Prince Andrew's fury after Princess Beatrice and Eugenie's taxpayer funded security scrapped by Prince Charles

Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Prince Charles, Prince of Wales attend a Service of Thanksgiving to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee
(Image credit: Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

Prince Andrew was reportedly left “very angry” after his daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie lost their taxpayer funded security following Prince Charles’ intervention. 

The Duke of York has recently been stripped of his royal patronages and military honours by the Queen, no doubt leaving many wondering if Prince Andrew is still a Prince? It’s since been claimed that Andrew’s older brother Prince Charles and nephew Prince William were involved in talks with Her Majesty about the removal of these honours and patronages. And though this hasn’t been officially confirmed, it’s reportedly not the first time that the Prince of Wales has intervened when it comes to royal privileges and the York family. 

Some reports have previously suggested that Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie were stripped of their expensive security detail after Charles became involved.

Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and his daughters Britain's Princess Eugenie of York (L) and Britain's Princess Beatrice of York

According to The Mirror, royal expert Richard Kay told Channel 5’s documentary, Beatrice and Eugenie: Pampered Princesses? that Beatrice was once accompanied on “gap year” style travels.

He claimed, "She was sort of flitting from country to country as most middle-class young people do who take gap years. But, of course, she was accompanied by police bodyguards. That meant that we the taxpayers were paying for policemen to accompany her to the fleshpots of the world."

Meanwhile, royal commentator Angela Levin suggested that Prince Charles was the one who intervened to strip the security detail. This is something that apparently didn’t go down too well with his younger brother...

Angela alleged, “Prince Charles decided that as they were not likely to be very senior royals, that this was too much for the public to pay, so he stopped that. “Prince Andrew was so angry that he wrote a note to the Queen. He said he wanted them to be considered as proper royals. He did not want the protection officers to leave them."

Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie arrive in an open carriage on the first day of Royal Ascot

Despite the reported anger of Prince Andrew his daughters' security was ultimately removed. It's now understood that Beatrice or Eugenie pay for it themselves if needed. This is also the case for other members of The Firm including their cousin Prince Harry and Meghan Markle who lost their taxpayer funded security after they “stepped back” as working royals

The Duke of Sussex is said to be concerned that without security, it’s not safe to bring his family to the UK. The Duke of Sussex has released a statement explaining his bid to challenge a decision not allowing him to fund his own police protection after the Home Office rejected his request and has applied for a judicial review against this ruling. 

Whether or not the Sussexes will return for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee remains to be seen. Though there’ll no doubt be many fans hoping that the security matter will be resolved in some way in time for this summer’s celebrations.

Emma Shacklock
Senior Lifestyle Writer

Emma is a Senior Lifestyle Writer with six years of experience working in digital publishing, ranging from book publishing to magazines. She currently looks after all things Lifestyle for Woman&Home, Goodto.com, and My Imperfect Life.