Andrew's fall timeline: From 'Queen's favourite' prince to Epstein Files arrest

The former Duke of York was taken by police on Thursday, his 66th birthday, and he is being held in police custody in a historic low for the royal family.

Live updates: Andrew arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office

A Thames Valley Police spokesperson told LBC: "As part of the investigation, we have today (19/2) arrested a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office and are carrying out searches at addresses in Berkshire and Norfolk.”

Plain-clothed officers were pictured following investigations into the Royal's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

Andrew is claimed to have shared sensitive information with paedophile, while serving as the UK’s trade envoy, and to have had sexual encounters with a young woman who was trafficked to him by Epstein.

The former Duke has denied all allegations.

Here is how his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein has developed in this saga over time.

Jeffrey Epstein / Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor scandal full timeline

Here is how Andrew’s life and career has unravelled from his Royal Navy career to his ultimate arrest, over the time he was friends with Jeffrey Epstein.

1960-1999

Andrew, born on February 19, 1960, as the second son of Queen Elizabeth, served on HMS Invincible as a Sea King helicopter co-pilot during the Falklands War in 1982 and was promoted to lieutenant in 1984 - serving on HMS Brazen as a pilot until 1986.

It has widely been reported that he was the favourite of the Queen’s four children.

The Queen made him Duke of York in 1986 on the same day that he married Sarah Ferguson at Westminster Abbey. He fathered Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie with his wife and carried on his military career throughout the 1990s.

Andrew, having separated from Sarah in 1992 and divorced in 1996, was introduced to Epstein in the 1990s. Their acquaintance was orchestrated by Ghislaine Maxwell, a well-connected socialite who was a friend of Andrew’s and the girlfriend of Epstein.

During his 2019 interview with Emily Maitlis, Andrew said this had been in 1999, and was sparked by his interest in finance, but Andrew’s former private secretary Alastair Watson said they had been introduced in the early 1990s.

2000

In 2000, Epstein and Andrew were photographed with Maxwell at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

Despite Andrew stating he typically saw Epstein “once or twice a year at most” they were together on at least three occasions in 2000.

The second time was a birthday party at Windsor Castle and then on what Andrew later told Maitlis was a “straight forward shooting weekend”.

In May, flight records show him confirmed as a passenger on Epstein's private plane.

2001 - 2008

This was the year that Virginia Roberts, later known as Virginia Giuffre, said she met Andrew, having been trafficked to him by Epstein.

Ms Giuffre said that she had sex three times with Andrew, including one orgy, with the first encounter allegedly taking place in Maxwell's London townhouse - where a now infamous photo of the pair was said to have been taken.

Andrew later denied they had sex and questioned the validity of the photo.

In 2001, he retired from the Royal Navy as a commander and was appointed Trade Envoy.

After the death of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in 2002, Andrew moved his family into the Royal Lodge in Windsor in 2004, with Sarah still living with him despite their split.

Throughout this period, Andrew has been shown in the Epstein Files to have kept in close contact with the financier.

2008 - 2009

Epstein is arrested and admits to prostituting minors. He is sentenced to 18 months in prison.

A year later, Epstein's former housekeeper, Juan Alessi testified that Andrew had "daily massages" at the paedophile's Florida home.

2010 - 2011

Epstein is released from prison and seen walking with Andrew in New York's Central Park.

Footage emerges years later, reportedly shot on December 6, 2010, showing him inside Epstein's Manhattan mansion, from where he is seen looking out from a large door of the property, waving a woman goodbye after Epstein leaves to get into a chauffeur-driven car.

Also in 2010, Sarah Ferguson said to an undercover reporter that she would pass on business contacts with her ex husband for £500,000. A year later, she admitted accepting money from Epstein to pay off her debts.

2011

Andrew quits his role as Trade Envoy after the fallout from the Central Park photos.

In February, he told Epstein, "we are in this together" despite later claiming to Maitlis that he broke off all contact with the paedophile in December 2010.

Ms Giuffre hands the photograph of her with Andrew to the FBI.

2015

Buckingham Palace denies Andrew has committed any impropriety after he is named in US court documents related to Epstein.

A woman, later named in reports as Ms Giuffre, alleges in papers filed in Florida that she was forced to have sex with Andrew when she was 17, which is under the age of consent in the state.

At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Andrew, in his first public engagement since he was embroiled in the allegations, responds by saying: "I just wish to reiterate, and to reaffirm, the statements that have already been made on my behalf by Buckingham Palace."

In January, Andrew is reported to have sent an email to Maxwell asking for help in dealing with Ms Giuffre.

2016

As part of her civil suit against Maxwell, Ms Giuffre testifies that Epstein paid her 15,000 dollars (£11,180) to have sex with Andrew.

Ms Giuffre also testified about a sexual encounter with Andrew in the bath of Maxwell's home in 2001, saying: "He was adorning my young body, particularly my feet, caressing my toes and licking my arches."

2019

Newly released legal documents show that Johanna Sjoberg, another alleged Epstein victim, claimed Andrew touched her breast while sitting on a couch inside the US billionaire's Manhattan apartment in 2001.

Buckingham Palace said the allegations are "categorically untrue".

Epstein is found dead in his jail cell on August 10, having killed himself after being charged with sex trafficking.

Later that month, a pilot on Epstein's private jet, David Rodgers, claims Andrew was a passenger on past flights with the financier and Ms Giuffre.

Mr Rodgers said in a testimony released in August that Epstein, Andrew and the-then 17-year-old travelled to the US Virgin Islands on April 11 2001.

Buckingham Palace describes the evidence statement as having "a number of inconsistencies" and said that Andrew was on a different continent in some cases.

