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The saga started with a solitary photograph, arguably the most significant ever taken of a member of the monarchy.

Present was the Earl of Inverness, arm-in-arm a young woman, while another individual grinned knowingly in the rear.

Absent that photograph, captured at a gathering in 2001, it would have been difficult to accept the allegations of a adolescent who said she was trafficked across the ocean and obliged to have perfunctory relations with a member of the monarchy?

An odd, indicative move by someone who had openly claimed to have never been aware of her, said he could never have had relations with her, and yet handed over a large amount of family funds to settle a protracted lawsuit.

Over a Decade of Disgrace

Against this backdrop, conversations of the royals acting swiftly to distance themselves from Andrew are misguided. This affair has endured for the majority of 15 years since that photograph, and a further image of Andrew strolling congenially with a disgraced financier emerged.

• Arrogance: How long did his family members, perhaps even his parents, know that Andrew was so arrogant?
• Dubious Friendships: They must have understood, if his aides and the authorities were doing their jobs, that he had some deeply disreputable companions given he publicly welcomed them to estates.
• Financial Extravagance: If the household did not know about his intimate behaviors, they certainly knew about his wastefulness with public money.

Trips were printed in public records: private aircraft flights from the estate to a sporting venue and back again in time for lunch, chartered planes instead of regular transport, all for the convenience of "the travel enthusiast".

World of Deference

Furthermore the arrogance which expected subservience when he appeared in a space or the profound awareness about his royal titles used on his letterheads in communication to his friends.

He could get away with it while his mother, who inexplicably indulged him, was still surviving. The monarch did at least strip him of official roles and military positions in the aftermath of his disastrous and, it is now clear, untruthful television interview six years ago.

Current Situation

It was only in the last fortnight that events progressed rapidly, following the publication of biographical works giving more grim particulars of his behavior and that of his companions.

Additional revelations have again revealed Andrew's assumption that he could avoid lying about his interaction with a convicted criminal.

Society (and the media) were far more perceptive of the monarchy. There was nobody of any importance to speak up for him, a consequence of all those years of presumption.

Institutional Fears

The more astute monarchical figures realized that. The primary concern is to transfer the institution, if not as heretofore at least whole and unstained.

For generations the last 190 years trying to reverse the reputation of previous monarchs, demonstrating they are valuable, accountable and attentive to their citizens.

His actions endangered all that in jeopardy in an era when submission and privacy is no longer enough.

The Fallout

Finally, the well-known hesitant monarch was pressured additional. There was little choice. The institution had relinquished authority of the account.

Presently the removal of honorifics and the persistent and life-long public humiliation that will hurt Andrew the most.

• Demotion: Lowered to just Mr Mountbatten-Windsor
• Historical Precedent: The first monarch to surrender his titles in contemporary era
• Naval Career: Particularly stinging given his role in the Falklands war

He remains a constitutional officer, theoretically able to act for the monarch, and he is still in the lineage to the throne, but not any of these will truly come to pass.

What Lies Ahead

Will people he encounters still show respect to him? Will they still slip up and call him Sir? Would they say Sir,

Naturally, he is not retiring to an ordinary town, but to the sovereign's large property at Sandringham.

There, he will be provided by the monarch with one of the royal residences and given some type of personal stipend.

This differs from his former home, where he paid a minimal rent for more than 20 years, and Norfolk is a bit distant, but even so it may not be sufficiently removed.

Outstanding Concerns

This is not over. There are still documents in the possession of US Congress to be disclosed.

• Political Pressure: Will lawmakers demand more
• Fiscal Review: Or examine the waste of state resources
• Criminal Investigation: There may even be a criminal probe into his actions

Possibly for the time being the harm to the monarchy to the crown is limited. The message from the royal household was evidently that the removal of honorifics was what the monarch, and especially other senior monarchical figures, wanted.

A Shift in Position

An end to deception that Andrew was doing it voluntarily. And, notably, the brief communication showed clearly that the institution were aligning with the victim's narrative of events.

Additionally, for the first time they ultimately showed concern for the survivors: "The measures are considered essential, despite the truth that he maintains his innocence of the allegations against him."

Ultimately it is entitlement, selfishness and laziness that will destroy the institution. In his folly, personal excess and corruption, Andrew gives the impression never to have learned that reality.