🔗 Share this article

The saga started with a isolated photograph, possibly the most consequential ever taken of a royal family member.

There stood the Earl of Inverness, arm-in-arm a female youth, while another individual smiled conspiratorially in the backdrop.

Without that photograph, shot at a party in 2001, few would have credited the assertions of a teenager who said she was trafficked across the sea and compelled to have perfunctory sexual encounters with a individual of the monarchy?

A strange, telling action by someone who had openly stated to have never heard of her, claimed he could no have had sex with her, and yet provided a large amount of family funds to avert a long-delayed legal case.

Over a Decade of Scandal

In this context, talk of the royal family acting swiftly to distance themselves from Andrew are inaccurate. This scandal has endured for the majority of 15 years since that picture, and another image of Andrew walking pleasantly with a notorious individual came to light.

• Self-importance: To what extent did his brothers and sisters, possibly even his parents, realize that Andrew was so arrogant?
• Dubious Friendships: They must have known, if his employees and the authorities were fulfilling their roles, that he had some deeply disreputable companions given he publicly invited them to palaces.
• Financial Extravagance: If the monarchy did not know about his personal conduct, they certainly knew about his extravagance with taxpayer funds.

Journeys were listed in public records: private aircraft travel from the palace to a country club and back again in time for lunch, exclusive air travel instead of scheduled services, all for the convenience of "the frequent flyer".

A Life of Privilege

Additionally the presumption which required deference when he walked into a area or the supreme obsession about his royal titles used on his correspondence in messages to his personal acquaintances.

He managed to escape consequences while his matriarch, who inexplicably pampered him, was still alive. The Queen did at least revoke him of public duties and ceremonial ranks in the aftermath of his ill-fated and, it is now clear, deceptive public statement six years ago.

Latest Events

It was only in the last two weeks that events progressed rapidly, following the publication of biographical works giving more disturbing particulars of his actions and that of his companions.

Additional revelations have again exposed Andrew's belief that he could get away with deceiving about his contact with a notorious figure.

People (and the press) were far more perceptive of the monarchy. There was not a single person of any consequence to speak up for him, a result of all those years of hubris.

Institutional Fears

The wiser royals understood that. The key objective is to hand down the monarchy, if not as heretofore at least whole and unblemished.

They have spent the last 190 years trying to undo the legacy of previous monarchs, showing they are valuable, responsible and responsive to their subjects.

Andrew was putting all that in jeopardy in an time when respect and discretion is no longer adequate.

Aftermath

Finally, the well-known indecisive sovereign was pressured further. There was no alternative. The palace had relinquished authority of the account.

Presently the stripping of honorifics and the persistent and lifetime public humiliation that will afflict Andrew most severely.

• Demotion: Demoted to just a private citizen
• Past Example: The primary member to lose his titles in recent history
• Military Service: Particularly hurtful given his service in the Falklands war

He remains a royal advisor, in principle able to substitute for the king, and he is still in the succession to the crown, but none of these will actually happen.

What Lies Ahead

Can persons he encounters still show respect to him? Will they still forget themselves and call him Prince? Will they even say Sir,

Of course, he is not retiring to a common area, but to the royal family's large property at a monarchical property.

There, he will be supplied by the sovereign with one of the estate properties and given some type of personal stipend.

This differs from his prior accommodation, where he paid a nominal rent for more than 20 years, and Norfolk is a bit distant, but even so it may not be far enough.

Unresolved Issues

This is not over. There are still documents in the hands of US Congress to be disclosed.

• Governmental Scrutiny: Could parliament seek further action
• Monetary Probe: Or examine the misuse of state resources
• Legal Possibility: There may even be a law enforcement inquiry into his actions

Maybe for the present the institutional damage to the monarchy is limited. The statement from the institution was plainly that the revocation of designations was what the monarch, and particularly other senior family members, wanted.

Altered Approach

An end to pretence that Andrew was making the choice himself. And, remarkably, the concise announcement showed clearly that the monarchy were supporting the complainant's version of occurrences.

Furthermore, for the first time they finally showed consideration for the affected individuals: "These actions are considered essential, despite the fact that he maintains his innocence of the accusations against him."

Ultimately it is arrogance, self-interest and inactivity that will kill the institution. In his foolishness, self-indulgence and greed, Andrew seems never to have grasped that truth.