🔗 Share this article Foolishness and Royal Self-Entitlement Damaged Andrew, and It Could Continue Yet This episode commenced with a single photograph, perhaps the most consequential ever taken of a individual from the royal household. Present was the Duke of York, with his arm around a teenage girl, while an associate grinned conspiratorially in the background. Without that snapshot, taken at a party in 2001, few would have credited the allegations of a young woman who declared she was transported across the Atlantic and compelled to have perfunctory relations with a prince of the royal family? A curious, indicative action by someone who had publicly asserted to have never been aware of her, said he could never have had relations with her, and yet provided a substantial sum of his mother's money to resolve a long-delayed court action. A Long Period of Controversy Against this backdrop, talk of the royals acting decisively to distance themselves from Andrew are inaccurate. This scandal has continued for the majority of 15 years since that picture, and a further snapshot of Andrew strolling congenially with a disgraced financier surfaced. Arrogance: To what extent did his siblings, possibly even his mother and father, understand that Andrew was so presumptuous? Questionable Associations: They must have understood, if his employees and the police were performing their duties, that he had some highly questionable companions given he publicly welcomed them to palaces. Financial Extravagance: If the household did not know about his sexual proclivities, they certainly knew about his extravagance with taxpayer funds. Trips were documented in public records: chopper transfers from the estate to a golf course and back again in time for dining, private flights instead of regular transport, all for the benefit of "the frequent flyer". Existence of Entitlement Furthermore the entitlement which demanded subservience when he walked into a space or the extreme awareness about his honorifics used on his official documents in messages to his friends. He managed to escape consequences while his parent, who inexplicably indulged him, was still surviving. The sovereign did at least remove him of official roles and honorary colonelcies in the aftermath of his disastrous and, we now know, mendacious television interview six years ago. Current Situation Just in the last 14 days that events accelerated, following the publication of books giving more disturbing details of his actions and that of his connections. More information have again highlighted Andrew's belief that he could escape being untruthful about his contact with a disgraced individual. The public (and the press) were far in advance of the royals. There was not a single person of any importance to speak up for him, a outcome of all those years of presumption. Institutional Fears The wiser monarchical figures understood that. The key objective is to hand down the institution, if not as before at least whole and untarnished. For generations the last 190 years trying to undo the legacy of previous monarchs, showing they are beneficial, responsible and attentive to their citizens. He was placing all that in jeopardy in an age when respect and discretion is no longer enough. Consequences Ultimately, the notoriously hesitant monarch was pushed further. There was no alternative. The royal household had lost control of the account. Currently the stripping of designations and the ongoing and lifetime personal shame that will pain Andrew the most. Demotion: Demoted to just a commoner Past Example: The primary member to forfeit his honorifics in contemporary era Armed Forces: Notably stinging given his duty in the engagement He is still a constitutional officer, in principle able to act for the sovereign, and he is still in the lineage to the crown, but neither of these will truly come to pass. Future Prospects Will people he comes across still acknowledge him? Might they still make mistakes and call him Prince? Might they say Mr, Naturally, he is not retiring to suburbia, but to the sovereign's large property at Sandringham. At that location, he will be provided by the sovereign with one of the grace and favour houses and given some form of personal stipend. This is not his prior accommodation, where he paid a minimal rent for more than 20 years, and the county is a bit remote, but even so it may not be sufficiently removed. Outstanding Concerns Matters remain unresolved. There are still files in the possession of American legislators to be revealed. Governmental Scrutiny: Will legislators seek further action Monetary Probe: Or investigate the improper use of state resources Criminal Investigation: There may even be a law enforcement inquiry into his behavior Perhaps for the present the institutional damage to the monarchy is limited. The narrative from the royal household was clearly that the stripping of designations was what the sovereign, and notably other senior royals, desired. Changed Stance An end to pretence that Andrew was acting willingly. And, notably, the brief statement showed evidently that the royals were siding with the victim's version of events. Furthermore, for the first time they ultimately showed consideration for the affected individuals: "The measures are judged required, regardless of the truth that he continues to deny the claims against him." Ultimately it is entitlement, self-interest and indolence that will kill the crown. In his stupidity, self-gratification and corruption, Andrew gives the impression never to have learned that reality.