Rumors have been swirling for years that Prince Andrew is the favorite child of Queen Elizabeth, but one royal expert is saying that this is actually not the case. Instead, royal author Matthew Dennison says that another one of the Queen’s four children’s long been her favorite.

The Express reported that in his lengthy biography of the 95 year-old monarch called “The Queen,” Dennison argues that her youngest child Prince Edward is her favorite.

“Prince Edward, seemingly a bit wet and a tad irritating to the rest of us, was always his parents’ favorite,” Sennison said. “That became apparent in 1987 when Edward, aged 22, opted out of the Royal Marines when he was just a third of the way through his 12-month basic training course.”

“To the surprise of some, Prince Philip (Captain-General of the Royal Marines) did not come down on his son like a ton of bricks,” he continued. “He accepted that the Marines ‘wasn’t right for Edward’ – and to this day Edward is grateful for that.”

Royal expert Ingrid Seward agreed that Philip was very understanding of why his youngest son quit the Marines.

“Given his action-man image and his well-earned reputation for irascibility, many people assumed he was outraged,” she said. “Stories soon spread that harsh words had been exchanged between father and son; even that Edward had been reduced to tears by his father’s anger.”

“The truth was quite the opposite: of all the Royal Family, Philip was in fact the most sympathetic,” Seward added. “He understood his son’s decision, which he considered a brave one, and supported him fully.”

Other royal experts, however, have long believed Andrew to be the Queen’s favorite.

“Andrew was straightforward and the more glass-half-full of the pair,” said royal expert Camilla Tominey. “Although he could be a bit of a handful, the Queen enjoyed the company of the easy-going son who could make her laugh and raise the family’s spirits.”

Paul Burrell, Princess Diana’s former butler, also believes that Andrew is the Queen’s favorite.

“Andrew has always been the Queen’s favorite son and he has never done anything wrong in her eyes,” he said.

Fans of “The Crown” will know that the Netflix series portrayed Andrew as the Queen’s favorite during an episode of season 4. In the end, the public may never get confirmation as to who the Queen’s true favorite child really is.