1199145600000},{"title":"","date":"2010","body":"nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnSoon after his release, Epstein is visited bynAndrew in New York. The pair are photographed together in Central Park. Footagenemerges years later, reportedly shot on 6 December, that appears to show Andrewninside Epstein’s Manhattan mansion waving goodbye to a woman from behind a door.
","unixDate":1262304000000},{"title":"","date":"2011","body":"nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnAndrew quits his role as UK trade envoy following anfurore over the Central Park photos.
","unixDate":1293840000000},{"title":"","date":"2015","body":"nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnAllegations that Andrew had sex with Giuffre emergenin court documents in Florida related to Epstein. The papers say she was forced to have sex with Andrew when she was 17, which is below thenage of consent under Florida law. Buckingham Palace denies the allegations. The claims against Andrew are later struck from US civilncourt records following a federal judge’s ruling.
","unixDate":1420070400000},{"title":"","date":"2019","body":"Andrew is accused of sexualnimpropriety by a second alleged Epstein victim, Johanna Sjoberg. She claims hentouched her breast at the billionaire’s Manhattan apartment in 2001.nBuckingham Palace says the allegations are "categorically untrue".
","unixDate":1546300800000},{"title":" ","date":"10 August 2019","body":"Epstein is found dead in his jail cell after being re-arrested and charged with sex trafficking. A medical examiner says the death was a suicide. A pilot on Epstein’s private jet later that month claims Andrew was a passenger on past flights with the financier and Giuffre.
","unixDate":1565395200000},{"title":" ","date":"November 2019","body":"Andrew takes part in a disastrous BBC TV interview during which he claims he could not have had sex with Giuffre because he was at home after a visit to Pizza Express in Woking, and that her description of his dancing with her beforehand could not be true because he was unable to sweat, and that he had "no recollection of ever meeting this lady". After several days of negative reaction, Andrew announces he is to step back from public duties "for the foreseeable future".
","unixDate":1574208000000},{"title":" ","date":"27 January 2020","body":"US prosecutor Geoffrey Berman gives a public statement suggesting there has been "zero cooperation" with the investigation from Andrew.
","unixDate":1580083200000},{"title":" ","date":"8 June 2020","body":"After Berman again claims Andrew has "completely shut the door" on cooperating with the US investigation in March, lawyers for the prince insist he has repeatedly offered to cooperate and accuse US prosecutors of misleading the public and breaching confidentiality.
","unixDate":1591632988000},{"title":" ","date":"July 2020","body":"Maxwell, who has seldom been seen in public in recent years, is arrested by the FBI on charges related to Epstein. Unsealed testimony from a 2015 civil case reveal a series of claims about her role in Epstein's sex-trafficking ring, including allegations that she trained underage girls as sex slaves.
","unixDate":1593706442000},{"title":" ","date":"24 September 2021","body":"US officials confirm that Prince Andrew has received court papers relating to a sexual assault civil lawsuit from Giuffre, seeking damages. Her lawyers had earlier said the duke had officially been served with the papers, but his legal team had disputed the claim. Two weeks later, a court in New York granted his lawyers permission to see the confidential settlement agreement between Giuffre and Epstein.
","unixDate":1632441600000},{"title":" ","date":"11 October 2021","body":"The Metropolitan police in London say they are taking no further action after a review of the allegations that Prince Andrew assaulted Giuffre. In August, the Met commissioner, Cressida Dick, had said “no one is above the law” and that she had asked her team to look at the material again.
","unixDate":1633951481000},{"title":" ","date":"30 December 2021","body":"Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial ends with a guilty verdict on five of the six counts she faced.
","unixDate":1640822400000},{"title":" ","date":"12 January 2022","body":"A judge in New York rejects Prince Andrew’s attempt to throw out the sexual abuse civil lawsuit brought against him by Giuffre. The prince's lawyers had attempted to argue that Giuffre’s 2009 settlement with Epstein shielded the duke from her taking legal action against him.
","unixDate":1641945600000},{"title":" ","date":"13 January 2022","body":"Queen Elizabeth II strips her son of a range of military affiliations and royal patronages after more than 150 military veterans write to describe their “upset and anger”.
","unixDate":1642095273000}],"description":"Chronology
Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and Prince Andrew
Show
In the early 90, Ghislaine Maxwellthe daughter of British media magnate Robert Maxwell, met an investment banker and financier Jeffrey Epstein. Their relationship was initially romantic, but it evolved into something closer to Maxwell being a confidant and personal assistant.
