Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was today pictured riding his horse in the pouring rain while his daughters were hosted by King Charles at the Royal Family’s Christmas lunch.
The disgraced former prince, who was formally stripped of his titles over the persistent scandals surrounding his ties to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, looked miserable as he was caught in a downpour while riding around Windsor Park this morning.
In stark contrast, his daughters, Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice, beamed as they arrived at Buckingham Palace together to celebrate Christmas with King Charles and other senior members of the Royal Family.
They joined the Prince and Princess of Wales, who were seen arriving with their children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
Prince Edward, Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, and their daughter Lady Amelia Windsor were also spotted arriving at the Palace – as were the Duke of Kent, Lady Sarah Chatto and Princess Alexandra.
Princess Eugenie marked the festive occasion with a pair of candy cane earrings as she tries to move on from a turbulent year for her family amid the public downfall of her parents, Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.
Andrew’s notable absence from the royal festivities comes just days after the Metropolitan Police confirmed it will ‘take no further action’ over claims he asked his police protection officer to dig up dirt on his sexual assault accuser, Virginia Giuffre.
Eugenie and Beatrice had both been absent from Catherine’s carol concert on December 5, but were back in the fold today. It’s understood the King does not want to punish the sisters for their father’s actions.
The King traditionally hosts a meal for his family ahead of going to his Sandringham estate in Norfolk over Christmas.
Andrew’s notable absence comes after he was stripped of his last remaining military title yesterday.
The 65-year-old will no longer be allowed to call himself a Vice-Admiral after he was demoted to Commander following a meeting of the Defence Council.
Defence Secretary John Healey had previously promised the move after saying it was what King Charles ‘has indicated we should take’.
The Vice-Admiral rank was Andrew’s last remaining title – although he will be permitted to keep the medals he earned serving as a Navy helicopter pilot during the 1982 Falklands War.
A Government spokesman said: ‘Following formal consideration, Defence Council have agreed the immediate reversion from the rank of Vice-Admiral to the rank of Commander (Retired) Royal Navy, the rank held on retirement from Regular Royal Naval Service by Andrew Mountbatten Windsor.
‘This decision aligns with such processes as to remove other styles and titles.’
Andrew retained his Vice-Admiral rank after being stripped of his other military positions and patronages after the late Virginia Giuffre filed a civil case over allegations of sexual abuse.
He settled the case but has always strenuously denied wrongdoing.
Andrew is no longer a prince due to his association with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
He is also being kicked out of his home, Royal Lodge in Windsor, and will have to move to a new property on King Charles’ Sandringham Estate.
Marsh Farm, located seven miles west of his brother King Charles’ lavish country retreat, is reportedly being eyed up for Andrew.
Nearby businesses have remained tight-lipped about the potential arrival of their new neighbour at the sprawling estate in Wolferton.
Andrew was pictured over the weekend in a fresh batch of photographs released by US lawmakers carrying out an investigation into Epstein and his associates.
But in a rare boost for the former royal, the Met Police revealed he would not face any further action after asking one of their officers to dig up dirt on his teenage sex accuser.
A bombshell email obtained by the Mail on Sunday exposed how Andrew asked his taxpayer-funded Met bodyguard to find out information on Virginia Giuffre and passed him her date of birth and confidential social security number.
The force announced on Saturday that it would not launch an investigation into the matter as it had not found grounds for a criminal probe.
Ms Giuffre’s family has said they are ‘deeply disappointed’ by the force’s decision to drop the investigation ‘without explanation’, adding they were not told the announcement was being made.
‘We emailed with a detective from the Metropolitan Police yesterday, Friday, Dec 12th, who gave us no indication that this announcement was imminent,’ they said.
‘Indeed, he asked us if we had any evidence we would like to present; we had not yet replied.
‘With the Epstein files about to be released by [the US] congress since the passage of the Epstein Transparency Act, we are surprised that the Metropolitan Police didn’t wait to see what further evidence might appear.
‘While we have hailed the UK’s overall handling of the case of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor previously, today we feel justice has not been served.’
The family maintained that they would continue to ‘challenge the system that protects abusers, especially as more evidence comes to light that can hold people accountable.’
‘Our sister Virginia, and all survivors, are owed this much.’
Central Specialist Crime Commander Ella Marriott said her officers had looked at the claims but not found any grounds for a criminal investigation.
In a statement, she said: ‘Following recent reporting suggesting that Mr Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor asked his Met Police close protection officer to carry out checks on Ms Giuffre in 2011, the MPS has carried out a further assessment.
‘This assessment has not revealed any additional evidence of criminal acts or misconduct. The Met remains committed to thoroughly assessing any new information that could assist in this matter.
‘To date, we have not received any additional evidence that would support reopening the investigation. In the absence of any further information, we will be taking no further action.
‘As with any other matter, should new and relevant information be brought to our attention, including any information resulting from the release of material in the US, we will assess it.’
