Most Talked-About Controversies Linked to Prince Andrew, Duke of York
Public opinion and media debates around Prince Andrew, Duke of York—discover key moments of controversy.
Prince Andrew, Duke of York, is a member of the British royal family, the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. Formerly second in line to the throne, he is now eighth. He served in the Royal Navy as a helicopter pilot and instructor and saw active service during the Falklands War. His royal duties diminished following scrutiny over his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Allegations of sexual assault by Virginia Giuffre led to a legal settlement and his relinquishment of royal patronages and military titles. He has largely withdrawn from public life since then.
1984: Prince Andrew squirted paint onto reporters
During his Southern California tour in 1984, Andrew squirted paint onto American and British journalists and photographers who were reporting on the tour. The Los Angeles Herald Examiner submitted a $1,200 bill to the British consulate asking for financial compensation.
1996: Maid bitten by dog
In 1996, Charlotte Briggs, told The Sun that when she was bitten by his Norfolk Terrier, Andrew laughed and "wasn't bothered".
1999: Epstein and Maxwell at Balmoral
Around 1999, a picture of Epstein and Maxwell, sitting at a cabin on the Queen's Balmoral estate, at the invitation of Prince Andrew, was shown to the jury to establish their status as partners.
1999: Andrew met Epstein
In the November 2019 Newsnight interview, Prince Andrew says he met Epstein in 1999 through Maxwell.
March 2001: Denial of Giuffre Accusations
In March 2001, Prince Andrew denied Virginia Giuffre's accusations that they had sex. He claimed he was at home with his daughters after a party at PizzaExpress in Woking. He also disputed her claims of dancing with him at Tramp, citing his inability to sweat due to an "adrenaline overdose" during the Falklands War, and denied providing her with alcohol.
May 2001: Andrew flew with Epstein and Giuffre
In May 2001, Prince Andrew's name was recorded by Epstein's pilot David Rodgers in his logbook, and he testified that Andrew flew three times with Epstein and Giuffre in 2001.
2001: Giuffre alleges sex with Andrew in London
In 2001, Virginia Giuffre asserted that she had sex with Prince Andrew on three occasions, including a trip to London when she was 17, and later in New York and on Little Saint James in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Flight logs show Andrew and Giuffre were in the places she alleged their meetings took place.
2001: Andriano says Giuffre said she slept with Andrew
In January 2022, Carolyn Andriano, a prosecution witness in Maxwell's trial, said in an interview that in 2001 Giuffre told her she had slept with Prince Andrew and thought it was "pretty cool".
2004: Criticism over Golfing Trips
In 2004, Andrew was criticised for flying to St Andrews on RAF planes for two golfing trips, leading to questions from Labour Co-op MP Ian Davidson to the NAO.
2008: Epstein convicted of sex trafficking
In 2008, Jeffrey Epstein, a friend of Prince Andrew, was convicted of sex trafficking, leading to scrutiny of their relationship.
July 2009: Andrew present for the official opening ceremony of Banque Havilland
In July 2009, Andrew was present for the official opening ceremony of Banque Havilland. It has been alleged that Banque Havilland sought to service dictators and kleptocrats.
2009: Former officer recounts Maxwell's visits
In an ITV documentary, former royal protection officer Paul Page, who was convicted for a property investment scam in 2009, recounted Maxwell's frequent visits to Buckingham Palace.
May 2010: News of the World sting
In May 2010, Sarah Ferguson was filmed by a News of the World reporter saying Andrew would meet a donor and pass on business contacts in exchange for £500,000. She was filmed receiving $40,000 as a down payment.
December 2010: Andrew photographed with Epstein in Central Park
In December 2010, Prince Andrew was photographed strolling with Jeffrey Epstein in Central Park during a visit to New York City, further fueling criticism of their friendship.
December 2010: Andrew seen at Epstein's mansion
In July 2020, Caroline Kaufman, an alleged victim of Epstein, said in a federal lawsuit that she had seen Prince Andrew at Epstein's New York mansion in December 2010.
