The Royal Lodge Drama Isn’t Going to End Well for Prince Andrew, Author Says: ‘Pretty Much Doomed’
Prince Andrew is, a royal author says, fighting a losing battle to stay at the Royal Lodge. The Duke of York is “pretty much doomed” to lose his longtime home in Windsor, England, as his brother, King Charles III, wants to do something more “cost-effective” with the property.
There’s ‘no real need’ for Andrew to stay at the Royal Lodge
After reports the king stopped funding security for the Royal Lodge, royal biographer Robert Jobson told Australia’s Sunrise morning show the conflict appears to be inching closer and closer to a defeat for Andrew.
“The reality is, it sounds little, doesn’t it? The ‘Royal Lodge,’” he said (via Newsweek). “But it’s a palatial place with masses of bedrooms.”
The former home of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother has 30 rooms. Andrew signed a 75-year lease in 2002 in exchange for footing the bill for nearly $10 million in renovations and another $1.3 million in payments to the Crown Estate.
Currently, it’s home to Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson. “So there’s no real need for Andrew, he’s not a working royal anymore, to have this place.”
He ‘can’t really afford’ the Royal Lodge, King Charles wants a more ‘cost-effective’ option
“Charles has been trying to get him out for some time,” Jobson continued. “He got a great big long lease from the late queen and has been holding that over his brother’s head. But the truth is, he can’t really afford to live there.”
“The roof’s falling in. And the king reckons, I suppose, that if he can get his brother out, he can actually rent the place out to some billionaire. Or somebody else that would actually bring in a lot of money to the royal coffers. So, I think that Andrew’s pretty much doomed, and he’s probably going to have to get out of there.”
“[The king] is trying to make the properties owned by the monarchy a little bit more cost-effective, and this would be one way of doing it,” he added.
So where might Andrew land? Alternatives include smaller royal residences. Among them are reportedly Frogmore Cottage, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s former U.K. home, something Andrew’s said to be “against.”
Another option King Charles has offered up to his brother is, per The Mirror, Queen Elizabeth II’s seven-bedroom Craigowan Cottage on the Balmoral estate in Scotland.
Then there’s the matter of security, which could very well be a key factor. “It’s been a bit of a standoff but his security team getting…if that’s been taken away, it leaves Andrew in a bit of a invidious position,” Jobson said, referring to Frogmore Cottage being covered by Windsor Castle’s existing police protection.
Edward and Sophie may take over the Royal Lodge
Prince Edward and Sophie, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, may soon become the Royal Lodge’s new tenants. Edward, 60, is the youngest of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phlip’s four children. He could reportedly receive the property as a gift.
Royal expert Richard Kay told the Daily Mail it’s an idea the king’s considered as a way to thank the couple for stepping up in the wake of his and Kate Middleton’s cancer diagnoses. But for now, it’s just a “thought.”
“Charles has entertained the thought of offering Royal Lodge to his youngest brother, Prince Edward,” Kay said. “The two haven’t always seen eye-to-eye. But the king has been hugely impressed by the manner in which Edward and his wife, Sophie, have increased their workload since their elevation to Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.”
“The couple have filled in the many gaps created by the absence of both Kate and himself while they underwent cancer treatment,” he added.
