William Pushes to Resolve Andrew's Scandal Before He Takes to the Throne: 'He Wants It Dealt With'
Prince William reportedly had a big hand in King Charles's decision to strip Andrew of his royal titles and residence.
After the release of the Epstein files, reports suggested Prince William was hell-bent on holding Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor accountable for his actions and banishing him from the royal fold. And indeed, that came to fruition when King Charles ordered his brother to vacate Royal Lodge and relinquish his titles, a move the Prince of Wales is said to have strongly influenced. Weighing in on William's strict stance, royal expert Andrew Lownie claims the Prince wants the rot of his uncle's scandals to completely fade away by the time he ascends the throne.
In a conversation with PEOPLE, Lownie revealed that although King Charles remains 'very fond' of Mountbatten-Windsor's daughters, William's tough stance may place a greater distance between the royal family and the Yorks. He said, "William wants it [Andrew scandal] all cleaned out before he gets [on the throne]. He wants it dealt with now." As for Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, while they chose to celebrate Christmas with the royal family at Sandringham, instead of their parents, that loyalty may have backfired. He added, "They're [Beatrice and Eugenie] caught between a rock and a hard place over loyalty to their parents and their future."
Lownie and royal expert Ingrid Seward also touched upon a Daily Mail report that claimed Beatrice and Eugenie were banned from attending this year's Royal Ascot as a result of their involvement in covering up their parents' scandals. Seward stressed, "They [Beatrice and Eugenie] are tarnished by this. It has affected their lives a great deal." Meanwhile, Lownie noted that it is impossible to ignore the impact of their parents' controversial associations on the sisters' royal status. "Their jobs in client relations are based on being princesses," he said, referring to the York sisters' independent careers outside the Firm.
As for William, he has liked his disgraced uncle, even pushing the late Queen Elizabeth to banish him when allegations first surfaced. In his new book, William and Catherine: The Intimate Inside Story, royal author Russell Myers alleged that William had urged the Queen to remove Mountbatten-Windsor from public life immediately, warning that a delay would only deepen the damage. In excerpts serialized by The Mirror, Myers wrote that the Prince of Wales recognized that the monarchy was "engaged in a full-scale firefight," with its credibility under serious threat, with Andrew's continued presence risking long-term harm.
Myers also quoted a well-placed source who said of William's alleged dislike for Mountbatten-Windsor, "Once you understand the fact that everything that happens in the here and now affects everything in the future, William's future, it is very easy to put yourself in his shoes. He never much liked his uncle and wanted him out of the picture immediately before the rot further set in." They added that the Prince of Wales reportedly believed that his uncle "got himself into the whole mess, so he should be left to his own devices to sort it out away from the family."