2010: Staying at Epstein's Mansion
In 2010, Prince Andrew stayed at Epstein's mansion for three days after Epstein's conviction for sex offences against a minor, calling it "a convenient place to stay". He claimed to have met Epstein solely to end their relationship and offered to testify under oath about his associations with Epstein.
2010: Payment for Sunninghill Park
In 2010, it was revealed that Timur Kulibayev, President Nazarbayev's son-in-law, paid Andrew's representatives £15 million for his Surrey mansion, Sunninghill Park, which was £3 million over the asking price. It was later revealed that Andrew's office tried to get a crown estate property close to Kensington Palace for Kulibayev at that time.
2010: Andrew regrets meeting Epstein after guilty plea
In August 2019, Prince Andrew released a statement that said he expressed regret for meeting Jeffrey Epstein in 2010 after Epstein had already pleaded guilty to sex crimes for the first time.
February 2011: Suitability for trade envoy role questioned
In February 2011, Chris Bryant challenged Andrew's suitability for his UK Trade & Investment role in the House of Commons due to his relationships with Saif al-Islam Gaddafi and Tarek Kaituni.
February 2011: Contact with Epstein
In February 2011, emails published in court documents from a civil case indicated that Epstein was in contact with a "member of the British Royal Family", believed to be Prince Andrew.
March 2011: Criticism over friendship with Epstein
In March 2011, BBC News reported that Prince Andrew's friendship with Jeffrey Epstein was producing "a steady stream of criticism", leading to calls for him to step down from his role as trade envoy.
March 2011: Prince Andrew Accused of Promoting Arms Trade
In March 2011, Kaye Stearman of the Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT) accused Prince Andrew of being the 'front man' for UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) and promoting the arms trade, potentially to despotic regimes.
March 2011: Report on Prince Andrew's Expenses
On 8 March 2011, The Daily Telegraph reported that Prince Andrew spent £620,000 as a trade envoy in 2010, including significant expenses on hotels, food, hospitality, and travel.
July 2011: Andrew steps down as UK Trade Envoy
In July 2011, Andrew stepped down from his role as the United Kingdom's Special Representative for International Trade and Investment due to controversies and his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
July 2011: Termination as trade envoy
In July 2011, Prince Andrew's role as trade envoy was terminated, and he reportedly cut all ties with Jeffrey Epstein.
2011: The Mail publishes photograph
In October 2022, The Mail on Sunday, which first published the photograph in 2011 of Prince Andrew, Virginia Giuffre, and Ghislaine Maxwell, was contacted by photographer Michael Thomas.
2011: Contradictory statement
The November 2019 Newsnight interview contradicted comments made by Prince Andrew's private secretary in 2011, who said Prince Andrew and Epstein met in "the early 1990s".
May 2012: Police investigation into Enviro Pacific Investments
In May 2012, Swiss and Italian police investigated Enviro Pacific Investments and its alleged involvement in international corruption related to energy companies dealing with Kazakhstan. The trust is believed to have paid £6 million towards the purchase of Sunninghill which now appears derelict.
2012: Apology for Epstein's Debt Payment
In 2012, Sarah Ferguson admitted that she had made a "gigantic error of judgement" in allowing Jeffrey Epstein to pay off a debt for her and apologised for accepting money from him. However, she defended Andrew's controversial friendship with Epstein.
September 2013: Email exchange about foot massage
In September 2013, an email exchange revealed a British man nicknamed "Andy" receiving a foot massage from two Russian women at Epstein's New York residence, identified as Prince Andrew.
2013: Urramoor Ltd Established
Urramoor Ltd, owned by the Urramoor Trust, was established in 2013.
November 2014: Andrew's meetings with Aliyev
As of November 2014, Andrew had met with Ilham Aliyev, the president of Azerbaijan, on 12 occasions, raising concerns due to Aliyev's criticised for corruption and abuses of human rights by Amnesty International.
