King Charles marked his 77th birthday under a heavy cloud, with royal insiders saying the monarch has grown weary, withdrawn, and visibly strained as fresh scandals surrounding his disgraced brother Andrew explode into public view once again.
Amid the mounting scandals, Charles is determined to focus on duty rather than celebration, a defining trait of his reign.
However, Royal insiders have revealed that, behind palace walls, the king remains deeply troubled by the damage Andrew continues to inflict on the monarchy.
Hilary Fordwich, a British royal expert, said Charles appeared emotional during the Remembrance Sunday ceremony.
“During Remembrance Sunday at the Cenotaph Parade, King Charles was particularly emotional, shedding a tear while standing in silence,” she said.
“He was withered and withdrawn, with one able to observe the toll the Andrew nightmare had taken on him.
“He appeared to be somewhat resolute.
“He is also known to be wanting to double down on duty, rather than anything verging on a shallow or frivolous celebration.”
Fordwich said Charles intends to publicly distance himself further.
“While Andrew, of course, will always remain his brother, now that he’s a private citizen, the king is likely to further publicly distance himself.
“We won’t be seeing Andrew at any birthday festivities.
“He’s actually made it worse for himself due to his pride and pervasively privileged attitude, thinking he’s still entitled.”
The former Duke of York, now Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, is reportedly “refusing to negotiate residence terms,” a decision Fordwich said has “merely served to widen the gulf between himself and the family at large.”
Buckingham Palace has stated it does not comment on Andrew because he is no longer a working royal.
Fordwich added, “Charles is purportedly ‘fed up’ with Andrew and, to the greatest extent possible, will be barring Andrew from any royal events.”
The crisis escalated after Buckingham Palace announced on October 30 that Charles was stripping Andrew’s remaining titles and moving to evict him from Royal Lodge due to his long-standing ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Pressure intensified again this week when Democratic members of the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released tens of thousands of additional pages of Epstein-related documents.
The files include emails referencing Andrew in connection with Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who accused him of raping her three times in 2001 when she was a teenager.
Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell allegedly trafficked her.
Andrew has consistently denied the allegations and says he has no memory of meeting Giuffre.
But several newly released emails, obtained by outlets including The Telegraph and Sky News, appear to contradict claims he made during his infamous 2019 BBC “Newsnight” interview.
One 2011 email showed Epstein appearing to confirm the authenticity of the now-infamous photo depicting Andrew with Giuffre, with Maxwell in the background, despite Andrew suggesting in the interview that the image might be fake. Epstein claimed “many” of his employees also took photos with Andrew.
Royal expert Ian Pelham Turner said:
“King Charles may be choking on his birthday cake as more allegations over Andrew are revealed.
“There is little more the king can do to further punish his erstwhile brother.”
He added that Prince William is pushing for a hard line:
“Brotherly love between them is at an all-time low.
“Prince William is said to be demanding that all these revelations mean not showing any leniency towards Andrew.”
Giuffre’s sexual abuse allegations also resurfaced through her memoir, published posthumously following her death earlier this year.
In her 2015 federal lawsuit against Maxwell, she described first meeting Maxwell in 2000 at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, where she worked as a spa attendant.
During his BBC interview, Andrew stated:
“I have absolutely no memory of that photograph ever being taken.”
He added, “Nobody can prove whether or not that photograph has been doctored, but I don’t recollect that photograph ever being taken.”
Andrew also claimed investigators could not confirm whether the image was real because “it is a photograph of a photograph of a photograph.”
However, he provided no evidence to support these claims.
Another email from 2011 shows Andrew expressing apparent panic over the growing media scrutiny.
According to The Telegraph, after a reporter sought comment about his relationship with Epstein and Maxwell, Andrew wrote to Maxwell:
“Hey there! What’s all this? I don’t know anything about this.
“You must SAY [sic] so please.
“This has NOTHING To do with me.
“I can’t take any more of this.”
Fordwich said Charles will spend his birthday surrounded by the working royals who remain closest to him.
“Given the current fervor regarding Andrew, birthday celebrations for the king are likely to be subdued with a greater emphasis on service,” she said.
“They will demonstrate all the dedication to duty the monarchy stands for to ensure continuity.”
She added that Prince William and Princess Catherine, the next king and queen, are stepping in as stabilizing forces:
“They project stability and are focused on the future of the monarchy.
“They are intimately involved in succession planning, international engagements and global initiatives.
“Both of them are projecting a more reform-focused monarchy, only including a narrow inner circle with a far greater emphasis on accountability.”
Broadcaster Helena Chard said Charles intends to press forward, despite the turmoil.
“The king’s decision to keep his birthday celebrations low-key is a reflection of his philosophy that the monarchy should serve, rather than celebrate itself,” she said.
“Instead of hosting a lavish reception, he will be engaging in official duties.”
She added, “The relationship between Charles and Andrew is strained.
“The king’s inner circle has also shrunk, with some now pushing for an even stronger stance against Andrew as he’s still making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
“Andrew’s downfall was brought on by his hubris.
“Despite these challenges, the king remains committed to his role.”
Our comment section is restricted to members of the Slay News community only.
To join, create a free account HERE.
If you are already a member, log in HERE.