Until Thursday morning, it had been nearly four centuries since the arrest of a senior British royal.
On his 66th birthday, the late Queen Elizabeth II¡¯s favorite son was detained on suspicion of misconduct in public office. By evening, the former prince was released from police custody. But the ongoing investigation will unpick years of lurid allegations about Andrew¡¯s ties to the disgraced U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein that have heaped embarrassment on his brother, King Charles III.
The arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is a fresh nadir for the U.K.¡¯s most powerful family, as it tries to outrun a litany of setbacks and adapt to the 21st century.
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