2014: Giuffre's allegations
In 2014, Virginia Giuffre alleged that she was sex trafficked to Andrew by Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell when she was 17 years old.
January 2015: Renewed media pressure for explanation
In January 2015, there was renewed media and public pressure for Buckingham Palace to explain Prince Andrew's connection with Jeffrey Epstein, leading to a denial of any impropriety with underage minors.
2015: Initial Loan
Andrew had an existing £1.25 million loan that had been "extended or increased 10 times" since 2015.
2015: Stark's Defence of Andrew
In 2015, when Andrew was facing accusations over his connection to Jeffrey Epstein, Koo Stark came to his defence.
2015: Motion describing sexual relations
In January 2024, a series of documents related to Epstein were released, including a 2015 motion describing Prince Andrew having sexual relations with a woman at Maxwell's flat, in New York, and on Epstein's private island.
2015: Maxwell tried to confirm the photo
In October 2022, Ghislaine Maxwell stated that in an email to her lawyer in 2015 she was trying to confirm that she recognised her own house in the photograph with Andrew and Virginia Giuffre.
March 2016: Report filed against Andrew for damaging Windsor Great Park gates
In March 2016, a report was filed with the police by Republic CEO Graham Smith, alleging that Andrew damaged sensor-operated gates in Windsor Great Park. The Thames Valley Police dismissed the reports.
May 2016: Controversy Over Deal Brokering in Kazakhstan
In May 2016, the Daily Mail alleged that Andrew had brokered a deal to assist a Greek and Swiss consortium in securing a £385 million contract in Kazakhstan and was set to gain a £4 million commission. Buckingham Palace denied the allegations.
2016: Alessi's deposition on Andrew's visits
In 2016, Juan "John" Alessi, Epstein's butler, stated in a deposition he filed for Giuffre's defamation case against Maxwell that Prince Andrew's visits to the Epstein house in Palm Beach were more frequent than previously thought.
November 2017: Andrew borrows from Banque Havilland
In November 2017, Andrew borrowed £250,000 from Banque Havilland, adding to an existing £1.25 million loan. Documents raised concerns about his credibility, but the loan was granted to "further business potential with the Royal Family".
December 2017: Loan payoff
In December 2017, £1.5 million was transferred from an account at Albany Reserves, controlled by the Rowland family, to Andrew's account at Banque Havilland, paying off the loan due in March 2018.
March 2018: Loan due date
The loan from Banque Havilland was due in March 2018, but it was paid off in December 2017 with funds from an account controlled by the Rowland family.
June 2019: Introduction to Selman Turk
In May or June 2019, Tarek Kaituni introduced Andrew to Selman Turk.
August 2019: Allegations by Johanna Sjoberg
In August 2019, court documents revealed Johanna Sjoberg alleged that Prince Andrew had placed his hand on her breast while in Epstein's mansion. Andrew released a statement expressing regret for meeting Epstein in 2010 after he had already pleaded guilty to sex crimes.
November 2019: Resignation from Outward Bound Trust
In November 2019, Prince Andrew resigned from the Outward Bound Trust.
November 2019: Newsnight interview
In November 2019, the BBC's Newsnight aired an interview between Prince Andrew and Emily Maitlis in which he discussed his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein for the first time.
November 2019: Resignation as Chancellor of the University of Huddersfield
In November 2019, the Students' Union of the University of Huddersfield passed a motion to lobby Prince Andrew to resign as its chancellor. On 21 November, Andrew relinquished his role as chancellor of the University of Huddersfield.
November 2019: Suspension of Public Duties
On 20 November 2019, Buckingham Palace announced that Prince Andrew was suspending his public duties "for the foreseeable future" due to his association with Jeffrey Epstein. On 24 November, the palace confirmed that Andrew was to step down from all 230 of his patronages.
November 2019: Payment Received
On November 15, 2019, the wife of İlhan İşbilen transferred £750,000 to Andrew, purportedly as a wedding gift for Princess Beatrice, though this was allegedly to help her secure a passport.
