Andrew's fall from grace was 'inevitable' as royals avoid 'risk' at the eleventh hour
Prince Andrew was stripped of his royal titles and honours on Thursday after his brother, King Charles, made the decision to remove them at the eleventh hour
The recent disgrace of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was described as "inevitable" after fresh revelations emerged regarding his connections to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The former Duke of York faced further embarrassment on Thursday when his brother, the King, took the dramatic step of removing his Royal titles and honours.
Andrew, whose ties to Epstein triggered his fall from grace, will now essentially hold the status of an ordinary citizen and be referred to as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. He has also consented to vacate Royal Lodge in Windsor.
A PR specialist has now commended the Royal Family for their "very clever" strategy, describing it as "inevitable" given Andrew's continued controversies, which would present a "risk" to the institution moving forward.
Renae Smith, founder of The Atticism, told the Express: "From a PR perspective, I think this move was inevitable.
"The Royal Family (if we consider it as a business) can't afford to carry reputational baggage that heavy, and the public's patience about Prince Andrew had well and truly worn out.", reports the Express.
"I think we all know there's been wrongdoing, and even if they don't admit that publicly in specifics, keeping Andrew in the fold, even quietly, was always going to be a risk to the brand."
She also commended the way the royals managed the "Andrew problem" to shape the story in their favor. Ms Smith shared: "I'm genuinely admiring the calculated move and the way they are controlling the negative narrative before they can be seen as being reactive. It's so clever."
Andrew had tarnished the reputation of the Royal family with his association with Epstein and, for many years, was haunted by allegations he sexually abused Ms Giuffre, who tragically took her own life in April, after she was trafficked by the financier. He has vehemently denied the allegations.
The monarchy had been facing mounting pressure to resolve the issues surrounding Andrew, primarily his property arrangements, amid escalating calls for him to relinquish Royal Lodge after it became apparent that he was paying a "peppercorn" rent.
Andrew is set to relocate to an undisclosed private residence on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk as soon as possible, it is understood.
The family of Virginia Giuffre stated she had "brought down a prince" following Charles' decision.