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The saga started with a single photograph, possibly the most significant ever taken of a individual from the royal household.

Present was the Earl of Inverness, standing closely beside a young woman, while a companion smiled conspiratorially in the rear.

Lacking that photograph, shot at a social event in 2001, few would have credited the assertions of a young woman who declared she was trafficked across the ocean and forced to have brief intimate contact with a individual of the royal bloodline?

A strange, revealing action by someone who had openly stated to have no heard of her, claimed he could never have had intimate contact with her, and yet handed over a large amount of his mother's money to settle a drawn-out legal case.

A Long Period of Controversy

In this context, conversations of the royal family acting swiftly to cut Andrew off are wide of the mark. This controversy has endured for the largest portion of 15 years since that photograph, and an additional snapshot of Andrew strolling pleasantly with a convicted sex offender emerged.

• Hubris: To what extent did his siblings, maybe even his mother and father, know that Andrew was so self-entitled?
• Dubious Friendships: They must have understood, if his employees and the law enforcement were fulfilling their roles, that he had some deeply disreputable associates given he publicly welcomed them to palaces.
• Monetary Excess: If the monarchy did not know about his sexual proclivities, they certainly knew about his wastefulness with taxpayer funds.

Journeys were printed in official documents: chopper transfers from the palace to a sporting venue and back again in time for dining, exclusive air travel instead of regular transport, all for the benefit of "Airmiles Andy".

Existence of Entitlement

Additionally the entitlement which expected subservience when he entered a room or the supreme awareness about his honorifics used on his correspondence in communication to his associates.

He managed to escape consequences while his parent, who unaccountably pampered him, was still living. The monarch did at least strip him of public duties and ceremonial ranks in the wake of his disastrous and, it is now clear, mendacious public statement six years ago.

Recent Developments

It was only in the last fortnight that events sped up, following the release of biographical works giving more disturbing details of his conduct and that of his associates.

Further disclosures have again highlighted Andrew's thinking that he could avoid lying about his contact with a disgraced individual.

The public (and the media) were far more perceptive of the royal family. There was not a single person of any consequence to support him, a outcome of all those years of hubris.

Royal Worries

The more astute monarchical figures recognized that. The one imperative is to transfer the monarchy, if not as heretofore at least whole and unstained.

For generations the last 190 years trying to reverse the image of previous monarchs, proving they are beneficial, accountable and responsive to their people.

His actions endangered all that in peril in an time when submission and discretion is no longer adequate.

Aftermath

Eventually, the notoriously hesitant monarch was pressured more. There was no alternative. The institution had lost control of the story.

Now it is the removal of designations and the continued and life-long public humiliation that will pain Andrew most deeply.

• Reduction: Reduced to just a private citizen
• Prior Instance: The first member to forfeit his designations in contemporary era
• Naval Career: Especially painful given his duty in the engagement

He is still a counsellor of state, on paper able to stand in for the king, and he is still eighth in line to the throne, but neither of these will ever occur.

Coming Developments

Do individuals he encounters still acknowledge him? Could they still make mistakes and call him Prince? Would they say Mr,

Naturally, he is not moving to suburbia, but to the monarchy's extensive estate at a royal residence.

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

This differs from his former home, where he paid a minimal payment for more than 20 years, and the county is a bit distant, but even so it may not be far enough.

Unresolved Issues

The situation continues. There are still files in the custody of US Congress to be disclosed.

• Governmental Scrutiny: Will legislators seek further action
• Fiscal Review: Or scrutinize the waste of taxpayer funds
• Criminal Investigation: There may even be a law enforcement inquiry into his conduct

Maybe for the moment the reputational impact to the institution is contained. The message from the palace was clearly that the removal of honorifics was what the monarch, and especially other senior family members, desired.

A Shift in Position

An end to deception that Andrew was doing it voluntarily. And, notably, the concise statement showed plainly that the institution were aligning with the accuser's account of incidents.

Furthermore, for the premiere occasion they ultimately showed consideration for the affected individuals: "The measures are considered essential, despite the fact that he maintains his innocence of the claims against him."

In the end it is arrogance, self-interest and laziness that will destroy the monarchy. In his foolishness, self-indulgence and corruption, Andrew gives the impression never to have grasped that lesson.