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The British Royal family is one of the most notable families in the world. They have been in the news quite recently after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, and the end of her 70 year long reign. Being the longest reigning monarch of recent times, Queen Elizabeth II was famous worldwide, and her death called upon millions of people who came to pay their respects.
Each and every member of the family is held in very high regard and their every move followed by the media and public - praising them, criticizing them, and judging them overall. This makes for a very delicate situation in anybody's life, as at the end of the day, they too are human, and humans are never without flaws.
They have come in the attention for quite the scandalous reasons multiple times. In this article, we list out some of the biggest scandals that have hit the British Royal family.
Love, death and more - 7 times the British Royal family was marred with scandals
1) King Edward VIII abdicated the throne for love
Edward VIII was the King of Britain between January 20, 1936 and December 11, 1936. Son to former King George V, Edward VIII was often linked with various se*ual escapades during his time as Prince of Wales, while he traveled the world to attend meetings on behalf of his father. However, the most notable affair about him came after he succeeded the throne and became King.
Just months after Edward VIII was made King of Britain, he proposed marriage to divorced American socialite, Wallis Simpson. To make things even more difficult for him, Simpson was in the middle of her second divorce.
The Church of England disapproved of a marriage to a divorcee whose spouse is still alive, and King Edward being the head of the church was a nasty affair. All this hullabaloo ultimately led to the abdication of the thrown by King Edward VIII in favor of his love.
2) Charles and Diana's nasty seperation
With the death of former Queen Elizabeth II, her eldest son Prince Charles of Wales took over the throne on September 8, 2022. However, this isn't the first time that the former prince has come into the limelight.
He was previously married to the late Princess Diana, and their marriage raised a lot of dust in its aftermath. Just a few years after their marriage, however, they began having issues due to incompatibility and alleged extramarital affairs. Diana even called out Charles' adulterous ways during an interview with the BBC in 1995, which eventually led to their divorce.
She had said:
"There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded."
Diana was a people's favorite and her death in 1997 was followed by multiple conspiracy theories. It even led to Operation Paget by the Metropolitan Police in 2004, which passed its final verdict in 2008, stating that her death to be an "unlawful killing."
3) Prince Andrew's ties with Jeffrey Epstein
Prince Andrew is one of the most infamous people among the British Royal family for multiple reasons. Understandably, his life has been pervaded by countless scandals and such. The biggest on till date, has no doubt been the case of his relationship with American financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Jeffrey Epstein was convicted of se*ual trafficking of underage girls and other se*ual offenses in 2008. Prince Andrew's ties with the financier was known, and became a point of criticism. Among rising concerns about their relationship, Andrew stepped down as the trade envoy for United Kingdom.
He was later also alleged to have participated in underage se*ual acts with a Virginia Gueffre, then only 17 years old. Although these allegations were categorically denied by the Royal Palace, they still caused quite the commotion. Andrew has since been stripped off of his royal titles and is set to defend himself as a regular citizen against the allegations of se*ual assault.
4) The death of the princess that shook the world
Princess Diana was one of the most notable royals in the family and was always loved by the people. Diana was in the news often for her association with humanitarian causes. She was involved in various different charities and health-related organisations. Her work for HIV, Cancer, Leprosy and removal of landmines had garnered widespread applause from everybody.
Being a crowd favorite, Diana's death caused quite the commotion. With a nasty divorce just a few years ago, many people thought up conspiracy theories and theorized that it was not an accident but a murder.
Investigations found that the car Diana was traveling in was hounded by paparazzi, which forced them to speed up in order to outrun them, but instead lost control and crashed headlong. The chauffeur, Henri Paul, was also found to be under the influence of alcohol.
Diana's death became worldwide news and attracted dignitaries from across the globe, sending their regards to the grieving family. Although she was no longer a part of the Royal family, she was still given a ceremonial funeral and the Queen herself came to pay her respects.
5) Prince Harry's visit to rehab
Harry has been a frequent name in media outlets because of his supposed raucous lifestyle. Prince Harry was always considered a bit of the black sheep of the Royal Family. The first notable piece about the Senior Royal hit the news back when he was just 17.
According to Mirror UK, Harry fell in with a bad crowd during 2001. He apparently experimented with cannabis after being encouraged by his friends. When this became known, his father, now King Charles III, sent him to Featherstone Lodge, a detoxification center for addicts in London. While he was just there for a day, and never received any treatment as such, Harry's visit to rehab hit the news stands as a notable piece.
6) Harry and Meghan rescind their senior royal titles
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry and Meghan, came into the spotlight in 2020 with an explosive piece of news. They decided to rescind their ties to the throne as well as their titles, His Royal Highness and Her Royal Highness. The couple had decided to live a separate life away from the throne and become financially independent.
The news made an outrageous impact, leaving people baffled as to why they would make such a decision. Apparently, the late Queen Elizabeth II was also left speechless as she was previously unaware of their decision and only came to know of it after they announced it on an Instagram post.
While the couple did rescind their senior roles, they still retain their titles of Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Their children will still receive the titles of His Royal Highness and Her Royal Highness after the ascension of King Charles III to the throne.
7) Kate's invasion of privacy
The papparazi can be quite irksome in their quest for the snap that will pay their bills. However, they do sometimes cross the line for exclusives and such. While she had multiple run-ins with the press and the paparazzi for over half a decade, one of Kate's most notable paparazai shots came in 2012.
During a vacation at the Château d'Autet, in France, the Princess of Wales was photographed sunbathing topless from afar. The photograph was taken roughly 800 meters away with a long-range lens by a paparazzo and subsequently published in a French tabloid. The incident sparked outrage and was followed by a lawsuit from the Royal palace.
The British Royal family is no doubt one of the most interesting families throughout history, and has had some of the most intriguing and regal monarchs. The late Queen Elizabeth II ranks highest in this list, and has had an immense impact on the global level through her 70 years of reign. If this piques your interest, the Netflix original series, The Crown is a must-watch.
The Crown is a historical drama series that was first released in November 2016 and has since aired five seasons. The fifth season has just dropped on the streaming platform on November 9, 2022 and has consistently been among the top 3 shows.
