Prince Andrew has agreed to give up the use of his title as the Duke of York in light of "continued accusations" against him.
King Charles’s younger brother has said he will "put my duty to my family and country first" in a statement released by Buckingham Palace.
"In discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family," Prince Andrew said.
"I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.
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"With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further.
"I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.
"As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me," he concluded.
Andrew will also surrender his membership of the Order of the Garter. However, he will remain a prince as he is the son of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
Prince Andrew has argeed to give up his title as Duke of York
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Andrew's decision comes amid intense public scrutiny concerning his former relationship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Over last weekend, reports emerged that claimed Prince Andrew told Jeffrey Epstein they were “in this together” the day after a picture of him with Virginia Giuffre was published in 2011.
The Duke of York had previously said he severed all communication with the disgraced financier in December 2010.
However, the newly leaked correspondence appeared to show the duke writing to Epstein on February 28, 2011.
Andrew said he made the descsion to 'put my duty to my family and country first'
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In the message, Prince Andrew stated they were "in this together" and would need to "rise above it", suggesting ongoing contact between the pair.
The email cast fresh doubt over the duke’s previous public statements regarding the timeline of his association with Epstein.
The exchange occurred the day following publication of a photograph showing the duke with his arm around Ms Giuffre at Ghislaine Maxwell's London residence.
The photograph in question is of Prince Andrew alongside Virginia Giuffre when she was 17 years old, taken at the Belgravia home of socialite Ghislaine Maxwell.
Andrew has been facing intense public scrutiny over his former relationship with Jeffrey Epstein
|GETTY
During his 2019 Newsnight interview with the BBC, the Duke rejected Ms Giuffre's account, stating the London meeting "never happened".
He suggested the image might have been falsified, telling the broadcaster: "Nobody can prove whether or not that photograph has been doctored but I don't recollect that photograph ever being taken."
In February 2022, Prince Andrew reached a financial agreement to resolve the civil proceedings Ms Giuffre had initiated in the United States, though the Duke did not accept liability.
Andrew has always strongly denied the allegations made against him by Ms Giuffre.
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