Britain's royals face their worst crisis in 90 years over Andrew's Epstein links

Highlights:

• Former prince was arrested on Thursday
• Police investigating misconduct in public office
• Royals face worst crisis since a former king's abdication

King Charles woke up on Friday to pictures of his younger brother leaving a police station emblazoned across front pages of newspapers around the world, heralding the worst crisis for the British monarchy in 90 years.

The arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on suspicion of misconduct in a public office, and the public humiliation over his relationship with the late convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, has left some wondering if the saga could spell the beginning of the end for the 1,000-year-old institution.

Graham Smith, the head of the campaign group Republic which filed complaints with the police over the former prince and Epstein to trigger the investigation, used the arrest to repeat his demand for the institution to go.

"I think it's incredibly bad for the monarchy," he said.

Mountbatten-Windsor has denied any wrongdoing with regard to Epstein and said he regrets their friendship.

Scandals and crises

The House of Windsor is no stranger to scandals, embarrassments and calamities.

From the divorce and death of Charles' first wife Princess Diana in 1997, which caused widespread public anger, to the upheavals caused by the king's younger son Prince Harry and his wife Meghan stepping down from their roles and then criticising the institution from the US, the family has been at the centre of high-profile dramas before.

But the current situation of a senior royal under investigation and police arrest is without precedent, and leaves the monarchy facing its greatest threat since Charles' great-uncle, King Edward VIII, gave up the throne to marry US divorcee Wallis Simpson in 1936.

"It's certainly the worst crisis since the abdication, and it's particularly bad because it's not a crisis over which they can really exercise any control," said one former senior royal aide who knows the king well.

"They have been sort of predominantly on the back foot throughout because they've had to react to information emerging, and they still don't know what else is in the files," the aide told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Former prince already stripped of titles

The key question for Charles, William and their courtiers is whether the scandal around Andrew does lasting wider damage or just reinforces the already negative view most people had of Mountbatten-Windsor himself.

The royals have already banished the former prince as much as they can, stripping him of all his titles, his mansion and any public involvement with the family.

The king, who is still undergoing treatment for an unspecified cancer, and Queen Camilla have said their thoughts and sympathies are with the victims of any abuse. William and his wife Kate have said they are "deeply concerned" by the revelations in the Epstein files.

The king's blunt public statement following his brother's arrest - "Let me state clearly: the law must take its course" - was a clear attempt to go still further.

"The institution has taken every step that it can to distance itself from him and his actions," Julian Payne, Charles' former communications chief, told Reuters.

"The hope is that by doing so, they can create some clear blue water between the working members of the family and what they exist to do on behalf of the UK and the other countries around the world where he is king, and this person and the actions that they are responsible for answering."

Royals still popular

The most recent popularity tracker by pollster YouGov in January, before the release of millions of files relating to Epstein by the US government which heralded the British police investigation, showed only 3% of Britons viewed the king's younger brother favourably. Some 90% held a negative opinion.

But the rest of the family and the monarchy itself are held in much higher esteem. William is viewed positively by 77% of the public and the king by 60%, the tracker showed.

The monarchy itself, while not as popular as it was and struggling to maintain the support of younger people, is still backed by a comfortable majority.

"It's challenging and it doesn't reflect well on the family as a whole, but I think they'll survive," Jeremy Paul, 59, an accountant, told Reuters on his way to work on Friday.

Republic's Smith said it would be "'game over' for the royals" if a police investigation revealed anything that suggested Charles or his eldest son and heir Prince William had known more about Mountbatten-Windsor's close ties to Epstein, and failed to act.

There is no suggestion, so far, that that is the case.

Allegations relate to Andrew's trade envoy role

While the royals will be fearful of what more might emerge from the Epstein files, nothing is likely to implicate the key figures of Charles and William, the former aide said.

Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office over allegations he sent confidential government documents to the disgraced financier Epstein when he was a trade envoy.

Charles had cautioned against his younger brother being given the trade job over which he is now being investigated, while William does not have any time for his uncle, the former aide said.

"It's not existential ... I don't think it'll bring the monarchy down, I know quite a few people are thinking about that," the aide said.

"I think it'll do significant harm that will be quite lasting. But I think in the king and in the Prince of Wales, the right people are there to maintain and restore sufficient trust and respect."