2019: Campaign to Strip Earldom
In 2019, Inverness residents started a campaign to strip him of the Earldom of Inverness due to his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
2019: Urramoor Trust Established
In 2019, after Andrew's Newsnight interview, his private office established the Urramoor Trust, which owned both Lincelles Unlimited and Urramoor Ltd, reportedly to support his family.
2019: BBC Interview
In the 2019, Prince Andrew told Newsnight his association with Epstein was derived from his long-standing friendship with Ghislaine Maxwell, who was later convicted of colluding in Epstein's sexual abuse.
January 2020: Security Downgrade and Lack of Cooperation
In January 2020, the Home Office recommended "a major downgrade of security" for Prince Andrew. Later in January 2020, US Attorney Geoffrey Berman stated that Prince Andrew had provided "zero co-operation" with federal prosecutors and the FBI regarding the ongoing investigations.
March 2020: Hiring Crisis Management Expert
In March 2020, Prince Andrew hired crisis-management expert Mark Gallagher, who had helped high-profile clients falsely accused by Operation Midland.
May 2020: Resignation from Public Roles
In May 2020, Andrew resigned from public roles following criticism for his association with Epstein and Maxwell.
May 2020: Legal Dispute Over Mortgage
In May 2020, it was reported that Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson were in a legal dispute over the mortgage for their skiing chalet in Verbier, Switzerland.
May 2020: Prince Andrew Charitable Trust Under Investigation
In May 2020, it was reported that the Prince Andrew Charitable Trust was under investigation by the Charity Commission regarding some regulatory issues about £350,000 of payments to his former private secretary Amanda Thirsk.
June 2020: Person of Interest in US Criminal Investigation
In June 2020, it became known that Prince Andrew is a person of interest in a criminal investigation in the United States, and that the United States had filed a mutual legal assistance request to British authorities in order to question Andrew.
July 2020: Kaufman claims to have seen Andrew at Epstein's mansion
In July 2020, Caroline Kaufman, an alleged victim of Epstein, said in a federal lawsuit that she had seen Prince Andrew at Epstein's New York mansion in December 2010.
July 2020: Cancelled Trip to Spain
In July 2020, following the arrest of Ghislaine Maxwell, Prince Andrew cancelled a planned trip to Spain, reportedly due to fears that he might be arrested and extradited to the United States.
August 2020: Anti-Child Trafficking Protest
In August 2020, anti-child trafficking protesters chanting "Paedophile! Paedophile!" referencing Prince Andrew gathered outside Buckingham Palace.
November 2020: Bloomberg Businessweek Report on Andrew's Role as Trade Envoy
In November 2020, Bloomberg Businessweek reported on Andrew using his royal cachet and role as trade envoy for helping David Rowland and his private bank, Banque Havilland, secure deals with clients around the world.
2020: Lincelles Unlimited Established
Lincelles Unlimited, owned by the Urramoor Trust, was established in 2020.
October 2021: Andrew's Lawyers Respond to Lawsuit
On 29 October 2021, Prince Andrew's lawyers filed a response to Giuffre's lawsuit, stating that their client "unequivocally denies Giuffre's false allegations".
November 2021: Visoski testifies about Andrew's flights
In November 2021, Lawrence Visoski, Epstein's pilot, testified in court during Ghislaine Maxwell's trial that Prince Andrew flew in Epstein's private plane along with other prominent individuals.
2021: Bloomberg News Report
In 2021, Bloomberg News reported that a firm connected to David Rowland had been paying off Andrew's debts.
2021: Trespassing Incidents and Verbal Abuse
In early 2021, there were at least two trespassing incidents reported at Prince Andrew's Windsor property, and in December 2021 he was verbally abused by a woman as he was driving.
January 2022: Ceased using Honorary Military Titles
In January 2022, Andrew ceased using his honorary military titles after a letter signed by over 150 Royal Navy, RAF, and Army veterans requested Queen Elizabeth II to remove his honorary military appointments.
