Luke Alsford
Published December 2, 2025 2:40pm
Updated December 2, 2025 2:43pm
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There is a long history of royals who have been stripped of their titles (Picture: Metro/ getty)
Rifts, humiliation and anger: Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is now one of the many royals who have lost their beloved titles.
Disgraced Andrew was stripped of the last of his remaining titles on Monday, leaving him as a simple commoner.
The King’s brother had already lost his Duke of York and prince monikers, and is now no longer a member of the Order of the Garter, or a Knight of the Grand Cross of the Royal Victoria Order.
Royal commentators and even a palace butler say other royals who suffered a similar fate have struggled to ever adjust and remained bitter for decades.
Andrew is now a simple commoner (Picture: EPA)
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Expert Richard Fitzwilliams told Metro: ‘It is a unique humiliation. Titles shouldn’t mean as much as they used to, but they do.
‘The reason for this is a title if it is part of you, whether you have married into it or not. It is personally precious.’
Butler Grant Harrold, who served the then Prince of Wales at his private residence at Highgrove from 2004 to 2011, said: ‘Royals do have a problem adjusting to life without their titles as they believe their titles are a given right.’
He revealed the King once told him: ‘When you acknowledge or bow or courtesy, it is not to the person, it is to the title.’
Metro take a look at the people who left The Firm – and how they’ve fared.
King Edward VIII
The Duke of Windsor circa 1942 (Picture: Getty Images/Michael Ochs Archives)
One of the most famous title losses in British history saw King Edward VIII abdicate over his marriage to twice-divorcee Wallis Simpson.
His successor, King George VI, made Edward the Duke of Windsor and Wallis the Duchess of Windsor, but Wallis was denied the style ‘Her Royal Highness’ (HRH).
This decision was against royal practice and triggered a lifelong animosity from the pair that caused chaos for the royals.
Mr Fitzwilliams explained: ‘He never forgave it. His later behaviour towards the royal family was heavily influenced by what he saw as a deliberate personal swipe.
‘It is reported that on his deathbed, he requested that Queen Elizabeth give Wallis the title.’
The Duke vowed never to return to England unless Wallis was an HRH.
While he did come back, alone for his brother’s funeral, Wallis never got the title she sought.
Princess Diana
Diana lost her HRH title after he divorce from the now King (Picture: Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)
After her divorce with then Prince Charles was finalised in 1996, Diana lost her HRH (Her Royal Highness) title.
The loss of this honour sent her down the proverbial pecking order and meant she was no longer entitled to curtseys, bows and other acknowledgements.
It was reported at the time that technically Diana had to curtsy to those who still had the HRH title, including even her own children and ex-husbands.
She was reportedly upset by the decision, with reports also claiming then 14-year-old William has vowed to give it back to her.
Despite this, the Princess of Wales still received many of the same formalities from members of the public.
Mr Harrold, who also worked as a butler for Harry and William, explained: ‘Once you have been a royal, even if you have lost your title, people still treat you like a royal.
‘You still get VIP treatment. You are still a celebrity and carry that status. I have witnessed it first hand.
‘Diana was always seen as the Princess of Wales. People may not have referred to her as ‘Your Royal Highness”, I still saw people bowing and curtseying to her. This showed people still saw her as a royal.’
Prince Harry & Meghan
Harry and Meghan are retained their Duke and Duchess of Sussex titles (Picture: Karwai Tang/WireImage)
After stepping back as working royals in 2020, Prince Harry, together with his wife Meghan retained their titles of Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
However the pair agreed not to use ‘HRH‘ and to give up official royal duties and funding.
This has become a sticking point for the pair, who are often accused of trying to cache in on their royal status.
This was thrown into the spotlight when it was revealed in a Harper’s Bazaar interview with Meghan revealed a house manager called out ‘Duchess of Sussex’ when she entered a room.
Mr Fitzwilliams says the couple have ‘capably skated around that’ agreement as much as they can because they ‘know what cachet titles have’.
The commentator branded the moment ‘ridiculous’, while other royal experts leapt to Meghan’s defence, saying Americans ‘get very excited’ about titles.
What next for Andrew?
Andrew will no longer be known as a prince after he was stripped of all his titles (Picture: NEIL HALL/EPA/Shutterstock)
Mr Harrold, who spent years inside the fold, reckons the former Prince might struggle with the loss of his titles.
He said: ‘Andrew will find it difficult. He will begrudge no longer having the royal trappings.’
One issue which remains for the royal family is Andrew’s dukedom in York.
Mr Fitzwilliams believes it will take a very long time before that title is ever handed to another royal.
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He explained: ‘The extraordinary thing about certain titles is that they are associated with those who held it. The York title is identified with Andrew.
‘In any road or school which is named after Andrew, they are now trying to change it.
‘It will be a long time before those titles are used again.’
Andrew is still eighth in line for the throne, and the government says it has no plans to pass a law to formally remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the order.
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