It’s described as the worst crisis to hit the royal family in living memory. And the scandal surrounding Prince Andrew has led King Charles and his son Prince William to join forces to protect the future of the monarchy.
The pair has been attending crisis talks together with aides in an effort to find ways of limiting the damage caused by Andrew’s ties to American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and the sexual abuse accusations made against him by Virginia Giuffre in her posthumous book.
Andrew’s actions – which he vehemently denies – have “taken a wrecking ball to support for the monarchy”, raising serious questions about whether the UK should still have a royal family, according to one British politician.
Andrew’s impact on republicanism
“Prince Andrew has done more for republicanism than anyone since Oliver Cromwell,” says MP Graham Stringer, referring to the leader of the 17th-century revolution that overthrew Charles I.
“Queen Elizabeth II ensured the royal family had almost universal support during her reign – even among some quiet republicans. Prince Andrew has damaged that. He has almost completely undone that work.”
The monarchy’s slow realisation
Andrew Lownie, the author of the biography Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, believes the royal family is only now waking up to how catastrophic the problem with the ex-Duke of York really is.
“I don’t think it’s as bad as the abdication of Edward VIII in 1936, but I do think it’s the worst crisis in living memory. I really feel that there is collateral damage being done to the monarchy that they have been too slow to realise.”
The recent publication of Virginia’s book Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice and the release of emails which show Andrew lied in his infamous BBC interview about breaking off contact with Epstein, have spurred Charles, 76, and William, 43, to investigate ways of trying to move on from the scandal.
A favourite of the Queen (below), Andrew is still making demands.
Father and son united against headlines
Father and son have been united in their determination to stop lurid headlines distracting from the good work their family does, says royal author Phil Dampier.
“I think the main priority will have been to try to clear this up for once and for all, and draw a line under it before William becomes king, so he doesn’t have to deal with it. They don’t like loose ends.”
William has a clear disdain for his uncle and if Andrew, 65, hasn’t already faded into obscurity by the time he takes the throne, there’s a strong chance he will be effectively banished, says a palace source.
Threat to the King’s legacy
Meanwhile, having a brother who has links to a sex-trafficking paedophile and has been accused of sexual assault is a terrible threat to the King’s legacy, according to longtime press photographer Arthur Edwards. The scandal has taken the focus away from Charles’ efforts “to make this world a better place. He’s just trying to make a difference”.
The negativity directed towards royalty as a result of the claims against Andrew has resulted in incidences like the King being heckled during an official engagement. A man in a crowd gathered outside a church His Majesty was visiting, yelled out, “How long have you known about Andrew and Epstein?” and “Have you asked the police to cover up for Andrew?” The King did not react, although members of the crowd told the man to shut up.
A spokesman for the anti-monarchy organisation Republic says the royals need to be challenged about Andrew and what they’re doing about him.
Leaving Beatrice and her sister Eugenie would upset the pair.
Public pressure mounts
“If the politicians won’t do the job and the police won’t investigate, then more and more members of the public will be asking tough questions.”
One way being discussed to get Andrew out of the picture and the public back on side at the same time is to kick Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson out of their home, Royal Lodge, which is owned by the Crown. As the Weekly went to press, talks were underway to get the couple to leave the mansion on the Windsor estate.
As part of the negotiations, Andrew is understood to be moving to nearby Frogmore Cottage, previously home to Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. However, Fergie, 66, who has lived with him since 2008, is unlikely to be joining him there. Instead, Andrew has asked that she be given Adelaide Cottage, which is about to be vacated by William and his family.
Criticism of their demands
Former BBC royal reporter Jennie Bond says it’s outrageous that the couple feel they’re entitled to not one but two beautiful homes on the estate.
“It’s an audacious demand. Andrew and Sarah are grown-ups with their own money and resources. They should be made to fend for themselves, and not rely on the King and the goodwill of the Crown Estate.”
