Omid Scobie’s Endgame made it clear that the next big “royal battle” would be between King Charles and Prince William. It’s already happening, and it’s been happening for several years now, as William’s office openly briefs against Charles and vice versa. The fundamental problem is that these are two enormously petty, short-sighted men, both of whom are capable of stabbing each other in the back. So, it’s interesting to watch as William figures out in real time that he can make his father look like an incompetent fool simply by allowing his people to give some briefings about the Prince Andrew situation. To be fair, Charles already looked foolish and disgusting, allowing a known predator like Andrew to attend the coronation in his Garter robes, and allowing Andrew to walk with the family on Christmas morning in Sandringham. Now the Royalist column in the Daily Beast has even more:

The Daily Beast understands that while King Charles continues to intend to stand by his brother and include him in family events, Prince William is “dismayed” by his father’s “leniency” towards Andrew.

Asked if William’s anxiety about Andrew apparently being welcomed back into the fold was connected to concerns that such [Epstein] tapes or other damaging evidence might one day surface, the friend of William’s said: “Of course. Everyone knows there is a sh-t load more stuff that could come out on Andrew. That’s why William was so dismayed by the leniency shown to him at Christmas. He is utterly bemused by his father’s strategy.”

Asked if William had confronted his father about the issue the friend said, “That’s not how the family dynamic works. Charles is the king, so William has to go along with it. But he doesn’t have to like it.”

A former courtier told The Daily Beast: “William and his father agreed, in 2022, that Andrew should be kicked out of the royal family. Having ripped off the plaster, you have to question his judgment in walking to church with Andrew at Christmas, especially when they knew the Epstein affair was all going to be raked up again a few days later.”

The former staffer said the next big symbolic test of Charles’ commitment to Andrew would come at Garter Day in June: “It was significant that Andrew was allowed to wear his Garter robes to the Coronation. That suggested he had the king’s support. There are not any mechanisms for throwing people out of things like the Order of the Garter, but it would have been easy enough to order him not to wear the clothes.”

[From The Daily Beast]

While I believe that Charles is the one “allowing” Andrew to participate in all of these events and Charles has clearly authorized Operation Look Cozy With A Rapist, let’s also talk about how William didn’t have any problem chauffeuring Andrew around Balmoral, nor did William put up a fight about the Christmas walk at Sandringham. Everything you can say about Charles’s poor judgment, you can say about William too. But the larger problem is the same as it’s been for the past four years: the Windsors are doing things specifically for an audience of one (Prince Harry) and they are too tunnel-visioned to understand that their behavior is grotesque and offensive. The entire reason why the Yorks were featured so prominently during the coronation and Christmas at Sandringham was all about the Sussexes’ absence, and it was supposed to be a “message” to Harry.

The Duke of York has attended church in Balmoral with senior royals in an apparent show of unity which insiders say marks an end to any talk of a “family divided”

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— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) August 28, 2023

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, Backgrid.