Prince Andrew's Attendance At The Queen's Funeral Is Going To Cause Controversy

Prince Andrew, the second son of the late Queen Elizabeth II, is slated to take a "central role" in today's funeral for the Queen according to inside sources (via Daily Mail). As the royal family attempts to unite as one during their time of mourning, these same sources say it would have been "out of the question" for Prince Andrew to be excluded, even in light of his now-infamous association with sex offender and trafficker Jeffery Epstein. 

Earlier this year, Prince Andrew settled a lawsuit brought against him by Virginia Giuffre, a woman who says Prince Andrew raped her when she was an underage victim of Epstein's (via The New York Times). The amount of money to be paid to the Giuffre in the settlement was not disclosed to the public. Since this highly publicized court case, Prince Andrew has been far from the public eye.

Even so, he is expected to be in the funeral procession, walking directly behind his mother's coffin as her body is carried from Holyroodhouse to St Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Prince Andrew's presence and, arguably, his place of honor during the funeral are likely to cause a fair amount of controversy among those who feel someone associated with such horrific abuses of children has no place in public life. 

Unnamed inside sources tell The Daily Mail that while the Prince will be included in the Queen's funeral, he "has no hope of return to public life once she is laid to rest." In fact, while he is being allowed a temporary resurfacing to mourn his mother with the rest of his family, sources say that once the funeral and associated events are over, Prince Andrew is expected to "disappear" again.

Undoubtedly, however, even a brief reappearance in a public role is likely to cause a great deal of upset. Only time will tell how the people will respond.