In her posthumous memoirs, Ms Giuffre claims American broadcaster ABC did not air an interview in 2019 after the royal family "applied pressure to nix the interview".

Following Epstein's death, a statement from the palace says that Andrew is "appalled by the recent reports of Jeffrey Epstein's alleged crimes".

Breaking his silence on the issue for the first time since 2015, Andrew then released a statement on August 24 saying: "At no stage during the limited time I spent with him (Epstein) did I see, witness or suspect any behaviour of the sort that subsequently led to his arrest and conviction."

In November, BBC Newsnight reveals Andrew has spoken about his relationship with Epstein in a "no-holds-barred" interview.

In the interview Andrew said he had "no recollection" of ever meeting Ms Giuffre and added he could not have had sex with her in March 2001 because he was at Pizza Express with his daughter Beatrice on the day in question.

He added he "did not regret" his friendship with the sex offender but admitted he should not have gone to see him in New York in 2010 to break off their friendship.

The television sit-down was widely criticised and dubbed a "car crash", with commentators questioning Andrew's responses and condemning his unsympathetic tone for victims and seeming lack of remorse over the friendship.

Four days after the interview, the then Duke of York released a statement confirming he was "stepping back from public duties for the foreseeable future" with permission from Queen Elizabeth II.

Andrew also said he "deeply sympathised" with all of Epstein's victims and added he was "willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required".

In December, Ms Giuffre implores the British public to "stand up beside me to help me fight this fight" and "not accept this as being OK", in clips released ahead of a BBC Panorama interview.

2020

In January, a US prosecutor claims Andrew has "provided zero co-operation" over the Epstein sex trafficking inquiry.

Speaking at a news conference outside Epstein's New York mansion, US attorney Geoffrey Berman said Andrew's lawyers had been contacted by prosecutors and the FBI who requested to interview him as part of the investigation.

Ms Giuffre, writing on social media a few days later, urges Andrew to "do the right thing" and talk to FBI investigators.

In June, Andrew's lawyers said he offered to assist the US department of justice "on at least three occasions this year" in its investigation into Epstein.

Just a few hours later, prosecutor Mr Berman - who was leading the investigation into Epstein at the time - said Andrew had "yet again sought to falsely portray himself to the public as eager and willing to co-operate" although he "has repeatedly declined" requests to schedule an interview.

Speaking in a documentary, Ms Giuffre claims Andrew played a "guessing game" about her age and compared her with his daughters during the alleged March 2001 encounter at Maxwell's home.

A former Epstein employee tells a Netflix documentary he saw Andrew frolicking with a topless Ms Giuffre in a pool on the paedophile's island.

2021

In August, Ms Giuffre starts legal action against Andrew, saying it was "past the time for him to be held to account" for allegedly sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager.

Lawyers for Ms Giuffre filed a civil suit seeking unspecified damages at a federal court in New York, where documents claim she was "lent out for sexual purposes" by Epstein, including while she was still a minor under US law.

Andrew is named as the only defendant in the 15-page suit, brought under New York state's Child Victims Act, though Epstein and Maxwell are mentioned frequently throughout.

In December, Maxwell was convicted in a New York court of helping Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls.

2022

In January, a US judge ruled the civil case against Andrew can go ahead, in what is a huge blow for the royal whose lawyer had argued that it should be thrown out.

Andrew's status as a member of the royal family is left in tatters after Queen Elizabeth II strips him of his honorary military roles and he gives up his HRH style in a dramatic fallout from his civil sex case.

He is also stripped of his remaining royal patronages.

The development came after more than 150 veterans joined forces to express their outrage, writing to the late Queen to demand the removal of the honorary military positions.

Buckingham Palace says in a statement that Andrew "will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen".

In February, court documents show Andrew and Ms Giuffre have reached a "settlement in principle" in the civil sex claim.

The documents show Andrew will make a "substantial donation to Ms Giuffre's charity in support of victims' rights" and has pledged to "demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein" by supporting the "fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims".

Commentators say that while he "at last" appears to have got the tone and language right, it is unlikely he will ever return to public royal life, with one branding him "reputationally toast".

Calls are renewed for him to lose his dukedom after he pays millions of pounds to a woman he claims never to have met.

2024

Allegations against Andrew resurface in unsealed documents as part of Ms Giuffre's civil claim against Maxwell - with claims such as him being involved in sex tapes, as well as resurfaced allegations of his participation in an under-age orgy.

2025

Ms Giuffre died aged 41 in April.

Buckingham Palace announces Andrew will stop using his titles and honours, including the Duke of York.

Ms Giuffre's posthumous memoirs claim Andrew's "team" tried to hire "internet trolls to hassle" her.

The Metropolitan Police said it would look into claims that Andrew had passed Ms Giuffre's date of birth and social security number to his taxpayer-funded bodyguard in 2011 and asked him to investigate.

A copy of the leasehold agreement, shared with the PA news agency by the Crown Estate, which oversees the royal family's land and property holdings, shows Andrew signed a 75-year lease on the property in 2003.

It reveals he paid £1 million for the lease and that since then he has paid "one peppercorn" of rent "if demanded" per year.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer says there should be "proper scrutiny" of Andrew's rent-free mansion.

It later emerges that the Public Accounts Committee is seeking further information about the peppercorn rent lease arrangement.

After speculation around whether Andrew will leave the Royal Lodge, Buckingham Palace announces the King has begun a process to remove his titles, style and honours.

Notice has also been served to surrender Andrew's lease on the lodge and it emerges he will move to new accommodation on the private Sandringham estate.

2026

Andrew finally moves out of the Royal Lodge and into a house in Sandringham. He features in more Epstein Files, including one image where he appears to be kneeling on top of a woman.

On February 19, his birthday, he was arrested.