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This episode commenced with a solitary photograph, possibly the most impactful ever captured of a member of the monarchy.

Present was the Earl of Inverness, with his arm around a young woman, while an associate beamed conspiratorially in the background.

Lacking that photograph, shot at a party in 2001, few would have credited the allegations of a adolescent who said she was transported across the ocean and compelled to have brief sexual encounters with a individual of the monarchy?

An odd, revealing move by someone who had overtly asserted to have not heard of her, said he could not have had intimate contact with her, and yet handed over a large amount of monarchical funds to avert a long-delayed court action.

Years of Disgrace

Against this backdrop, talk of the royal family acting decisively to cut Andrew off are inaccurate. This affair has continued for the better part of 15 years since that picture, and another image of Andrew strolling congenially with a notorious individual came to light.

• Arrogance: To what extent did his family members, possibly even his relatives, understand that Andrew was so presumptuous?
• Questionable Associations: They must have understood, if his staff and the law enforcement were performing their duties, that he had some deeply disreputable companions given he unabashedly hosted them to royal residences.
• Fiscal Irresponsibility: If the monarchy did not know about his intimate behaviors, they certainly knew about his wastefulness with taxpayer funds.

Travel were documented in official documents: chopper flights from the royal residence to a sporting venue and back again in time for dining, chartered planes instead of regular transport, all for the convenience of "the frequent flyer".

World of Deference

Then there was the presumption which required subservience when he appeared in a space or the extreme obsession about his royal titles used on his correspondence in communication to his personal acquaintances.

He managed to escape consequences while his matriarch, who unaccountably spoiled him, was still alive. The sovereign did at least revoke him of royal responsibilities and ceremonial ranks in the aftermath of his disastrous and, it is now clear, deceptive media appearance six years ago.

Latest Events

Just in the last fortnight that events progressed rapidly, following the publication of biographical works giving more grim information of his behavior and that of his companions.

Further disclosures have again highlighted Andrew's assumption that he could get away with being untruthful about his relationship with a notorious figure.

People (and the press) were far more perceptive of the royal family. There was not a single person of any consequence to speak up for him, a outcome of all those years of arrogance.

Institutional Fears

The more astute monarchical figures understood that. The primary concern is to pass on the crown, if not as heretofore at least complete and unblemished.

Over time the last 190 years trying to undo the legacy of earlier rulers, proving they are useful, dutiful and responsive to their citizens.

He was placing all that in jeopardy in an era when deference and privacy is no longer sufficient.

Aftermath

Ultimately, the famously uncertain monarch was prodded additional. There was no alternative. The institution had relinquished authority of the story.

Currently the removal of honorifics and the continued and lifetime personal shame that will pain Andrew the most.

• Demotion: Reduced to just a commoner
• Past Example: The primary monarch to lose his titles in recent history
• Military Service: Particularly painful given his role in the conflict

He is still a constitutional officer, in principle able to substitute for the king, and he is still in the succession to the crown, but none of these will truly occur.

What Lies Ahead

Can persons he encounters still acknowledge him? Will they still forget themselves and call him Sir? Will they even say Sir,

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

In that place, he will be provided by the monarch with one of the estate properties and given some type of private allowance.

It is not his prior accommodation, where he paid a token payment for more than 20 years, and Norfolk is a bit remote, but even so it may not be sufficiently removed.

Unresolved Issues

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

• Political Pressure: Might legislators seek further action
• Fiscal Review: Or scrutinize the waste of taxpayer funds
• Judicial Potential: There may even be a criminal probe into his behavior

Possibly for the time being the institutional damage to the monarchy is restricted. The message from the palace was evidently that the removal of honorifics was what the sovereign, and particularly other senior monarchical figures, sought.

A Shift in Position

The cessation of deception that Andrew was doing it voluntarily. And, remarkably, the brief communication showed evidently that the royals were aligning with the accuser's version of events.

Even more, for the initial instance they eventually showed concern for the survivors: "These actions are considered essential, despite the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him."

Ultimately it is presumption, selfishness and indolence that will kill the monarchy. In his folly, self-indulgence and corruption, Andrew gives the impression never to have learned that reality.