January 2022: Removal from Public Life
In January 2022, Prince Andrew's social media accounts were deleted, his page on the royal family's website was rewritten in the past tense, and his military affiliations and patronages were removed. He also stopped using the style His Royal Highness (HRH).
January 2022: Removal of Military Affiliations and Patronages
In January 2022, Queen Elizabeth II removed Andrew's honorary military affiliations and royal charitable patronages.
January 2022: Judge Allows Lawsuit to Proceed
On 12 January 2022, Judge Kaplan rejected Andrew's attempts to dismiss the case, allowing the sexual abuse lawsuit to proceed.
January 2022: Royal Patronages Handed Back
On 13 January 2022, it was announced that Prince Andrew's royal patronages had been handed back to the Queen to be distributed among other members of the royal family.
February 2022: Belfast City Council Decision
In February 2022, Belfast City Council and the Northern Ireland Assembly decided not to fly a union flag for Prince Andrew's birthday.
February 2022: Photograph of Andrew, Maxwell, Clinton and Spacey
In February 2022, The Daily Telegraph published a photograph of Prince Andrew along with Maxwell giving a tour of Buckingham Palace to Bill Clinton and Kevin Spacey.
February 2022: Settlement of Civil Lawsuit
In February 2022, the civil lawsuit over sexual assault filed by Giuffre in New York State was settled out of court, with Andrew paying an undisclosed sum to Giuffre.
March 2022: Transfer Reported
In March 2022, it was reported that İlhan İşbilen's wife had transferred £750,000 to Andrew on November 15, 2019, believing it would help her secure a passport. Andrew repaid the money 16 months later after being contacted by İşbilen's lawyers.
April 2022: Calls to Lose Title
In April 2022, several York councillors called for Andrew to lose the title of Duke of York.
April 2022: Removal of Freedom of the City
On 27 April 2022, York City Council unanimously voted to remove Prince Andrew's Freedom of the City.
June 2022: Introduction of 'Removal of Titles' bill
In June 2022, Rachael Maskell introduced a 'Removal of Titles' private members bill in the House of Commons, that would have enabled people considered unworthy to be stripped of aristocratic titles.
June 2022: Chalet Frozen Due to Debt
In June 2022, it was reported that the chalet in Verbier has been frozen because of a £1.6 million debt Andrew owes unnamed people.
October 2022: Maxwell's interview on Andrew and the photo
In October 2022, Ghislaine Maxwell stated she felt "bad" for Prince Andrew and accepted their "friendship could not survive" her conviction. She also questioned the authenticity of the photograph with Andrew and Virginia Giuffre.
2022: Lincelles Unlimited Wound Up
In 2022, Lincelles Unlimited was voluntarily wound up.
2022: Reports of brusque manner
In 2022, The Guardian reported on Andrew's brusque manner with servants. Former royal protection officer Paul Page said that Andrew maintained a collection of "50 or 60 stuffed toys" and if they "weren't put back in the right order by the maids, he would shout and scream and become verbally abusive."
January 2023: Maxwell's brother disputes claims
In January 2023, Ghislaine Maxwell's brother Ian Maxwell disputed Virginia Giuffre's claims about the bathroom incident by releasing photos, arguing the bath was too small for any sexual activity.
2023: Yang Barred from the UK
In 2023, Chris Yang was barred from entry to the United Kingdom due to alleged engagement in "covert and deceptive activity" on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party.
2023: Emails Published as Part of Civil Case
In 2023, a series of emails published as part of a civil case included snippets showing Andrew, Epstein and Jes Staley exchanging emails, which suggested that the Duke was in contact with Epstein on several occasions in 2010.
January 2024: Release of Epstein documents
In January 2024, a series of documents related to Epstein were released, including a motion describing Prince Andrew having sexual relations with a woman at Maxwell's flat, in New York, and on Epstein's private island.
December 2024: Association with Chris Yang Reported
In December 2024, it was reported that Andrew had invited Chris Yang, a Chinese businessman, to events at royal residences.
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