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The saga started with a single photograph, possibly the most impactful ever taken of a individual from the royal household.

Present was the Duke of York, standing closely beside a young woman, while a companion smiled knowingly in the rear.

Lacking that photograph, shot at a party in 2001, few would have credited the allegations of a adolescent who stated she was moved across the sea and forced to have perfunctory intimate contact with a member of the monarchy?

A strange, revealing gesture by someone who had openly stated to have never heard of her, said he could not have had relations with her, and yet paid a substantial sum of his mother's money to avert a drawn-out court action.

Over a Decade of Disgrace

In this context, talk of the monarchy acting firmly to distance themselves from Andrew are misguided. This controversy has endured for the largest portion of 15 years since that image, and an additional snapshot of Andrew strolling amiably with a convicted sex offender came to light.

• Arrogance: How long did his brothers and sisters, perhaps even his parents, realize that Andrew was so self-entitled?
• Problematic Connections: They must have realized, if his employees and the police were fulfilling their roles, that he had some highly questionable associates given he openly welcomed them to palaces.
• Monetary Excess: If the family did not know about his personal conduct, they certainly knew about his extravagance with public money.

Trips were documented in public records: private aircraft flights from the estate to a country club and back again in time for dining, private flights instead of commercial flights, all for the benefit of "Airmiles Andy".

A Life of Privilege

Then there was the entitlement which required subservience when he appeared in a room or the supreme obsession about his royal titles used on his letterheads in letters to his associates.

He avoided accountability while his mother, who strangely indulged him, was still living. The Queen did at least strip him of official roles and ceremonial ranks in the wake of his ill-fated and, it is now clear, mendacious television interview six years ago.

Recent Developments

Merely in the last 14 days that events progressed rapidly, following the issuance of books giving more grim particulars of his behavior and that of his connections.

More information have again revealed Andrew's thinking that he could avoid lying about his relationship with a convicted criminal.

Society (and the press) were far ahead of the monarchy. There was nobody of any consequence to speak up for him, a result of all those years of presumption.

Royal Worries

The wiser family members realized that. The one imperative is to pass on the crown, if not as before at least whole and unblemished.

Over time the last 190 years trying to reverse the image of past sovereigns, proving they are beneficial, dutiful and reactive to their subjects.

Andrew was putting all that in danger in an era when deference and discretion is no longer enough.

The Fallout

Eventually, the famously indecisive sovereign was prodded further. There was little choice. The institution had relinquished authority of the story.

Currently the stripping of titles and the ongoing and lifetime personal shame that will hurt Andrew most deeply.

• Demotion: Lowered to just a commoner
• Prior Instance: The initial member to surrender his honorifics in modern times
• Naval Career: Particularly hurtful given his role in the engagement

He continues to be a royal advisor, theoretically able to substitute for the king, and he is still eighth in line to the throne, but none of these will truly happen.

What Lies Ahead

Will people he comes across still acknowledge him? Will they still forget themselves and call him Sir? Might they say Mr,

Certainly, he is not retiring to a common area, but to the monarchy's vast grounds at a monarchical property.

There, he will be furnished by the monarch 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 nominal rent for more than 20 years, and the county is a bit remote, but even so it may not be adequate distance.

Unresolved Issues

The situation continues. There are still files in the custody of overseas authorities to be made public.

• Parliamentary Interest: Might lawmakers seek further action
• Fiscal Review: Or investigate the waste of public money
• Criminal Investigation: There may even be a criminal probe into his behavior

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

A Shift in Position

The cessation of pretence that Andrew was acting willingly. And, remarkably, the concise communication showed plainly that the royals were supporting the complainant's narrative of occurrences.

Even more, for the first time they ultimately showed regard for the victims: "The measures are considered essential, despite the truth that he maintains his innocence of the accusations against him."

In the end it is presumption, self-seeking and inactivity that will kill the monarchy. In his foolishness, personal excess and venality, Andrew gives the impression never to have understood that lesson.