Prince Andrew has been dubbed Queen Elizabeth’s favorite son and with good reason. Royal experts previously revealed that the monarch was more hands-on with the Duke of York than her two older children, Prince Charles and Princess Anne. The queen did not release any statement regarding Prince Andrew’s sexual abuse scandal, but recent events seemingly proved which side she is on.
Prince Charles, Prince William Didn’t Want To Be Seen With Prince Andrew
During an interview on Pop Daily (via Express), host Justin Sylvester talked about Prince Andrew’s special role at Prince Philip’s memorial service last month. The Duke of York accompanied the queen in the car on their way to Westminster Abbey. The dad of two also escorted his mother on their way to the venue and after the memorial service.
But eagle-eyed royal fans and royal experts noticed that Prince Charles and Prince William distanced themselves from the queen and Prince Andrew during the service. Instead, they stayed close to their respective families.
Sylvester said that Prince Charles and Prince William’s decision to distance themselves from Prince Andrew was intentional.
“I think Prince Charles and Prince William not being by her side is very telling. I think they had to protect themselves because they are next in line and, we're like, ‘We are not about this life. We are not part of this,’” he said.
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Prince Andrew Has A Complicated Relationship With Prince Charles, Prince William
Prince Charles and Prince William also stayed mum while Prince Andrew was busy trying to shut down Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s sexual abuse lawsuit. But the father and son’s relationship with the Duke of York has always been strained. According to royal author Nigel Cawthorne, Prince Andrew lobbied to become Prince William’s regent after Princess Diana’s death.
While speaking with The Daily Beast, Cawthorne also claimed that Prince Andrew took the opportunity to boost his popularity during Prince Charles’ scandal. And this causes friction between the brothers. Unfortunately, their relationship has not reportedly recovered.
A source also told Daily Mail that Prince William is not a huge fan of Prince Andrew. So, it’s not surprising that he and his dad didn’t want to be photographed with the Duke of York at Prince Philip’s memorial service.
Queen Elizabeth Supports Prince Andrew
However, regardless of where Prince Charles and Prince William stand, the queen’s loyalty lies with Prince Andrew.
“She's like, 'It's done, he's in the car with me, this is how we tell you, I am going to ride with him there. This is over, we aren't going to talk about it again.’ This is her way of telling everybody that it’s done,” Pod Daily guest Melissa Peterman said (via Express).
Prince Charles Helped Pay Prince Andrew’s Settlement
But even if Prince Charles and Prince William weren’t on board with the queen’s decision to have Prince Andrew by her side, the former still added as a dutiful older brother to the Duke of York. Sources claimed that Prince Andrew received a hefty sum from Prince Charles to pay off his settlement. However, the exact amount hasn’t been disclosed.
A source told The Sun that Prince Andrew doesn’t have the ability to pay the settlement because he doesn’t have income or money.
“There were family discussions about how to ‘take a little from here and a little from there.’ Once it (money from the chalet) hits his bank account, he can pay back his brother and whoever else has lent him money. But that payment (to Virginia) has to be paid on time. He can’t rely on selling the chalet. Too many things can go wrong and the court won’t wait for property queries,” the source said.
A second source is that Prince Andrew’s family members were the only people that could help him pay his settlement because he just couldn’t afford it.
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