The Royal Family Has Made Some Controversial Decisions

Anyone who's in the public eye — especially the British royal family — has to consider how their decisions affect their image. While some missteps, like when Prince William fell asleep in church or pretty much anytime a member of the House of Windsor experienced a wardrobe malfunction, simply made us laugh, others have led to more serious controversies. 

Surprisingly, the royals have continued to make terrible choices that land them in hot water. In many cases, they seemed to think they made the right call ... only to get raked over the coals in the court of public opinion. It's a bit puzzling to watch, especially since they're obviously aware they're making said decisions while living in a fishbowl.

Here's a look back at some of the most controversial decisions some members of the royal family have made over the years. From youthful mistakes to serious lapses in judgement, it just goes to show that these Brits don't all live up to their royal titles 24/7. And we can't help but wonder, what were they thinking?

Prince Harry has never been a stranger to controversy, especially back in his younger days. Probably one of his toughest lessons came in 2005 after he dressed as a Nazi for a friend's costume party (as if that wouldn't end up in the tabloids by morning?). Sure enough, a candid shot of the ginger prince holding a drink and a cigarette while wearing a swastika armband was published on the cover of The Sun, with the headline "Harry the Nazi" (via BBC News). 

The photo sparked outrage from various British Jewish groups, including The Board of Deputies of British Jews, who stated to BBC News: "It was clearly in bad taste, especially in the run-up to holocaust memorial day on the 27th of this month, which the Royal Family will be taking a leading role in commemorating."

Prince Harry issued a statement after the incident, saying, "I am very sorry if I caused any offense or embarrassment to anyone. It was a poor choice of costume and I apologize" (via CNN). The apology seemed to satisfy some, like Rabbi Jonathan Romain, a spokesperson for the Reform Synagogues of Great Britain, who said: "Having being given, the apology should now be accepted." Still, others called for the prince to pay a visit to Auschwitz to really understand the history behind the Nazi symbol. While the palace said it was considering the invites, the royals made no plans for a trip.

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right? Well, not always. Back in 2012, Prince Harry took a trip to Las Vegas that unfortunately nobody will ever forget, thanks to scandalous photos obtained by TMZ. According to the tabloid, the prince reportedly invited some women he'd met at a hotel bar up to his suite, and played a game of strip billiards ... only to be caught on camera naked by paparazzi. Of course, TMZ immediately hit up the palace for a reaction to Prince Harry's "bare a** naked" photos, but simply got a terse "no comment" response.

Prince Harry himself, however, owned up to his responsibility for the incident and publicly expressed regret. "At the end of the day I probably let myself down, I let my family down, I let other people down," he said (via The Telegraph). "It was probably a classic example of me probably being too much army, and not enough prince. It's a simple case of that. But I was in a private area and there should be a certain amount of privacy that one should expect."

To settle the privacy issue, the royal family put legal pressure on UK press to not publish the photos, on the grounds that they were not only an invasion of privacy, but a breach of ethical code, according to The Sun — which was the only UK news outlet to publish them anyway.

In the early '80s — before he married Sarah Ferguson — a 22-year-old Prince Andrew started dating actress Kathleen "Koo" Stark. According to People, they met at a disco and then started quietly seeing each other. Later, a journalist reported spotting them together on a plane, pushing their previously unpublicized relationship into the spotlight.

It was quickly revealed that Stark once did an erotic shower scene in a film called Emily. Still photos from the movie scene were published at the same time some speculated that she had already met the royal family. In response, the royals issued this brief, tight-lipped statement: "We do not know if the Queen was aware of the girl's acting career before she was invited to Balmoral."

In 2015, Stark wrote in the Mail on Sunday that she was improperly labeled as a "soft porn actress" at the time. "It's as if this hijacking of my identity has overtaken the truth of who I was and who I am," she continued. Stark also asserted that Emily was made by "[members] of the actors' union Equity and therefore, in those days, not part of the 'adult film' industry." She added that the later scandal surrounding Prince Andrew's association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was also unfair, writing, "I highlight my misfortune to explain that this media 'sexploitation' is what I see happening to Prince Andrew. It's why I feel it is time to speak out."

After receiving a reported settlement of $462,000 plus $20,000 a year after divorcing Prince Andrew in 1996, Sarah Ferguson later allegedly claimed that she "hadn't got a pot to piss in." Maybe that's what led her to reportedly meet with a man later described as a "fake sheikh" to strike a deal. The supposed foreign businessman, however, was really undercover Mazher Mahmood for News of the World — and Ferguson was allegedly caught on video offering him access to Prince Andrew in exchange for the rough equivalent of one million dollars in cash.

Needless to say, the conversation brought shame to the royal family and prompted a public apology from Ferguson, who stated to The Guardian: "I very deeply regret the situation and the embarrassment caused. It is true that my financial situation is under stress however, that is no excuse for a serious lapse in judgment and I am very sorry that this has happened. I can confirm that The Duke of York was not aware or involved in any of the discussions that occurred."

Once Princess Diana announced her impending divorce from Prince Charles in 1996, the public definitely knew why: She had already given a no-holds-barred interview to Martin Bashir the previous year on the BBC's Panorama, confirming that, at least in her view, her husband had cheated on her. In one surprising moment, when asked if Camilla Parker Bowles was part of the reason for her divorce, the princess responded, "Well there were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded." 

The accusation was believable, largely because a private phone conversation between Prince Charles and Parker Bowles was released a month after his separation from the People's Princess in 1993. Recorded in 1989, the tape allegedly revealed their secret relationship — and the content was all kinds of inappropriate. 

Prince Charles also partially admitted to the indiscretion in a 1994 TV documentary interview (via The New York Times). When asked whether he was "faithful and honorable" to his wife during their marriage, he said, "Yes. Until it became irretrievably broken down, us both having tried." He later married Parker Bowles in 2005. His new wife was given the title Duchess of Cornwall, leaving the late Diana to remain the only Princess of Wales.

One of the biggest royal controversies in recent years has been the fallout from Prince Andrew's past association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Although Epstein, who was found dead in his jail cell in 2019, was first accused of sexual abuse of a minor in 2005, the Duke of York invited the financier to his daughter's 18th birthday party the following year. Even after Epstein was convicted of soliciting prostitution in 2008, the prince, who was reportedly warned by friends to stop associating with Epstein, stayed at his New York mansion and was photographed taking a Central Park stroll with him two years later.

When asked about his decision to continue these ties in a 2019 BBC interview, Prince Andrew claimed he "wasn't aware" of the original 2005 allegations at the time of his daughter's birthday party. Meanwhile, those 2010 photos were apparently taken when the prince was dissolving their friendship. However, he admittedly went on to stay at Epstein's residence because "it was a convenient place to stay." Prince Andrew also denied ever meeting Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre (née Roberts), who previously claimed she was "forced to have sex with the prince on three occasions" at the age of 17 and produced a photograph of them together. 

Prince Andrew was widely criticized following the "excruciating" interview. With public opinion turning negative and companies and universities cutting ties with the duke, he decided to resign from his royal duties in November 2019.