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This episode commenced with a isolated photograph, perhaps the most consequential ever snapped of a royal family member.

There stood the Earl of Inverness, standing closely beside a female youth, while a companion smiled knowingly in the background.

Lacking that snapshot, taken at a party in 2001, few would have credited the claims of a teenager who stated she was transported across the sea and obliged to have perfunctory sexual encounters with a member of the royal bloodline?

An odd, revealing gesture by someone who had overtly asserted to have not heard of her, claimed he could no have had intimate contact with her, and yet provided a substantial sum of his mother's resources to resolve a drawn-out lawsuit.

A Long Period of Scandal

In this context, conversations of the royal family acting firmly to sever ties with Andrew are wide of the mark. This scandal has continued for the largest portion of 15 years since that image, and a further photo of Andrew walking amiably with a convicted sex offender emerged.

• Arrogance: How long did his brothers and sisters, possibly even his mother and father, realize that Andrew was so self-entitled?
• Dubious Friendships: They must have known, if his aides and the authorities were performing their duties, that he had some deeply disreputable friends given he unabashedly invited them to palaces.
• Fiscal Irresponsibility: If the monarchy did not know about his sexual proclivities, they certainly knew about his wastefulness with state resources.

Journeys were documented in royal annual reports: chopper transfers from the royal residence to a sporting venue and back again in time for dining, chartered planes instead of regular transport, all for the benefit of "the travel enthusiast".

World of Deference

Furthermore the presumption which expected respect when he walked into a area or the profound awareness about his royal titles used on his letterheads in communication to his personal acquaintances.

He managed to escape consequences while his mother, who strangely pampered him, was still alive. The sovereign did at least strip him of official roles and military positions in the consequence of his ill-fated and, we now know, mendacious public statement six years ago.

Current Situation

Just in the last 14 days that events sped up, following the release of books giving more disturbing information of his behavior and that of his companions.

Further disclosures have again highlighted Andrew's belief that he could escape deceiving about his contact with a notorious figure.

Society (and the journalists) were far more perceptive of the royal family. There was nobody of any consequence to defend him, a result of all those years of arrogance.

Royal Worries

The wiser family members understood that. The primary concern is to hand down the monarchy, if not as heretofore at least complete and unblemished.

They have spent the last 190 years trying to undo the reputation of previous monarchs, demonstrating they are beneficial, accountable and responsive to their citizens.

His actions endangered all that in jeopardy in an era when deference and privacy is no longer enough.

Aftermath

Ultimately, the notoriously indecisive sovereign was pushed further. There was no alternative. The royal household had lost control of the story.

Presently the stripping of honorifics and the ongoing and life-long social disgrace that will afflict Andrew most deeply.

• Downgrading: Lowered to just a private citizen
• Historical Precedent: The initial member to forfeit his designations in contemporary era
• Naval Career: Notably painful given his service in the conflict

He remains a counsellor of state, in principle able to substitute for the monarch, and he is still in the lineage to the crown, but neither of these will truly come to pass.

What Lies Ahead

Can persons he encounters still acknowledge him? Will they still make mistakes and call him Your Highness? Might they say Sir,

Certainly, he is not moving to suburbia, but to the sovereign's extensive estate at a monarchical property.

In that place, he will be provided by the king with one of the grace and favour houses and given some type 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 remote, but even so it may not be adequate distance.

Outstanding Concerns

Matters remain unresolved. There are still documents in the possession of overseas authorities to be disclosed.

• Political Pressure: Could parliament demand more
• Fiscal Review: Or investigate the misuse of public money
• Judicial Potential: There may even be a criminal probe into his actions

Perhaps for the present the institutional damage to the monarchy is limited. The message from the royal household was evidently that the removal of designations was what the king, and particularly other senior royals, sought.

A Shift in Position

The cessation of pretence that Andrew was making the choice himself. And, remarkably, the short statement showed clearly that the institution were aligning with the accuser's narrative of occurrences.

Furthermore, for the premiere occasion they eventually showed consideration for the victims: "The measures are judged required, regardless of the reality that he continues to deny the claims against him."

Finally it is entitlement, self-seeking and laziness that will kill the institution. In his folly, self-indulgence and venality, Andrew gives the impression never to have understood that lesson.