On October 17, it was announced that Prince Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, would give up their official royal titles, including the Duke and Duchess of York. The decision followed years of public pushback regarding Andrew's association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Now, royal experts are weighing in on the influence Prince William likely had on his disgraced uncle's "demotion."
Speaking to GB News, royal expert Duncan Larcombe said of Andrew, "This is a prince who is so arrogant and so full of his own self-importance that he thought he could just carry on." Larcombe continued, "He denies all the allegations, of course, but it will not go away."
The royal expert explained, "I think William saw his uncle as nothing more than a real pariah, frankly." While Queen Elizabeth and King Charles may have gone easy on Prince Andrew in the past, the Prince of Wales reportedly took a firmer stance.
"William is no fool," Larcombe noted. "He's got his destiny to fulfill and he read the room...I think [it] shows exactly how much influence William now has inside King Charles's court."
Royal historian Andrew Lownie also analyzed Prince Andrew's decision to retreat from royal life, telling the BBC (via the Daily Mail), "It's coming from William and the government, I understand, who felt that this was a distraction from the wider work of the Royal Family."
Lownie further elaborated, "I think there's much more still to come out. And I think that was what was worrying them, that they were best to distance [themselves]...before these new allegations arose."
In his statement announcing the change, Prince Andrew previously explained, "In discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family." If royal experts are to be believed, Prince William might be, at least in part, responsible for the announcement.
