‘Bitter’ Feud Between King Charles and Prince Andrew Has Reportedly Reached William and Harry Levels
Prince Harry and Prince William’s rift isn’t the only one plaguing the British royal family. There’s another one brewing between their father, King Charles III, and uncle, Prince Andrew. Things are now reportedly so “bitter,” the king and Duke of York’s feud rivals that of the Duke of Sussex and Prince of Wales.
Charles and Andrew’s relationship is ‘fraught’ because of Royal Lodge dispute
While Harry and William’s rift has many layers—competitiveness, the royal family’s treatment of Meghan Markle, and leaving royal life, just to name a few—the drama between King Charles and Andrew appears to be much simpler.
It centers largely around the Royal Lodge, Andrew’s longtime home in Windsor, England. Andrew’s lived there since leasing the property in the early 2000s. His ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, also calls the Royal Lodge home.
Andrew must maintain the Royal Lodge in accordance with his lease. However, it’s fallen into disrepair in recent years.
The duke has had no formal income since becoming a non-working royal following a widely panned 2019 Newsnight interview. In it, he discussed sexual assault allegations and his friendship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Kate Mansey, The Times’ royal editor, likened King Charles and Andrew’s feud to Harry and William’s on “The Royals with Roya and Kate.”
“I think we think about Harry and William falling out. But this is very, very bitter now between Andrew and the king,” she said. “What’s so interesting is just how fraught the relations have got between the brothers.”
“Somebody said to me, a friend close to the king, said it can be done tidily. Or it can be done untidily. Getting rid of Andrew from [the]Royal Lodge can be done with grace and dignity. Or it can be forced upon him.”
“So this is sort of fighting talk because Charles is paying a lot of money to have him stay there—his security, his allowance.”
Previous reports claimed Andrew sees potentially moving to Frogmore Cottage, the former U.K. home of Harry and Meghan Markle, as a step down.
Tension between Andrew and the king goes back way before their Royal Lodge dispute
Similar to Harry and William, Andrew and the king have a lifetime’s worth of history. According to The Sun, tensions have always been there, bubbling beneath the surface. In part because Andrew’s often been described as Queen Elizabeth II’s “favorite child.”
Furthermore, it doesn’t help that they’re two very different people. “They seem to have gone on as complete opposites, really, in so many ways,” Richard Fitzwilliams, a royal expert, said.
“Of course, there’s a 12-year age gap between King Charles and Prince Andrew.” Furthermore, the two don’t have “that much in common.”
The 75-year-old monarch “is rather sort of intellectual, serious, [and] sensitive.” As for Andrew, Fitzwilliams described him as “rather bumptious” and “outgoing.”
Andrew promised he had the Royal Lodge under control, but it remains a big ‘concern’ for the king
Things with the Royal Lodge are seemingly far from settled. According to royal commentator Ingrid Seward, it’s still something King Charles worries about.
“The state of the residence will be of great concern to the King after everything that has gone on and been discussed in regards to the house,” the royal biographer said, per OK, noting Andrew was told he’d have to spearhead renovations or risk being evicted.
“There is no doubt the King will be alarmed at the true state of the residence after the duke assured him everything was in hand,” she added, noting King Charles does not “have any wish to finance him for the rest of his life.”
For now, the Royal Lodge remains Andrew’s home. Meanwhile, his youngest daughter, Princess Eugenie, 34, and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, were the most recent royals to stay at Frogmore Cottage.
