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The saga started with a solitary photograph, arguably the most impactful ever taken of a individual from the royal household.

In the frame appeared the Earl of Inverness, standing closely beside a young woman, while an associate beamed conspiratorially in the background.

Absent that image, captured at a gathering in 2001, few would have credited the assertions of a young woman who declared she was moved across the Atlantic and compelled to have perfunctory relations with a member of the royal family?

A curious, revealing gesture by someone who had openly asserted to have no been aware of her, asserted he could no have had relations with her, and yet provided millions of monarchical money to avert a protracted court action.

Years of Scandal

Against this backdrop, talk of the royal family acting swiftly to cut Andrew off are wide of the mark. This scandal has continued for the better part of 15 years since that image, and another photo of Andrew ambling amiably with a notorious individual emerged.

• Hubris: How long did his brothers and sisters, perhaps even his relatives, know that Andrew was so presumptuous?
• Problematic Connections: They must have known, if his employees and the law enforcement were doing their jobs, that he had some extremely unsavory associates given he openly welcomed them to palaces.
• Financial Extravagance: If the monarchy did not know about his personal conduct, they certainly knew about his extravagance with taxpayer funds.

Trips were printed in public records: chopper transfers from the royal residence to a sporting venue and back again in time for lunch, chartered planes instead of scheduled services, all for the benefit of "the frequent flyer".

World of Deference

Then there was the arrogance which expected respect when he appeared in a area or the supreme awareness about his royal titles used on his correspondence in messages to his friends.

He could get away with it while his matriarch, who strangely pampered him, was still alive. The Queen did at least revoke him of official roles and honorary colonelcies in the aftermath of his ill-fated and, we now know, deceptive media appearance six years ago.

Current Situation

Just in the last fortnight that events accelerated, following the publication of books giving more disturbing details of his conduct and that of his companions.

More information have again exposed Andrew's thinking that he could get away with lying about his contact with a convicted criminal.

People (and the media) were far ahead of the royal family. There was not a single person of any importance to support him, a consequence of all those years of presumption.

Royal Worries

The more intelligent royals realized that. The key objective is to pass on the monarchy, if not as heretofore at least complete and unstained.

Over time the last 190 years trying to reverse the reputation of previous monarchs, proving they are beneficial, responsible and attentive to their subjects.

Andrew was putting all that in peril in an time when deference and discretion is no longer enough.

Aftermath

Finally, the famously hesitant monarch was pushed additional. There was no alternative. The royal household had relinquished authority of the narrative.

Currently the loss of designations and the ongoing and permanent social disgrace that will afflict Andrew the most.

• Demotion: Lowered to just a private citizen
• Prior Instance: The primary monarch to surrender his honorifics in contemporary era
• Military Service: Notably hurtful given his role in the conflict

He remains a counsellor of state, on paper able to act for the king, and he is still in the lineage to the throne, but neither of these will ever happen.

Future Prospects

Can persons he comes across still show respect to him? Could they still make mistakes and call him Your Highness? Would they say Mr,

Naturally, he is not moving to a common area, but to the sovereign's vast property at Sandringham.

In that place, he will be provided by the sovereign with one of the grace and favour houses and given some form of financial support.

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

Unresolved Issues

The situation continues. There are still records in the possession of American legislators to be revealed.

• Political Pressure: Might lawmakers request additional information
• Financial Investigation: Or investigate the misuse of public money
• Judicial Potential: There may even be a police investigation into his actions

Maybe for the moment the institutional damage to the institution is contained. The message from the palace was plainly that the stripping of titles was what the king, and notably other senior monarchical figures, desired.

Changed Stance

The cessation of pretence that Andrew was doing it voluntarily. And, significantly, the short communication showed plainly that the royals were aligning with the accuser's account of incidents.

Even more, for the first time they ultimately showed regard for the victims: "The censures are deemed necessary, regardless of the fact that he persists in refuting the claims against him."

In the end it is arrogance, selfishness and laziness that will undermine the crown. In his folly, self-indulgence and greed, Andrew appears never to have grasped that reality.