Prince Andrew was reportedly introduced to Epstein by Maxwell in 1999, and Epstein is said to have visited the Queenprivate retreat in Aberdeenshire.
Some have suggested that the introduction was made earlier. A 2011 letter to The Times of London from the Prince’s then private secretary, Alastair Watson, suggests Andrew and Epstein had known each other since the early 1990s.
Andrew, Maxwell and Epstein are seen together at donald trumpof the Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. Later that year, Epstein and Maxwell attended a joint birthday party at Windsor Castle hosted by the Queen.
Andrew and Epstein are vacationing together and are pictured on a yacht in Phuket, Thailand, surrounded by topless women. The Times of London reported that the prince’s vacation was paid for by Epstein.
In the same year, Virginie Giuffre, then 17, claims he had sex with Andrew at Maxwell’s home in Belgravia, London. Giuffre, whose last name was Roberts at the time of the alleged incidents, says she slept with Andrew twice more, at Epstein’s New York home and at an ‘orgy’ on his private island in the Caribbean.
Epstein is jailed for 18 months in Florida state court after pleading guilty to underage prostitution.
Shortly after his release, Epstein receives a visit from Andrew in New York. The couple are pictured together in Central Park. Footage emerges years later, believed to have been shot on December 6, that appears to show Andrew inside Epstein’s Manhattan mansion saying goodbye to a woman behind a door.
Andrew is quitting his role as UK trade envoy following a furor over Central Park photos.
Allegations that Andrew had sex with Giuffre appear in Florida court documents linked to Epstein. Newspapers say she was forced to have sex with Andrew when she was 17, which is below the age of consent under Florida law. Buckingham Palace denies the allegations. The claims against Andrew are later expunged from US civil court records following a federal judge’s decision.
Andrew is accused of sexual impropriety by a second alleged victim of Epstein, Johanna Sjoberg. She claims he touched his chest in the billionaire’s Manhattan apartment in 2001. Buckingham Palace said the allegations were “categorically false”.
Epstein is found dead in his jail cell after being re-arrested and charged with sex trafficking. A medical examiner says the death was a suicide. A pilot of Epstein’s private jet later that month claims Andrew was a passenger on earlier flights with the financier and Giuffre.
Andrew takes part in a disastrous BBC TV interview in which he claims he couldn’t have had sex with Giuffre because he was home from a visit to Pizza Express in Woking, and his description of his dancing with her beforehand could not be true because he was unable to sweat and had “no memory of ever meeting that lady”. After several days of backlash, Andrew announces he will step down from public duties “for the foreseeable future”.
american attorney Geoffrey Berman made a public statement suggesting there was “no cooperation” with Andrew’s investigation.
After Berman again claimed Andrew had ‘completely shut the door’ on his cooperation with the US investigation in March, the prince’s lawyers insist he has repeatedly offered to cooperate and accuse US prosecutors of misleading the public and breaching confidentiality.
Maxwell, who has rarely been seen in public in recent years, is being arrested by the FBI on Epstein-related charges. Unsealed testimony from a 2015 civil case reveals a series of allegations about her role in Epstein’s sex trafficking ring, including allegations that she trained underage girls as sex slaves.
US officials confirm that Prince Andrew has received court documents relating to a civil sexual assault lawsuit from Giuffre, seeking damages. His lawyers had earlier said the duke had officially received the papers, but his legal team disputed the claim. Two weeks later, a New York court granted his lawyers access to the confidential settlement agreement between Giuffre and Epstein.
London’s Metropolitan Police said they were taking no further action after a review of allegations that Prince Andrew assaulted Giuffre. In August, Met Commissioner Cressida Dick said “no one is above the law” and asked her team to review the material.
Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial ends with a guilty verdict on five of the six charges she faced.
Virginia Giuffre, 38, is suing Andrew, 61, in the US for allegedly sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager. She claims she was trafficked by her friend Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted pedophile, to have sex with Andrew when she was 17 and a minor under US law. Andrew denied the allegations.
The Duke of Cambridge did not respond when asked if he was supporting his uncle on Wednesday. Prince William was leaving the Foundling Museum in London with the Duchess of Cambridge when a member of a TV news crew asked: ‘Do you support Prince Andrew?’ William leaned closer to hear, then walked past without comment.
