Questions likely over Andrew’s position in line of succession – royal expert

Questions may be asked about why Andrew Mountbatten Windsor retains his place in the line of succession, a royal expert has said.

The King’s dramatic decision to formally strip his brother of his Prince and Duke of York titles and HRH style effectively ends his public life and leaves him with the status of a commoner – but he remains eighth in line to the throne.

As of Friday morning on the royal family’s official website, Andrew was still listed in eighth place as “The Duke of York” in the line of succession, behind Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet of Sussex.

Majesty Magazine’s managing editor Joe Little told the PA news agency: “I’m sure at some point quite soon, somebody will ask, if they’ve not already done so, why he hasn’t been moved from the line of succession.

“Clearly it would take quite a catastrophe for him to become king given all those that are ahead of him.

“So might it not have been tidier to withdraw him from the line of succession?”

Andrew is a counsellor of state, but this role has previously been described as “inactive”.

Only “working members” of the royal family would be called upon to carry out the sovereign’s duties on a temporary basis as a counsellor of state in case of illness or overseas travel.

Mr Little suggested it may have been “tidier” to remove that role from Andrew’s portfolio too.

He said “it’s not all bad” for Andrew, who will move into an undisclosed private residence on the Sandringham Estate, the accommodation privately funded by the King, who will also make private financial provisions for his brother.

Mr Little said: “On a personal level it must be pretty devastating and the ultimate humiliation for him, and we know him to be rather an arrogant character, but this has got to be taking its toll on him mentally. It would be very strange if it weren’t.

“But nevertheless, the future, it’s not looking particularly bleak.

“I mean, he will no longer be in Windsor, but he’ll be on a private royal estate in Norfolk, and will have accommodation provided and he will be supported in other ways by his brother, the King, for whom it’s been, equally, a very difficult time.

“No brother would want to do this to another sibling, but clearly this sanction has become necessary, and some would argue should have been taken a long time ago.”

Mr Little said the latest development is a “big deal” not only for Andrew but also for his daughters, Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice.

“Whatever they know about their father, and I suppose their mother given the more recent revelations, they are still their parents.

“The upheaval and the tumult that the family is experiencing at the moment must be pretty devastating, you would think, on many levels,” he said.