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This episode commenced with a isolated photograph, perhaps the most significant ever captured of a member of the monarchy.

In the frame appeared the Duke of York, with his arm around a young woman, while another individual grinned knowingly in the backdrop.

Without that snapshot, shot at a party in 2001, it would have been difficult to accept the assertions of a teenager who said she was trafficked across the ocean and obliged to have perfunctory intimate contact with a member of the monarchy?

An odd, indicative move by someone who had publicly asserted to have not been aware of her, asserted he could no have had sex with her, and yet provided a large amount of family funds to resolve a long-delayed lawsuit.

Years of Controversy

Against this backdrop, conversations of the royal family acting decisively to distance themselves from Andrew are inaccurate. This scandal has persisted for the largest portion of 15 years since that image, and an additional photo of Andrew strolling amiably with a disgraced financier came to light.

• Hubris: For what duration did his siblings, possibly even his mother and father, know that Andrew was so self-entitled?
• Dubious Friendships: They must have understood, if his aides and the authorities were fulfilling their roles, that he had some highly questionable associates given he publicly welcomed them to estates.
• Fiscal Irresponsibility: If the monarchy did not know about his intimate behaviors, they certainly knew about his overspending with taxpayer funds.

Travel were documented in public records: private aircraft travel from the palace to a golf course and back again in time for dining, private flights instead of commercial flights, all for the convenience of "Airmiles Andy".

World of Deference

Then there was the presumption which demanded subservience when he appeared in a area or the profound consciousness about his royal titles used on his correspondence in messages to his friends.

He avoided accountability while his matriarch, who inexplicably indulged him, was still living. The monarch did at least strip him of official roles and ceremonial ranks in the consequence of his catastrophic and, we now know, mendacious media appearance six years ago.

Latest Events

Just in the last two weeks that events accelerated, following the issuance of books giving more disturbing details of his behavior and that of his connections.

Further disclosures have again exposed Andrew's assumption that he could get away with being untruthful about his interaction with a disgraced individual.

People (and the journalists) were far more perceptive of the monarchy. There was no one of any significance to defend him, a result of all those years of presumption.

Institutional Fears

The more astute family members understood that. The one imperative is to hand down the institution, if not as heretofore at least whole and untarnished.

They have spent the last 190 years trying to undo the image of previous monarchs, proving they are useful, accountable and responsive to their people.

He was placing all that in danger in an era when submission and privacy is no longer adequate.

The Fallout

Finally, the notoriously indecisive king was pressured additional. There was little choice. The royal household had lost control of the narrative.

Currently the loss of titles and the persistent and lifetime public humiliation that will hurt Andrew most deeply.

• Reduction: Demoted to just Mr Mountbatten-Windsor
• Historical Precedent: The initial member to lose his designations in contemporary era
• Armed Forces: Especially stinging given his role in the engagement

He continues to be a royal advisor, in principle able to act for the monarch, and he is still in the lineage to the crown, but none of these will actually happen.

What Lies Ahead

Do individuals he meets still defer to him? Could they still forget themselves and call him Your Highness? Would they say Mr,

Naturally, he is not retiring to suburbia, but to the sovereign's vast estate 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.

It is not his previous residence, where he paid a token payment for more than 20 years, and Norfolk is a bit distant, but even so it may not be far enough.

Outstanding Concerns

Matters remain unresolved. There are still records in the custody of US Congress to be revealed.

• Political Pressure: Might parliament seek further action
• Fiscal Review: Or examine the improper use of public money
• Judicial Potential: There may even be a criminal probe into his behavior

Perhaps for the moment the reputational impact to the monarchy is limited. The message from the institution was plainly that the stripping of designations was what the monarch, and particularly other senior family members, sought.

A Shift in Position

An end to deception that Andrew was doing it voluntarily. And, significantly, the brief communication showed evidently that the monarchy were siding with the victim's version of occurrences.

Furthermore, for the premiere occasion they ultimately showed concern for the survivors: "These actions are deemed necessary, despite the fact that he continues to deny the claims against him."

In the end it is presumption, self-interest and indolence that will kill the crown. In his folly, self-indulgence and corruption, Andrew appears never to have understood that lesson.