The Queen of England will help her son Prince Andrew to pay £12million to his accuser Virginia Giuffre after they reached an out of court settlement, it has been claimed.
It was announced on Tuesday that the Duke of York and Ms Giuffre had reached a “settlement in principle” of £12million, or €14,320,982, in her civil sex claim filed in the US.
Court documents show he will make a "substantial donation" to Ms Giuffre's charity, which supports victims' rights.
Some of the agreed cash will come from his mother, who has also footed the bill for his legal fight, costing millions of pounds, the Telegraph reports.
A source claimed: “Walls were closing in fast. After his deposition, he would likely have been so damaged, no one could save him or agree to fund his settlement.”
Negotiations over the settlement in principle are believed to have taken around ten days, the Mirror UK reports.
It means the Duke of York will avoid the jury trial he had previously demanded, which was scheduled for later this year.
Andrew has continuously denied all of Ms Giuffre's claims.
A document submitted to a US court said: "Virginia Giuffre and Prince Andrew have reached an out of court settlement.
"The parties will file a stipulated dismissal upon Ms Giuffre's receipt of the settlement (the sum of which is not being disclosed).
"Prince Andrew intends to make a substantial donation to Ms. Giuffre's charity in support of victims' rights.
"Prince Andrew has never intended to malign Ms Giuffre's character, and he accepts that she has suffered both as an established victim of abuse and as a result of unfair public attacks.
"It is known that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked countless young girls over many years. Prince Andrew regrets his association with Epstein, and commends the bravery of Ms Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves and others.
"He pledges to demonstrate his regret for his association with Epstein by supporting the fight against the evils of sex trafficking, and by supporting its victims."
Lawyer Lisa Bloom, who represents eight victims of Jeffrey Epstein, welcomed the settlement as a "victory" for Ms Giuffre.
She wrote on Twitter : "My statement on behalf of the 8 Jeffrey Epstein victims I represent:
“"We hail Virginia's victory today. She has accomplished what no one else could: getting Prince Andrew to stop his nonsense and side with sexual abuse victims. We salute Virginia's stunning courage."
Royal author Penny Junor said the settlement made by the Duke of York is likely to come as a "huge relief" to the rest of the Royal Family.
She told the PA news agency: "Going to trial, it could have been very, very nasty.”
