🔗 Share this article Folly and Regal Arrogance Damaged Andrew, and It Could Continue Yet It all began with a single photograph, arguably the most consequential ever taken of a individual from the royal household. In the frame appeared the Baron Killyleagh, standing closely beside a young woman, while another individual grinned suggestively in the rear. Absent that snapshot, taken at a social event in 2001, who would have believed the claims of a teenager who stated she was trafficked across the sea and obliged to have brief sexual encounters with a prince of the royal bloodline? A curious, indicative action by someone who had openly claimed to have not known about her, claimed he could not have had sex with her, and yet handed over a large amount of family resources to resolve a long-delayed court action. Years of Disgrace In this context, discussions of the royals acting firmly to distance themselves from Andrew are inaccurate. This controversy has continued for the majority of 15 years since that picture, and an additional photo of Andrew strolling pleasantly with a notorious individual surfaced. Arrogance: How long did his brothers and sisters, maybe even his parents, understand that Andrew was so presumptuous? Questionable Associations: They must have realized, if his aides and the law enforcement were performing their duties, that he had some extremely unsavory associates given he unabashedly welcomed them to estates. Financial Extravagance: If the family did not know about his sexual proclivities, they certainly knew about his extravagance with public money. Travel were printed in official documents: private aircraft flights from the estate to a sporting venue and back again in time for midday meal, private flights instead of commercial flights, all for the comfort of "Airmiles Andy". A Life of Privilege Then there was the entitlement which demanded respect when he entered a space or the profound awareness about his honorifics used on his letterheads in communication to his personal acquaintances. He avoided accountability while his mother, who unaccountably spoiled him, was still living. The Queen did at least remove him of royal responsibilities and honorary colonelcies in the aftermath of his disastrous and, as revealed, untruthful television interview six years ago. Current Situation Just in the last 14 days that events sped up, following the issuance of biographical works giving more grim information of his behavior and that of his connections. More information have again exposed Andrew's belief that he could escape deceiving about his contact with a convicted criminal. Society (and the media) were far ahead of the royal family. There was no one of any importance to support him, a outcome of all those years of hubris. Royal Worries The wiser family members understood that. The primary concern is to transfer the crown, if not as heretofore at least intact and untarnished. They have spent the last 190 years trying to overcome the image of past sovereigns, showing they are beneficial, dutiful and responsive to their subjects. Andrew was putting all that in danger in an era when submission and privacy is no longer enough. The Fallout Eventually, the notoriously uncertain sovereign was prodded more. There was no alternative. The royal household had surrendered command of the account. Currently the loss of designations and the persistent and life-long public humiliation that will pain Andrew most deeply. Reduction: Lowered to just a commoner Prior Instance: The primary monarch to surrender his titles in recent history Naval Career: Especially hurtful given his service in the conflict He remains a counsellor of state, on paper able to act for the king, and he is still in the succession to the throne, but none of these will truly happen. Future Prospects Can persons he comes across still acknowledge him? Will they still slip up and call him Prince? Would they say Mr, Of course, he is not withdrawing to an ordinary town, but to the sovereign's vast estate at a monarchical property. At that location, he will be provided by the monarch with one of the royal residences and given some type of private allowance. It is not his former home, where he paid a token lease for more than 20 years, and the area is a bit distant, but even so it may not be sufficiently removed. Unresolved Issues This is not over. There are still records in the custody of overseas authorities to be revealed. Political Pressure: Could legislators request additional information Financial Investigation: Or examine the misuse of state resources Legal Possibility: There may even be a criminal probe into his behavior Maybe for the moment the reputational impact to the institution is limited. The statement from the palace was clearly that the stripping of honorifics was what the monarch, and notably other senior family members, wanted. Altered Approach An end to deception that Andrew was doing it voluntarily. And, remarkably, the concise communication showed clearly that the monarchy were aligning with the accuser's account of incidents. Even more, for the first time they finally showed concern for the victims: "The measures are considered essential, regardless of the fact that he maintains his innocence of the allegations against him." In the end it is entitlement, selfishness and laziness that will undermine the institution. In his stupidity, personal excess and greed, Andrew appears never to have grasped that lesson.