The Duke of York will not take part in the traditional League Day procession at Windsor Castle after a “family decision”, which will once again keep him out of public view.
While Prince Andrew, as a knight of the league, will attend the investiture of new members of the old order of chivalry and the annual luncheon, he will not walk with others from Windsor Castle to St George’s Chapel. has confirmed.
The latest development came after unconfirmed reports that Andrew wanted to find a way to devise a return to some form of public life, including regaining his honorary military role as Colonel of the Grenadier Guard.
The Queen is expected to attend the League’s investiture and lunch, but not the procession, according to sources.
The news that the Duke of York would not take part in the procession came after a report to the Sun had been banned from appearing after the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge put pressure on the Queen. Members of the royal family feared a “reaction,” the newspaper said, adding that Charles and William were said to have accepted their approach before telling the queen, who made the final decision.
Palace attendants would only say it was a “family decision.”
Andrew missed out on platinum jubilee celebrations after testing positive for Covid-19. Although the Queen had decided that neither he nor the Duke and Duchess of Sussex should appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace next to the royal family, they were invited to the Thanksgiving service at St. John’s Cathedral. Pau. However, it was then announced that Andrew had coronavirus and would not attend.
His last public engagement was the Duke of Edinburgh’s memorial service in March, when he escorted his mother.
On Sunday, The Telegraph quoted an unnamed source as saying: “The Colonel of the Grenadier Guard was his most coveted title and wants to return it. After being a state councilor, he also believes he should be included in royal and state events.
“The most important thing for him is his status as a SAR and ‘prince of blood’ and he believes that he should be restored and his position recognized and respected.”
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Andrew resigned from public office following his controversial Newsnight interview about his friendship with financial billionaire and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The Duke of York then faced a civil lawsuit for sexual assault in the United States by Virginia Giuffre, which was trafficked by Epstein and accused Andrew of sexually assaulting her when she was 17 years old. Andrew has denied the allegations but settled the lawsuit for a reported £ 12 million.
In January, prior to her legal agreement in the case, the Queen stripped him of his honorary military posts, including that of Colonel of the Grenadier Guard, and relinquished his SAR status.
During Monday’s service, the Duchess of Cornwall will be installed as the Royal Lady of the Order of the League. A protest is also expected in Windsor over the appointment of Tony Blair as a league knight, with more than 1.5 million signatures gathered in a petition calling for the “knight” title to be “revoked”.
Labor and former cabinet minister Lady Valerie Amos will be the first black person the queen has nominated for the Order of the League.