Akin to the late Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles, 74, seems to also have a soft spot for Prince Andrew, 63, as according to a royal insider, he appears to be “making it clear” to the public that he is supporting his brother and is not ready to “turn his back on” the disgraced royal.
We already know that the new monarch is still looking out for his younger brother, which is proven by the fact that he evicted Prince Harry, 38, and Meghan Markle, 42, from Frogmore Cottage and gifted the property to Prince Andrew instead.
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King Charles Is 'Making It Clear' That He Isn't Turning His Back On Prince Andrew
The disgraced royal – who was stripped of all of his royal patronages and affiliations following the sexual assault lawsuit brought against him by Virginia Giuffre, and his alleged friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein – was driven to church in Balmoral by Prince William, 41, on Sunday, August 27th, which has been interpreted as a sign that the royal family is slowly letting him back in.
Although the Duke of York won't ever be able to return to working royal life, a friend of the King reportedly told the Daily Beast that Sunday's activities – i.e., being driven to church by the future king and sitting next to him in the passenger's seat while Kate Middleton, the future queen sat in the back seat – speak volumes about his future in the royal family. (Check out some of the pictures of this happening here.)
"Andrew won’t ever have the same ceremonial role within the family, he is no longer and never will be a working royal. That is clear," King Charles' friend reportedly told the pub. "But he is part of the family. He is the King’s brother. He has not been found guilty of any crime and I think it’s fair to say that the King is making it clear that he won’t turn his back on his brother."
The Royal Family Could Be Trying To Reintegrate Prince Andrew
The royal family appears to be trying out some new ways to reintegrate Prince Andrew, which historian and writer Andrew Lownie, who is currently working on a Prince Andrew biography, seems to think was very evident by having him and Prince William arrive at the church together.
"The relationship between William and Andrew has never been good," Lownie told the Daily Beast, which suggests that having them arrive at the church together – and in full view of the photographers – was a calculated move.
"The family have been using the Prince and Princess of Wales to get them out of trouble a lot lately, and once again, they are doing the heavy lifting here, fixing problems not of their creation," Lownie continued. "This was clearly a very important event, and William’s had to put aside his objections... to agree to be in a car with him when they knew it was going to be filmed is an extraordinary development.”
"Until now, the family have been trying to distance themselves from Andrew, but Sunday’s ballet suggests that there’s been a change of strategy. The question is, why?" Lownie asked, before pointing out: "Andrew is still very toxic. I mean, if I was advising them on PR, I would have him locked up in Balmoral and out of sight. So, why have they apparently decided they need to be showing some sort of support for him and that they’re all in this together?"
