King Charles is wasting no time in drawing a firm line under his brother’s scandal stained past and this time, it’s Andrew’s last shred of military prestige that’s heading for the chop.
The Defence Secretary, John Healey, confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is working “under the King’s guidance” to strip Andrew Mountbatten Windsor of his final honorary military rank Vice Admiral of the Royal Navy that he’s clung to since 2015.
“The King has indicated that’s what he wishes,” Healey told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. “It’s a move that’s right, and we’re working on that at the moment.”
Andrew, once hailed as a war hero for his service as a helicopter pilot in the Falklands War, spent 22 years in the Royal Navy and even commanded HMS Cottesmore.
But his reputation and royal standing have long been torpedoed by his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a scandal that refuses to sink quietly.
“It seems the King is intent on taking absolutely everything away from his brother,” royal author Valentine Low noted. “It’s a flinty eyed ruthlessness he’s displaying.”
For Andrew, who once wore his medals and titles as badges of pride, the loss of his final naval honour could be the last symbolic anchor slipping away leaving the former prince adrift with little more than his £20,000 a year Navy pension.
Palace insider told The Guardian, “The King’s not just trimming the fat, he’s cutting clean through.”
The outlet reported on Friday that King Charles has approved a hefty six figure payout for his disgraced brother and is even prepared to personally fund an annual allowance to stop Andrew from “overspending” in his new life as a commoner.