17-06-2025
Disgraced Prince Andrew airbrushed out of another royal occasion after secret Order of the Garter day appearance
Prince Andrew has defiantly attended another Order of the Garter ceremony at Windsor Castle despite being barred from the public procession for the fourth year in a row.
The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348 and is handed out at the discretion of King Charles in recognition of contributions to the nation and crown.
During the ceremony on Monday, senior royals including Charles, Queen Camilla and the Prince and Princess of Wales arrived at St George's chapel via carriage.
Princess Anne and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh also attended the prestigious event and participated in the public procession.
Despite a lack photographic evidence available through photo wire services, the BBC has officially confirmed that the disgraced Prince Andrew also attended Garter Day.
The Duke of York was not featured in the public-facing carriage procession through the castle grounds for the fourth consecutive year and instead arrived to the castle separately.
It is understood Andrew, 64, was strictly permitted to only attend the private aspects of the ceremony, including a behind-closed-doors lunch and the actual investitures.
The Duke of York was reportedly seen by witnesses wearing a shirt and tie as he headed towards the castle despite being a member of the Garter himself and owning a Garter cloak.
The Duke of York was made a Knight of the Garter in 2006, before being promoted to a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) in 2011.
Andrew's ex-wife Sarah, Duchess of York, did not accompany her former husband to the event despite recently joining Andrew and her daughters at Easter Matins service in April.
On that occasion, Buckingham Palace was unable to block photographers and the public from capturing the Yorks arriving and departing the royal event.
Nevertheless, the palace went to great lengths to select photos where neither Fergie or Andrew was visible for their official coverage of the event shared via social media.
Andrew was stripped of his royal titles and duties over his links to convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, who died in 2019 in a New York City jail.
The Duke of York also paid out a multi-million-pound settlement to Epstein victim Virginia Roberts Giuffre to settle a sexual abuse lawsuit in 2022.
