Royal Punishment: Prince Philip Played Big Role in Prince Andrew's Withdrawal From Duties
Prince Andrew's decision to step down from his royal duties seems to be not his own at all.
Prince Andrew appeared in an "ill-judged" interview with BBC last November in pursuit of clearing his name about his involvement with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and the allegations thrown at her by alleged victim Virginia Roberts. However, the opposite happened, as he received heavy backlash and was criticized even more after the interview.
Just a few days after the disastrous TV appearance, the Duke of York released an official statement regarding his decision to withdraw from his royal duties, as posted on his Twitter account through the Royal Communications.
"Therefore, I have asked Her Majesty if I may step back from public duties for the unforeseeable future, and she has given her permission," the statement read as the consequences of his BBC interview -- which affected not only the Royal Family but also his corporate partnerships with various sponsors and charities -- finally became clear to Prince Andrew.
Who Pushed Him to Step Down?
Because of this statement, rumors about Queen Elizabeth II allegedly firing the Duke of York spread.
On Nov. 20, a source exclusively revealed to Daily Beast that Her Royal Highness called her favorite son Prince Andrew to Buckingham Palace and ordered him to step down. This just proved that stepping down from his royal duties was never Prince Andrew's choice and the Duke of York's involvement with Epstein fueled the decision to toss him out of Buckingham Palace.
The Queen also reportedly decided to remove the duke's office from the palace and cancel his birthday plans due to the controversies surrounding Prince Andrew.
In addition, his brother and the heir to the throne, Prince Charles together with Prince William reportedly insisted the Queen to "fire" the Duke of York.
In reality, however, his father Prince Philip was the one who played the biggest role in removing Prince Andrew from his duties.
What Did Prince Philip Do?
Just this year, Express released a report stating that Prince Philip was the one to push Prince Andrew to won up to his mistakes.
Instead of keeping quiet just like how he has been since retiring in 2017, the Duke of Edinburgh spoke up and told his son his opinion on the matter.
A week before the scheduled crisis meeting between Prince Charles and Prince Andrew, Prince Philip called the Duke of York to Sandringham where a tense meeting took place.
An insider told The Telegraph, "There was no screaming or shouting but Philip told him in no uncertain terms that he had to step down for the sake of the monarchy."
The patriarch also expressed that he did not like how the media put Prince Andrew on trial, but he also realized that his son's actions could cause more problems to the royal family. The father truly spoke from the heart and convinced his son to take the step down as he knows what is best for everyone.
