Exclusive: Prince Andrew wants royal status ‘reinstated, recognised and respected’

The Duke of York has asked the Queen to be reinstated as Colonel of the Grenadier Guards, The Telegraph understands, as he pushes for a return to royal duties.

Prince Andrew has been lobbying the monarch for his status as a blood prince to be restored, meaning readmittance to official events alongside other members of his family.

He has also been pushing for his daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, to be made working royals.

A source said: “The colonelcy of the Grenadier Guards was his most coveted title and he wants it back. Having remained a Counsellor of State, he also believes he should be included at royal and state events.

“Most importantly for him is his status as an HRH and ‘Prince of the Blood’ and he feels that should be reinstated and his position recognised and respected.”

As first revealed in The Telegraph, the Duke will appear in public on Monday alongside senior members of the Royal family at the annual Order of the Garter ceremony, resplendent in full regalia as he takes part in the colourful procession at Windsor Castle.

It will be his first official outing since he controversially took centre stage at the Duke of Edinburgh’s memorial service in March.

As far as his future is concerned, the Duke will be all too aware that time is of the essence, with any potential return to the spotlight only possible with the agreement of the Queen. 

Prince Charles has made clear that in his opinion, there is no way back.

While talks about the Duke’s future are very much underway behind the scenes, there is no desire behind palace walls to return any of his honorary military titles or patronages.

Although he has the ear of the Queen - visiting her at Windsor Castle several times a week - palace aides are under no illusion about the strength of public feeling over his links with Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender, and recent sexual abuse allegations.

In February, the Duke paid around £12million to settle a civil case with his accuser, Virginia Roberts Giuffre after several months of legal wrangling and mud slinging. He has always denied any wrongdoing.

Despite being all effectively sacked as a working royal, he remains ninth in line to the throne and as such, a Counsellor of State, a role undertaken by any spouse of the monarch and the next four adults in the line of succession, currently Prince Charles, Prince William, Prince Harry and Prince Andrew.

While senior royals including his three siblings and the Duke of Cambridge, are said to have little sympathy for the Duke given his questionable conduct, they do recognise that a role for him needs to be found.

At 62, he still has time to rebuild his life with a new focus away from the public gaze. Despite being cut free from much of the institution when sacked from official duties, both family members and courtiers appreciate that in order to do this, he will need palace support.

“Clearly at some point soon, thought will have to be given as to how to support the Duke as, away from the public gaze, he seeks slowly to rebuild his life in a different direction,” a senior Palace source was quoted as saying.

Reports that he could relocate to Scotland, however, are understood to be wide of the mark.

The Duke inherited the colonelcy of the Grenadier Guards from his father, the Duke of Edinburgh, when he retired from public life in 2017, and it was a position of which he was particularly proud.

It was said to have been his desire to wear the regiment’s formal uniform at the Duke’s funeral last April that prompted the decision that all royal men should wear morning coats instead.

The colonelcy was returned to the Queen in January. 

However, when out riding in Windsor, the Duke has continued to wear a waterproof jacket bearing the cypher of the Grenadier Guards and its motto, “honi soit qui mal y pense” - “shame upon he who thinks evil of it”.

The Duke's spokesperson declined to comment.

Meanwhile, the Cambridges are expected to move to a property on the Windsor estate this summer, with Prince George, eight, and Princess Charlotte, seven, starting at a new Berkshire prep school in September, joined by Prince Louis, four.

Their private office will remain at Kensington Palace and they plan to maintain their Norfolk bolthole, Anmer Hall, to use as a permanent base “after the school years”, according to reports.