Andrew turned down Frogmore Cottage when it was offered to him in 2023 after Harry and Meghan were evicted. He refused to budge from Royal Lodge, which has been his home since 2003. Meanwhile, friends of Fergie’s say the former duchess feels like she deserves a Crown house because she was short-changed when she divorced Andrew in 1996.
Charles wore his medals to a ceremony dedicated to LGBTQ soldiers.
Divorce settlement
Her divorce settlement was around $1.2 to $1.7 million, compared to Princess Diana, who received around $35 million when her marriage to Charles ended. Andrew signed a 75-year lease for Royal Lodge when he took it over. He paid around $2 million for the lease and also stumped up $15 million for vital repairs. It was assumed he was paying a “nominal rent” of around $520,000 a year to live there. But it was recently revealed that he hasn’t paid any rent.
In the meantime, there have been reports that Andrew has been offered luxury accommodation in a palace in the United Arab Emirates by Abu Dhabi’s ruler Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who he got to know through his position as a special trade envoy.
Living in a Middle Eastern palace would get him away from the media in the UK and give him a fresh start. Phil Dampier explains, “He could regain control of his life by becoming plain Mr Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and living abroad.
“Who knows if Sarah would go with him? They are seemingly welded together through a sort of mutual survival and the disastrous situation they find themselves in. “I think they want to ride it out in the hope that eventually the headlines die down. And the King and Prince William will hope that what they have done so far is enough.”
A friend says he can’t imagine Andrew would be happy about being so far away from his grandchildren but Jennie Bond adds, “Most people would think that the further away from the UK he goes, the better.”
His brother the King and nephew William may well share those sentiments.
Why are the police investigating themselves?
The Metropolitan Police in the UK are looking into claims that royal protection officers assigned to keep Andrew safe obstructed lawyers trying to deliver legal papers to the prince after he was accused of sexually abusing Virginia Giuffre.
A person hired to serve the papers, which must be delivered as part of the court process, says he was told by Andrew’s security that the papers would not be passed on to Andrew. They eventually did make their way to him.
Meanwhile, the police need to decide whether to look into claims that Andrew asked his police protection officer to “dig up dirt” on Virginia after her allegations were made public.
What Virginia’s book said
The memoir Nobody’s Girl by Virginia Giuffre, who took her life in April, made several key claims about Andrew. These included: The first time they had sex, he was “friendly enough but still entitled – as if he believed having sex with me was his birthright”.
She was forced to have sex with him on two other occasions. The last time was on Epstein’s private Caribbean island, where the prince and Epstein had group sex with her and around eight other under- 18-year-olds.
After she took out a civil suit for sexual abuse against him, Andrew’s team hired internet trolls to hassle her.
Charles keeps calm and carries on
The King humbled to great Pope Leo
The King is getting on with business as usual in the wake of the controversy surrounding his brother. He’s carried out a string of emotional engagements, including visiting the Manchester synagogue where two Jewish worshippers were killed by a gunman and unveiling a memorial to LGBTQ military personnel who have served in the armed forces.
He and Queen Camilla, 78, also travelled to Rome for a state visit to the Vatican and to meet the new pope, Leo XIV, for the first time. He made history as the first British monarch and leader of the Church of England in modern history to pray alongside the head of the Roman Catholic Church.
The King was humbled to meet family of the Jewish tragedy
Back in the UK, he hosted Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at Windsor Castle. He is carrying out his role professionally as always but behind the smiles is a man rocked by the havoc wreaked on the institution of the monarchy.
“Everything that has happened with Prince Andrew is deeply upsetting, but the King is determined not to let it distract him from his duty,” says a palace insider.
Volodymyr received a hero’s welcome at Windsor Castle.
As well as having the support of his son William, the King has drawn strength from his wife Camilla.
“She is his rock, as always, and won’t be very happy about him having to deal with all of this,” says the source.
“Given that he’s been going through cancer and all that involves, this is the last thing he needs. But like his mother, he always puts duty first.”
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