New law to give King Charles power to strip Prince Andrew of Dukedom proposed

A new law, which would allow King Charles to formally strip Prince Andrew of his Dukedom, will be introduced in the Commons on Wednesday. York Central MP Rachael Maskell has set out legislation which would grant the monarch the power to remove titles.

The proposed new law would give His Majesty the power to remove titles on his own initiative, following a recommendation of a joint committee of Parliament, or at the request of the person who holds the title.

Buckingham Palace shared a message from Prince Andrew on October 17 explaining that he would no longer use his Duke of York title in public. The full list of titles he will no longer use also includes the Earl of Inverness, Baron Killyleagh, his knighthood as a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) and his Garter role as a Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.

Ms Maskell said: "It is time for Parliament to act so that it can, or the monarch can, remove titles. The Duke of York title may no longer be being used by its holder, but it has not been removed.

"My short Bill, The Removal of Titles Bill, will fix this; I hope it can now be supported by Parliament."

It is important to note that the Bill stands little chance of becoming law without Government support and ministers have resisted calls to act, insisting such decisions are for the King.

Prince Andrew still holds the title and will continue to do so unless he is formally stripped of his Dukedom.

Removing royal titles is a complicated process and was last notably done by King George V during World War One when he revoked titles of his relatives who were on the German side.

The Titles Deprivation Act 1917 was used two years later to strip the titles from Leopold Charles, Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence and Baron Arklow; Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale, Earl of Armagh; Ernest Augustus, Duke of Brunswick, Prince of Great Britain and Ireland; and Henry, Viscount Taaffe of Corren and Baron of Ballymote.

At the same time, a Letters Patent from the same year changed the Royal Family's last name from the Germanic Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to the more Anglican Windsor.

Several other royals also changed their names to follow suit. For example, Prince Louis of Battenberg became Lord Louis Mountbatten - the uncle of Prince Philip and mentor to King Charles.