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It all began with a solitary photograph, perhaps the most impactful ever taken of a individual from the royal household.

Present was the Earl of Inverness, standing closely beside a female youth, while an associate grinned conspiratorially in the backdrop.

Without that image, taken at a party in 2001, who would have believed the assertions of a teenager who stated she was moved across the ocean and forced to have brief relations with a prince of the royal bloodline?

An odd, indicative action by someone who had overtly claimed to have not heard of her, claimed he could never have had sex with her, and yet provided millions of his mother's money to resolve a long-delayed court action.

Over a Decade of Controversy

Against this backdrop, talk of the royals acting swiftly to cut Andrew off are inaccurate. This controversy has persisted for the better part of 15 years since that picture, and an additional photo of Andrew ambling pleasantly with a notorious individual emerged.

• Self-importance: How long did his siblings, perhaps even his mother and father, understand that Andrew was so self-entitled?
• Questionable Associations: They must have realized, if his staff and the law enforcement were performing their duties, that he had some deeply disreputable companions given he publicly welcomed them to estates.
• Financial Extravagance: If the monarchy did not know about his personal conduct, they certainly knew about his wastefulness with state resources.

Journeys were listed in official documents: chopper travel from the palace to a sporting venue and back again in time for lunch, chartered planes instead of regular transport, all for the comfort of "the frequent flyer".

World of Deference

Additionally the entitlement which expected respect when he appeared in a area or the extreme obsession about his honorifics used on his official documents in communication to his associates.

He avoided accountability while his matriarch, who strangely indulged him, was still surviving. The sovereign did at least revoke him of official roles and honorary colonelcies in the consequence of his disastrous and, as revealed, mendacious television interview six years ago.

Recent Developments

It was only in the last fortnight that events progressed rapidly, following the release of books giving more troubling information of his behavior and that of his connections.

Further disclosures have again highlighted Andrew's assumption that he could escape being untruthful about his relationship with a convicted criminal.

Society (and the press) were far in advance of the royals. There was not a single person of any importance to support him, a consequence of all those years of presumption.

Institutional Fears

The more astute monarchical figures recognized that. The key objective is to transfer the monarchy, if not as before at least complete and unblemished.

They have spent the last 190 years trying to undo the legacy of earlier rulers, showing they are beneficial, responsible and attentive to their citizens.

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

Aftermath

Ultimately, the well-known indecisive king was prodded further. There was no other option. The palace had surrendered command of the narrative.

Now it is the loss of honorifics and the persistent and lifetime public humiliation that will pain Andrew the most.

• Downgrading: Demoted to just a private citizen
• Historical Precedent: The initial member to surrender his designations in modern times
• Military Service: Particularly hurtful given his duty in the conflict

He remains a counsellor of state, theoretically able to stand in for the king, and he is still in the succession to the throne, but not any of these will truly come to pass.

What Lies Ahead

Do individuals he meets still acknowledge him? Might they still make mistakes and call him Prince? Will they even say Andrew,

Naturally, he is not withdrawing to an ordinary town, but to the sovereign's vast estate at a monarchical property.

There, he will be supplied by the sovereign with one of the grace and favour houses and given some type of financial support.

This is not his previous residence, where he paid a nominal lease for more than 20 years, and Norfolk is a bit remote, but even so it may not be adequate distance.

Unresolved Issues

This is not over. There are still documents in the hands of overseas authorities to be made public.

• Parliamentary Interest: Could lawmakers request additional information
• Monetary Probe: Or investigate the waste of state resources
• Legal Possibility: There may even be a criminal probe into his conduct

Maybe for the moment the reputational impact to the crown is limited. The statement from the palace was clearly that the revocation of honorifics was what the sovereign, and particularly other senior monarchical figures, sought.

Altered Approach

No more illusion that Andrew was doing it voluntarily. And, significantly, the brief statement showed plainly that the royals were siding with the complainant's narrative of occurrences.

Additionally, for the premiere occasion they ultimately showed regard for the affected individuals: "The censures are deemed necessary, regardless of the reality that he persists in refuting the allegations against him."

Ultimately it is entitlement, self-seeking and laziness that will undermine the monarchy. In his folly, self-indulgence and venality, Andrew appears never to have learned that truth.