🔗 Share this article Foolishness and Monarchical Hubris Sunk Andrew, and It Might Persist Yet This episode commenced with a isolated photograph, possibly the most significant ever captured of a royal family member. There stood the Baron Killyleagh, standing closely beside a young woman, while an associate beamed suggestively in the rear. Absent that image, taken at a social event in 2001, few would have credited the allegations of a young woman who declared she was moved across the sea and obliged to have perfunctory relations with a individual of the royal bloodline? A strange, indicative action by someone who had overtly claimed to have never been aware of her, said he could no have had relations with her, and yet paid millions of his mother's resources to avert a protracted lawsuit. A Long Period of Disgrace Against this backdrop, conversations of the royal family acting decisively to cut Andrew off are inaccurate. This affair has continued for the majority of 15 years since that image, and an additional image of Andrew walking pleasantly with a disgraced financier surfaced. Hubris: How long did his family members, maybe even his relatives, realize that Andrew was so presumptuous? Problematic Connections: They must have realized, if his aides and the authorities were performing their duties, that he had some deeply disreputable associates given he unabashedly welcomed them to palaces. Fiscal Irresponsibility: If the household did not know about his personal conduct, they certainly knew about his wastefulness with taxpayer funds. Journeys were listed in royal annual reports: helicopter flights from the estate to a golf course and back again in time for lunch, chartered planes instead of commercial flights, all for the comfort of "the travel enthusiast". Existence of Entitlement Then there was the presumption which demanded deference when he walked into a room or the profound obsession about his honorifics used on his letterheads in messages to his associates. He managed to escape consequences while his matriarch, who strangely pampered him, was still alive. The Queen did at least revoke him of royal responsibilities and honorary colonelcies in the wake of his catastrophic and, we now know, untruthful television interview six years ago. Recent Developments Merely in the last two weeks that events accelerated, following the issuance of books giving more disturbing particulars of his actions and that of his companions. Additional revelations have again revealed Andrew's belief that he could get away with deceiving about his interaction with a notorious figure. Society (and the journalists) were far in advance of the royals. There was no one of any significance to speak up for him, a outcome of all those years of arrogance. Royal Worries The more intelligent family members understood that. The one imperative is to pass on the institution, if not as heretofore at least complete and unstained. Over time the last 190 years trying to overcome the image of past sovereigns, showing they are useful, accountable and responsive to their subjects. His actions endangered all that in jeopardy in an time when respect and privacy is no longer adequate. Aftermath Eventually, the famously hesitant monarch was pressured further. There was no other option. The royal household had surrendered command of the narrative. Currently the loss of honorifics and the continued and lifetime public humiliation that will afflict Andrew most deeply. Reduction: Lowered to just a commoner Past Example: The primary monarch to surrender his honorifics in recent history Military Service: Notably hurtful given his service in the conflict He is still a counsellor of state, on paper able to substitute for the monarch, and he is still in the succession to the crown, but none of these will ever come to pass. Coming Developments Do individuals he comes across still defer to him? Might they still forget themselves and call him Your Highness? Will they even say Sir, Certainly, he is not withdrawing to an ordinary town, but to the monarchy's extensive estate at a royal residence. There, he will be provided by the king with one of the estate properties and given some form of private allowance. This differs from his former home, where he paid a token 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 files in the possession of American legislators to be disclosed. Governmental Scrutiny: Could lawmakers seek further action Fiscal Review: Or examine the waste of public money Criminal Investigation: There may even be a criminal probe into his conduct Maybe for the moment the reputational impact to the institution is limited. The statement from the royal household was evidently that the revocation of titles was what the king, and particularly other senior monarchical figures, wanted. Changed Stance No more pretence that Andrew was doing it voluntarily. And, significantly, the brief statement showed evidently that the institution were aligning with the complainant's version of incidents. Even more, for the premiere occasion they eventually showed concern for the victims: "These actions are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he maintains his innocence of the accusations against him." Finally it is entitlement, self-interest and indolence that will destroy the institution. In his foolishness, self-indulgence and greed, Andrew appears never to have grasped that lesson.