Queen Elizabeth has left King Charles paying the price for the many scandals of her beloved son Andrew, according to palace insiders, who say he was always her ‘weak spot’.
The King this week stripped his brother Andrew of his title of prince and forced him out of his Windsor home as he seeks to distance the royals from his links to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The decision by the King marks one of the most dramatic moves against a member of the royal family in modern British history.
But according to palace insiders, King Charles had no other choice after he was left to deal with an ‘unexploded bomb’ left by his mother’s reluctance to deal with her favourite son.
A source close to The Times told the newspaper: ‘It seems to me that Queen Elizabeth has quite a lot to answer for. It’s as if she left an unexploded bomb for Charles.
‘The thing about the Queen was that everyone always said she was so dutiful, and she was — but this was a terrible dereliction of duty. She indulged Andrew all the time and always avoided confrontation.’
Andrew was forced to quit his royal duties in 2019 and then was stripped of his military links and royal patronages in 2022 amid allegations of sexual misconduct that he has always denied.
That year, he settled a lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre, who died in April, which accused him of sexually abusing her when she was a teenager.
Queen Elizabeth has left King Charles paying the price for the many scandals of her beloved son Andrew. Pictured: Queen Elizabeth ll, gives her son Andrew a rose which he promptly puts in his mouth after they have disembarked from HMS Invincible upon his return from the Falklands war on September 17, 1982 in Portsmouth, England
Palace insiders say Queen Elizabeth has left King Charles paying the price for the many scandals of her beloved son Andrew
Andrew has always denied her account, which has recently returned to prominence with the release of her memoir.
But according to royal sources, the late Queen, who partially funded Andrew’s settlement with Giuffre, could not bring herself to fully strip him of his titles, or suggest alternative accommodation for him given the circumstances.
Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Thursday that the measures on Andrew were ‘deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him.’
‘Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse.
A statement released by Giuffre’s family members said they would ‘continue Virginia’s battle’ and that all abusers and abettors connected to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell needed to be held to account.’
Earlier this month, The Mail on Sunday published correspondence between Andrew and Epstein from 2011, revealing how Andrew told the disgraced financier that they should ‘keep in close touch’ and that they would ‘play some more soon’.
As well as having his titles stripped, Andrew has also been served a notice to surrender his lease of his Royal Lodge mansion on the Windsor Estate, and he will move to alternative private accommodation on the Sandringham estate.
How soon Andrew will move, however, was not disclosed.
Pictured: A young King Charles pictured with his brother Andrew
The move to insulate the crown from the scandal-tainted Andrew will not affect just the former prince.
Ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, who was also ensnared in the Epstein scandal, had shared Royal Lodge with him.
The couple’s daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, however, will retain their titles.
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