It is said that Prince William had wanted to start the process of removing Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the line of succession at the same time the former Duke of York was stripped of his titles
Prince William wanted Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor booted out of the line of succession last year, it has been reported.
It is said that the Prince of Wales wanted the process instigated last autumn at the same time his disgraced uncle was stripped of his prince and Duke of York titles by the King. Mountbatten-Windsor, who was arrested last month on suspicion of misconduct in a public office, is eighth in line to the throne.
He remains under police investigation after claims he shared confidential information during his time as UK trade envoy with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein. Following his arrest, the government has indicated it will consider legislation to remove the former prince from the line of succession.
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He can only be stripped of being in line to the throne by an Act of Parliament after agreement with the 14 British realms, which has the King as head of state. So far both Australia and New Zealand have thrown their weight behind the proposal, but government sources say the process could take years – and wouldn’t be formally started until any police probes are over.
And now the Sunday Times says William is frustrated by the delay in removing his uncle from the line of succession and is anxious about the implications of the scandal for his future reign. Just last week, while attending the BAFTAs with the Princess of Wales, three days after Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest, William remarked he was not in a calm state.
It came after he had admitted he had yet to watch the critically-acclaimed tearjerking movie Hamnet, as he needed “to be in quite a calm state” and added “I’m not at the moment”. William is known not to be close to his shamed uncle, with the Mirror previously revealing that he demanded the ex-Duke of York be immediately banished from the royal fold “before the rot set in” following revelations of his close relationship with Epstein.
According to a new biography of William and wife Kate by Mirror royal editor Russell Myers, the now Prince of Wales even appealed to his father and the late Queen to take drastic action in the aftermath of Andrew’s catastrophic BBC Newsnight interview in 2019, where he failed to apologise for associating with the convicted paedophile or recognise the effect on Epstein’s victims. Meanwhile, it has also been reported that no decision has yet been taken on whether Mountbatten-Windsor’s daughters, Princess Beatrice or Princess Eugenie, will see a change to their status in the line of succession.
His eldest daughter Beatrice is ninth in line to the throne, followed by her two daughters, four-year-old Sienna Mapelli Mozzi and one-year-old Athena Mapelli Mozzi. Eugenie is in 12th place with her sons five-year-old August Brooksbank in 13th and one-year-old Ernest Brooksbank, 14th.
Removing Andrew from the line of succession is said to be “constitutionally complex” and experts say legislation would have to explicitly state what would happen to his children and grandchildren’s places in the line of succession. When the King stripped his younger brother of his titles last year, those of his nieces, Beatrice and Eugenie, were unaffected, with Charles said to be fond of the two women.
Today, the King was seen attending church on the Sandringham estate, less than a mile of where his brother has been holed up at Wood Farm since his arrest. He is currently living at the cottage as a temporary measure before, it is understood, that he will move to Marsh Farm, after being forced out of his previous vast mansion of Royal Lodge on the Windsor estate.
But despite the brothers being in close proximity over the weekend, it is not believed that they met or have any plans to. Hours after Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest, the King put out a statement saying “the law must take its course” after expressing his “deepest concern”. He said: “I have learned with the deepest concern the news about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and suspicion of misconduct in public office.
“What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities. In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and co-operation. Let me state clearly: the law must take its course.”
