Prince Andrew and Prince Harry will not be wearing their military uniforms for the Queen’s funeral. Instead, Her Majesty’s son and grandson will don civilian funeral attire with the rest of the guests.
This is due to Buckingham Palace saying that only working members of the royal family would be permitted to wear military uniform at Monday's state funeral. Despite being two members of the Queen’s immediate family to have served in the military in wartime, this stops both from appearing in military dress.
The Duke of Sussex served in the British Army for a decade but had his titles, including Captain General of the Royal Marines, removed by the Queen in 2020 after departing as a working royal. The Duke of York, who served in the Royal Navy for 22 years until July 2001, was also stripped of his patronages and titles over his association with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
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With their departures, the right to wear uniform was given up. This was a decision which applied to all ceremonial events during the mourning period, with the exception of one.
Prince Andrew was given an exemption as a “special mark of respect” at Friday’s Vigil of the Princes, when the 62-year-old wore the full uniform of a Vice Admiral of the Navy. Likewise, the following day saw Prince Harry wear his uniform alongside brother William at the grandchildren’s vigil, at the request of his father King Charles III.
While they were both in suits for Wednesday's procession to Westminster Hall, their military medals were still proudly worn over their chests. Prince William, the new Prince of Wales and heir to the throne, is expected to wear his uniform at the funeral.
Although stepping away from royal life for dramatically different reasons, they both served overseas during their time in the military. Harry undertook two tours of Afghanistan, achieving the rank of captain in 2011, while Andrew saw combat during the Falklands War, where he was a helicopter pilot.
In a break from tradition, no working royals wore military uniforms for Prince Philip’s funeral in April 2021 as a blanket rule was applied.
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