I think that part of this trend is just the way societies are developing in general. It's now more than a generation since World War 2, and not many people still alive remember the importance of duty to a greater cause that was prevalent back then. Now we have a different sort of culture, where the individual is more important, where the focus is on the present and the near future rather than the longer term, and where the value of things tends to be seen in terms of money and materialism rather than abstract concepts. That always seemed to be more of the attitude of the jet set and the nouveau riche rather than the sort of shabby grandeur of the aristocracy and royalty, who were seen more as stewards of their heritage than as anything in their own right. With rising prosperity in much of the developed world, more people can aspire to at least some aspects of the nouveau riche lifestyle, and these attitudes seem to have permeated some of the royal families too, at least in the younger generation.
There's always been resentment against royals who have seemed to be happy to grab the materialistic advantages of their position but aren't being seen to be giving much back - I think Princess Margaret, rightly or wrongly, was a case in point - and if that's going to be the norm rather than the exception in the future, where the royals are resented rather than admired, I think we could well be in for some trouble. Which would be a shame, because I think constitutional monarchy is a good form of government.
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