Former Prince Andrew Arrested: Which UK Royal Figures Have Faced Legal Action Before?

Last Updated:February 19, 2026, 16:58 IST

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office for sharing government documents with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Former British Prince and King Charles’ younger brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, was arrested on Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office amid an investigation into his links with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Thames Valley Police had said earlier this month that officers were considering allegations that Mountbatten-Windsor had passed sensitive government documents to Epstein, as per the latest batch of files released by the US government. An investigation has been opened into an offence of misconduct in public office.

The former prince, the second son of the late Queen Elizabeth, has always denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein and said he regrets their friendship. He has moved out of his home in Windsor after being stripped of his title of Prince.

ALSO READ: Andrew, Brother Of King Charles, Arrested On Suspicion Of Misconduct Amid Epstein Files Row

Have Any UK Royal Figures Faced Legal Action?

Andrew is not the first figure in the British monarchy who has faced challenges with the law. There have been several other occasions when charges have been brought against the UK royal family.

Princess Anne

The Princess Royal became the first member of the current royal family in over three centuries to be convicted of a criminal offence after one of her two dogs, an English bull terrier, bit two children in the Windsor Great Park on April 1, 2002.

Anne was charged under the Dangerous Dogs Act, and she pleaded guilty at the Slough Magistrates’ Court. She was fined £500 for the attack and ordered to pay £250 in compensation and £148 in costs, according to The Guardian. She was also required to undergo dog training.

Before this, Anne was also fined for speeding in her Bentley after she admitted driving at 93 mph in a 70 mph zone in Gloucestershire in 2001. She was fined £400, ordered to pay £30 costs and given five penalty points on her driving licence.

Zara Tindall

Princess Anne’s daughter Zara also faced legal action as she was banned from driving for six months in 2020 after being caught speeding at 91 mph, taking her over the 12 points on her driving license, which constitutes a ban. A court also fined her £666 with additional costs and a victim surcharge of £151.

King Charles I

This goes back several hundred years back, when King Charles I was brought to trial in Westminster Hall on 20 January 1649 after the end of the English Civil War. The monarch was charged with tyranny and treason and appeared before the judges four times.

Charles I was held in guarded captivity at multiple locations before he was sentenced to death and beheaded on January 30, 1649, outside the Banqueting House in Whitehall, London.

Mary, Queen Of Scots

Mary, Queen of Scots, was implicated in a plot in 1586 to assassinate her cousin Queen Elizabeth I and put herself on the English throne. She faced trial for treason before a court of 36 noblemen, where she denied all charges. She was held in prison for 19 years. Despite arguing that she was denied access to legal counsel and that she had never been an English subject in the first place, she was convicted and sentenced to death in 1587.

Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII and the Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, was arrested in 1536 on charges of treason and adultery. She was tried before a jury, convicted on May 15 and sentenced to beheading for allegedly plotting to kill the King.

King Richard I

Richard I served as the King of England from 1189 to 1199. He was arrested and held for ransom by the Duke of Austria and the Holy Roman Emperor in 1992. Richard I was later released in 1194.

News world Former Prince Andrew Arrested: Which UK Royal Figures Have Faced Legal Action Before?

Read More