Did Prince Andrew Finally Come Out Of Hiding To Meet His Granddaughter?
The following article includes allegations of sexual assault.
The Prince Andrew saga continues apace, with Queen Elizabeth set to drop millions of pounds on privately funding his legal defense against damning sexual abuse allegations. The Telegraph reported Her Royal Highness agreed to pay her son's way right after his now-infamous "Newsnight" interview, during which the disgraced royal discussed his close relationship with the late Jeffrey Epstein. The lawsuit was brought against him by Victoria Roberts Giuffre, a victim of the late financier, who accused Andrew of sexually abusing her at the home of socialite, and Epstein's closest confidante, Ghislaine Maxwell, in London when she was 17.
Andrew strongly refutes her claims, and is mounting a firm defense both in America — where the case was brought — and at home in the United Kingdom. The queen is taking funds out of her own private Duchy of Lancaster estate to pay for both. She's being kept abreast of any developments, too, the most recent being the revelation that Andrew's lawyers presented a deal signed by Roberts Giuffre back in 2009, settling her civil suit against Epstein. His team believes this absolves Andrew of any liability. However, according to the Daily Mail, her lawyers have requested a judge sign off on the deal, suggesting it won't have any impact on the case.
Although the embattled royal has been keeping out of the public eye lately, Andrew might finally have re-emerged to celebrate an important milestone.
Prince Andrew didn't see his granddaughter for two weeks
According to The U.S. Sun, Prince Andrew was reportedly more concerned about dodging being served than meeting his new granddaughter. Andrew finally met her a whole two weeks after she was born, after deigning to leave his Scottish hideout. Andrew's own daughter, Princess Beatrice, and her husband, Edo Mapelli Mozzi, attended Windsor so that baby Sienna could finally meet her grandfather. Notably, Andrew's former wife, Sarah Ferguson, left the queen's favorite spot up north, Balmoral, to be there for Sienna's London birth. However, Andrew hung back at the massive, 50,000-acre estate so he wouldn't get caught out by the American lawyers eager to serve his sex abuse lawsuit. In the end, the papers accusing Andrew of sexually abusing Victoria Roberts Giuffre when she was a teenager were served in the United States.
Andrew has been in hiding at Balmoral for the past three weeks, and was spotted smiling and waving as he finally exited the compound. It's worth noting Beatrice held back on publicly revealing her daughter's name until Sienna's grandfather could meet her. A source admitted, "It is quite something that he had to wait almost two weeks before he met her." They added tellingly, "He is very much aware Beatrice's special moment was ruined by the accusations against him." Andrew's next hearing is scheduled for November 3, 2021 in New York. He continues to protest his innocence even claiming, according to People, that he'd never actually met Roberts Giuffre.