Humiliated King Charles Was Too Brutal With Ex-Prince Andrew

Britain's Prince Andrew, Duke of York (L) and Britain's King Charles III leave following a Requiem Mass, a Catholic funeral service, for the late Katharine, Duchess of Kent, at Westminster Cathedral in London on September 16, 2025. Britain's Duchess of Kent, known for her links to the Wimbledon tennis tournament and for anonymously teaching music at a primary school. The duchess, a talented pianist, organist and singer, was born Katharine Worsley into an aristocratic family in Yorkshire, northern England. (Photo by Adrian Dennis / AFP) (Photo by ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images)

(Image credit: Getty Images)

2025 was a challenging year for King Charles after his brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, faced further accusations regarding his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The King acted swiftly, demoting his brother, removing all of Andrew's royal titles, and evicting him from Royal Lodge in Windsor. But according to a royal expert, there are several reasons why the monarch acted "more brutally than people expected."

Speaking to GB News, royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams said, "I think [The King] is acting in the way that he feels appropriate, which was more brutal than a lot of people expected." The expert continued, "He removed the title of prince. Some people speculated that it wouldn't happen. I think that this was necessary given the circumstances."

Fitzwilliams also suggested that, due to the secretive nature of the Epstein files, King Charles would have been unaware of the severity of allegations about Andrew's behavior. "It appeared belated because [the Epstein files] had gone on for so many years in different ways," the expert shared.

King Charles, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Andrew on the balcony during Trooping the Colour 2019 — "I think [The King] is acting in the way that he feels appropriate."

The royal expert elaborated, "It's been very difficult for The King because he does not know what is going to be released." Per Fitzwilliams, "The humiliation is unique, but it really has piled it on."

Princess Anne, Prince Edward, Duchess Sophie and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in Scotland after Queen Elizabeth's death — "He removed the title of prince. Some people speculated that it wouldn't happen."

Virginia Roberts Giuffre

'Nobody's Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice'

Royal author Christopher Andersen previously suggested that the release of Epstein and Andrew accuser Virginia Giuffre's memoir, Nobody's Girl, was the "final straw" for King Charles. "You can't escape the feeling that there is more—something even more damaging that would force The King to take such drastic action," Andersen told Us Weekly.

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Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.