Royal jubilee

From Prince Charming to scandal: Andrew turns 65

From Prince Charming to shadowy figure - Prince Andrew turns 65

(Bild: APA/AFP/JUSTIN TALLIS)

Andrew turns 65 on February 19, and nothing of the Prince Charming's former charm remains. 

There was a time when Prince Andrew was considered the "most eligible bachelor" in the UK. That was in the early 1980s, when the then handsome younger brother of King Charles III pursued a career in the Royal Navy and took part in the Falklands War as a helicopter pilot. As the second eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, he was also second in line to the British throne.

Now he has become a shadowy figure in the royal family, not entirely outcast, but relieved of his royal duties, stripped of his military ranks and forced to live on the sidelines. But how did it come to this?

Prince Andrew with his daughters Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice

(Bild: APA-PictureDesk/Chris Jackson / PA)

Andrew lets it rip
Andrew's bachelorhood ended in 1986 when he married Sarah "Fergie" Ferguson, whom he had only met a year earlier. The couple had two daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. All was still well with the world.

But their happiness did not last long: they separated in 1992 and divorced four years later. A photo of Fergie having her toes kissed by her financial advisor in Saint-Tropez made the headlines. Later, it is not so much love affairs as the constant need for money that puts the red-haired "Fergie" on the front pages of the tabloids.

Andrew also lets it rip. He travels the world, showing up at numerous parties for the rich and famous. He is known as Randy Andy ("horny Andy") and "party prince". "I don't know why I got myself that title, because I never really partied," he later claimed. However, numerous photos of him at exuberant parties with young women show a different picture. Because of his frequent travel as an ambassador for British business at government expense, he is also mocked as "Air Miles Andy".

Doubts about judgment
Unlike her ex-husband, with whom she still shares a - very lavish - estate in the grounds of Windsor Castle, "Fergie" manages to rehabilitate her reputation. This is not least due to her courageous handling of various cancers. Andrew cannot hope for such a second chance. This is primarily due to his involvement in the abuse scandal surrounding US millionaire Jeffrey Epstein.

There are doubts about Andrew's judgment early on. They arise mainly due to the choice of people he surrounds himself with. His friends include Saif al-Islam, the son of the then Libyan dictator Muammar al-Gaddafi.

But Epstein is in a different category, as the US businessman is the central figure in an abuse ring to which dozens of girls and young women fall victim. Andrew is not only friends with Epstein, but accusations are also made against him. When Epstein, who had already been convicted and charged again, committed suicide in prison in New York in the summer of 2019, Andrew became the focus of attention.

A fatal interview
Just months after Epstein's death, he gets carried away with an interview with the BBC. But what is meant to be a liberating blow turns into a disaster. Andrew talks his head off. He barely shows any sympathy for Epstein's victims. He doesn't even regret being friends with him.

When he is confronted with the accusations of one of the young women, Virginia Giuffre, who says she was forced to have sex with him as a minor, he denies ever having met her. There is a photo showing the two of them arm in arm, with Andrew's hand resting on Giuffre's hip. Also in the picture is Epstein's aide Ghislaine Maxwell, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her role in the scandal.

In the interview, Andrew comes up with crude alibis, such as a visit to a pizza chain restaurant, which he remembers so well because it's not normally his level. He then claims that he can't sweat because he suffered an excessive adrenaline rush during the Falklands War. Giuffre had remembered his sweats.

The interview marks the end of his official role as representative for the Royal Household. Andrew has to resign from his duties. The Queen later stripped him of his honorary military rank. And even though he firmly rejects all of Giuffre's accusations, he agrees to an alleged multi-million dollar settlement with her in a US civil lawsuit in 2022.

Prince Andrew's favorite pastime in Windsor is horse riding.

(Bild: APA-PictureDesk/Richard Gillard / Camera Press)

Andrew is a grandfather of four
Prince Andrew is now a grandfather of four. But that doesn't stop him from constantly coming up with new escapades. He recently hit the headlines again because of a confidant who is suspected of working for the Communist Party in China. Andrew's participation in the royals' traditional Christmas party at the royal country estate of Sandringham was subsequently canceled.