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LONDON<\/strong> \u2013 King Charles III\u2019<\/a> s brother was under arrest.<\/a> Police were searching two royal properties, and news commentators were endlessly discussing the details of a sex scandal with tentacles that stretched to the gates of Buckingham Palace.<\/p>\n So how did Britain\u2019s royal family spend Thursday afternoon? The king sat in the front row on the first day of London Fashion Week. Queen Camilla<\/a> attended a lunchtime concert, and Princess Anne<\/a> visited a prison.<\/p>\n The decision to continue normal royal duties was more than just an example of British stoicism in the face of the monarchy\u2019s biggest crisis in almost a century. It was the opening act of the House of Windsor\u2019s fight for survival as the arrest of the former<\/a> Prince Andrew threatens to undermine public backing for the monarchy.<\/p>\n After pledging to support the police investigation into his brother’s friendship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein<\/a>, the king stressed his intentions.<\/p>\n \u201cMy family and I will continue in our duty and service to you all,\u201d he said in a statement<\/a> signed \u201cCharles R.,\u201d using the abbreviation for Rex, the Latin word for king.<\/p>\n Biggest crisis since 1936 abdication<\/p>\n The simple fact that Charles made the statement showed the scale of the problem created by the arrest of the king\u2019s 66-year-old sibling<\/a>, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was held for 11 hours and then released under investigation, meaning he was neither charged nor exonerated.<\/p>\n The event was so unprecedented that commentators had to reach back to the 1640s and the arrest and execution of King Charles I during the English Civil War to find a parallel.<\/p>\n Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest on suspicion of misconduct<\/a> in public office is shaping up to be the monarchy\u2019s biggest crisis since Edward VIII abdicated in 1936 to marry an American divorcee, Wallis Simpson.<\/p>\n That scandal weakened public support for the monarchy, which did not fully recover for 15 years. The turnaround came only after Edward\u2019s successor, King George VI, refused to flee Britain during World War II, demonstrating his solidarity with a nation ravaged by Nazi bombs.<\/p>\n Even before she ascended the throne, Queen Elizabeth II<\/a> followed her father\u2019s lead and publicly pledged her life in service<\/a> to Britain.<\/p>\n But while the impact of Edward\u2019s abdication lingered for years, the crisis reached a crescendo in a few days. And the solution in that case was relatively simple: Edward stepped aside, and his oldest brother took his place.<\/p>\n By contrast, the drama surrounding Mountbatten-Windsor is ongoing, with no end in sight.<\/p>\n No \u2018clear route forward\u2019<\/p>\n The current crisis stems from revelations about the relationship between the former prince and Epstein that were uncovered when the U.S. Justice Department released millions of pages of documents last month from its investigation into Epstein.<\/p>\n Police have previously cited reports that Mountbatten-Windsor sent trade information to Epstein, a wealthy investor, in 2010, when the former prince was Britain\u2019s special envoy for international trade. <\/p>\n At least eight U.K. police forces have said they are looking into issues raised by the documents.<\/p>\n Compared with previous royal scandals, “this time there doesn\u2019t seem to be any clear route forward,\u2019\u2019 said Ed Owens, author of \u201cAfter Elizabeth: Can the Monarchy Save Itself?\u201d \u201cThere\u2019s no blueprint to follow\u201d in terms of how the monarchy and associated organizations deal with the allegations.<\/p>\n The last time the monarchy had to manage these kinds of questions was after the death of Princess Diana<\/a>, Charles\u2019 ex-wife. Elizabeth and Charles were criticized for failing to respond to the outpouring of public grief as tens of thousands of people swarmed to Kensington Gardens to lay flowers outside the late princess\u2019 home. Some even called for Charles to step aside as heir to the throne in favor of his son William<\/a>.<\/p>\n The queen later commissioned focus groups to better understand the public mood and determine why people felt so strongly about a person they never met. The crisis forced the royals to recognize that Diana\u2019s common touch had connected with people in ways that had not yet occurred to the House of Windsor.<\/p>\n Those lessons have since inspired other royals, including Diana\u2019s sons, Princes William and Harry, to be more informal and approachable.<\/p>\n But this moment is different, in part because it is taking place in a rapidly changing media environment at a time when people are demanding transparency from their leaders.<\/p>\n Family could face uncomfortable questions<\/p>\n Moving forward also means<\/a> facing uncomfortable questions about what the institution \u2014 and the family members themselves \u2014 may have known about Mountbatten-Windsor\u2019s activities. The palace has sought to draw a bold line separating the former<\/a> prince and the rest of the monarchy by stripping him of his titles,<\/a> including the right to be called a prince.<\/p>\n