Was Prince Andrew in the military?
PRINCE Andrew is a member of the Royal Family, the second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip and eighth in line to the throne.
In January 2022, made headlines when it wasannounced that he had been stripped of his military titles.
Was Prince Andrew in the military?
Prince Andrew served in the Royal Navy from 1979 to 2001.
After finishing school, he enrolled in Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth in 1979, following in his father's footsteps to train as a naval officer.
After completing pilot training in both helicopters and fixed wing aircraft, he received his pilot's wings in 1981.
The following year, he was assigned to HMS Invincible, and worked as a helicopter pilot during the Falklands War.
He received the South Atlantic Medal for his service in the Falklands.
Prince Andrew departed from active service with the Royal Navy in July 2001.
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What were Prince Andrew's military titles?
Over the years, Prince Andrew was awarded a number of military titles.
He held eight honorary British military titles, including Colonel of the Grenadier Guards - one of the most senior regiments in the British Army.
Other titles included:
- Honorary air commodore of RAF Lossiemouth
- Colonel-in-chief of the Royal Irish Regiment
- Colonel-in-chief of the Small Arms School Corps
- Commodore-in-chief of the Fleet Air Arm
- Royal colonel of the Royal Highland Fusiliers
- Deputy colonel-in-chief of the Royal Lancers
- Royal colonel of the Royal Regiment of Scotland
Prince Andrew also held honorary titles abroad including:
- Colonel-in-chief of the Queen’s York Rangers
- Colonel-in-chief of The Royal Highland Fusiliers Of Canada
- Colonel-in-chief of the Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment (The Duke of York’s Own)
- Colonel-in-chief of the Princess Louise Fusiliers (in Nova Scotia, Canada)
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When was Prince Andrew awarded his military titles?
Prince Andrew was awarded his titles over many years.
He held the title of Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Irish Regiment, since it was founded in 1992.
In 1996 he took up the ceremonial role of air commodore at RAF Lossiemouth .
Andrew paid a three-day visit to Canada in 1999 and was invested as the first colonel-in-chief of Queen's York Rangers.
He took over the role of Royal colonel of the Royal Highland Fusiliers from his aunt Princess Margaret in 2003.
On March 16, 2007, he was made Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment during a visit to Trentham Military Camp, near Wellington.
The prince also lost his title of Deputy colonel-in-chief of the Royal Lancers which was formed on the May 2, 2015, following an amalgamation of the 9th/12th Royal Lancers (Prince of Wales's) and The Queen's Royal Lancers.
Why was he stripped of his military titles?
In January 2022, Buckingham Palace announced that Queen Elizabeth II had removed all of Prince Andrew's military titles, after 150 former members of the Royal Navy, RAF, and Army had written a letter pleading her to do so.
A statement released from read, “With The Queen’s approval and agreement, The Duke of York’s military affiliations and Royal patronages have been returned to the Queen. The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen."
The decision came after it was revealed that Prince Andrew would face a civil trial in New York after his motion to dismiss Virginia Giuffre’s sexual assault case was thrown out by a judge.
She claimed she was trafficked to have sex with Prince Andrew when she was 17, accusations he has denied.
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However, in February 2022, the prince settled the sex abuse lawsuit with Giuffre - sparing him a humiliating court battle.
In November 2019, Prince Andrew stepped away from his royal duties due to the controversy surrounding his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who pleaded guilty in 2008 of procuring a child for prostitution and of soliciting a prostitute.