For years, everyone has been talking about Royal Lodge, the current residence of Prince Andrew and his ex-wife. Following Andrew’s catastrophic BBC interview in 2019, there were some calls for Andrew to “give up” his lease on Royal Lodge, a massive mansion within the Royal Windsor estate. Andrew refused. Then he settled out-of-court with Virginia Giuffre last year, and once again, there were calls for Andrew to be evicted from Royal Lodge. He refused. Then King Charles tried to evict him this year, suggesting that Andrew be shunted into Frogmore Cottage (after the king evicted the Sussexes). Andrew refused again, and this time he basically said: I have a valid lease and I’ll sue the king if he really evicts me. Throughout it all, there’s been gossip that Prince William and Kate are desperate to get Royal Lodge, and that William has been the one leading the charge to evict his uncle. That’s the backstory explored in the Telegraph’s “Royal Lodge has become Ground Zero in the war of the Windsors.” Some interesting highlights, plus some new info:
Andrew’s original deal in 2002: When Prince Andrew decided he wanted to move his family into Royal Lodge – and sell the home near Ascot he and the Duchess of York had been given by the Queen as a wedding present – he cut a deal with the Crown Estate for a 75-year lease on the property. Instead of paying market rent, estimated at the time to be £260,000 a year, he would pay for extensive repairs to the property, which ended up costing more than £10m, as well as a £1m “premium payment” to the Estate. That contract with the Crown Estate is still in place, and gives Andrew the legal right to live at Royal Lodge until 2078. When he dies the remainder of the lease will pass to his daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie. Because the Crown Estate is run independently by its own commissioners, the King cannot, officially at least, interfere with his brother’s living arrangements.
Andrew cut another deal in 2022: Andrew reluctantly agreed to settle the [Virginia Giuffre] case out of court, handing Ms Giuffre a reported £12 million which was widely accepted to have been paid by the Queen, and forever losing what was left of his reputation as a result. His price for agreeing to settle the case was to be allowed to stay at Royal Lodge, it is understood. That is still not the end of the story, though. Under the terms of his lease, the Duke is responsible for the upkeep of Royal Lodge, meaning he can only stay there as long as he has the means to keep it in good order. As well as the main seven-bedroomed house, the property has eight smaller cottages and police accommodation, making it eye-wateringly expensive to maintain.
Andrew’s shady finances: He has little income, as the King cut the Duke’s £249,000 annual allowance, in keeping with the end of his status as a working member of the Royal family, which might eventually starve him out….On top of that, the Duke is believed to have inherited money from the late Queen, and it is unclear what happened to the proceeds of the sale of the couple’s former marital home to a Kazakh tycoon and a ski lodge in Verbier. The likelihood seems to be that the couple will, eventually, run out of the sort of money needed to live in such a grand property, possibly moving into the smaller Frogmore Cottage.
Andrew is digging in: “Andrew has been digging in,” says one royal insider. “But it’s not really true to say the King is trying to kick him out. He will have outsourced it to his team. He will be setting them the challenge of rationalising the properties. That will have been the brief that will have gone out to his team….They have a very necessary and well-honed ability to separate out even the most contentious topics away from their time together as a family,” said the insider, “and that is a survival technique for them as a family and it has been very successful.”
Whether William & Kate actually want Royal Lodge: Reports that the Prince and Princess of Wales want to move into Royal Lodge appear to be wide of the mark. Sources close to them insist that they remain happy living at Adelaide Cottage, their relatively modest family home in the shadow of Windsor Castle’s Round Tower, and have no plans to move into Royal Lodge or Windsor Castle itself. Unlike Royal Lodge, which is three miles from the Castle, Adelaide Cottage falls within the security envelope of the Castle itself (despite being outside its walls), making the couple’s policing arrangements far more straightforward than if they lived at Prince Andrew’s current home.
So if Andrew leaves, who would even lease Royal Lodge? And unless the Waleses want to move into it, finding another suitable tenant for Royal Lodge will be difficult for the Crown Estate. Within its grounds is the Royal Chapel of All Saints, otherwise known as Queen Victoria’s Chapel, which is often used by the Royal family. Having a non-Royal tenant of the Lodge would provide the sort of security headache that the police are unlikely to welcome, a fact that the Duke will be well aware of. “The King is pretty pragmatic,” said one who knows him well. “He knows his brother has got to have somewhere to live and he loves his brother, so he was never going to chuck him out on his ear.”
Basically, nothing is going to change and all of these people are just performing their roles in this entirely fictional drama – Andrew has a completely valid lease which he will never give up; Charles wants to look like he’s punishing his human trafficker brother without actually having to do anything; William wants a big royal property but he’s obviously got his sights set on something else. The only person who is unhappy with this little five-act drama is probably the Princess of Wales, stuck in that sad Separation Cottage while her husband lives wherever he wants now that he has Duchy money. I wish someone would start talking about Will and Kate’s living arrangements rather than rake over this Royal Lodge mess.
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Prince and Princess Doolittle even as the next whatever, don’t have the clout. Simply because Andy knows where the bodies are buried. It’s in his interest to hold it over tampon. but it’s in Willy’s to stfu. For future, he’s pretty much a, lame duck
Hole in one from another ancient mariner. Y’know the press boys just happened by as Baldy and Buttons were sitting in bliss on a bale of hay in one of their fields as they do most days after cooking their breakfast and washing up. “Just thinking how lucky we are to have our four bedroomed cosy Adelaide cottage for the five of us instead of that sumptuous 30-roomed Royal Lodge with all those staff cottages in the grounds. Just SOOOO happy to stay where we are”.
Do the Brit. press really think people are deluded enough to suck up this trash?
This story is now beyond tedious. As Kaiser says, can we cut to the chase and talk about the lie of ‘living at Adelaide Cottage’.
Agreed. We get it, Pedo has massive amounts of dirt on his brother. How about talking about the real elephant in the room?
Methinks they dothst protest too much. How many times are they going to insist that the Waleses are fine with Adelaide?
It does sound like protesting too much that it’s fine. In this article anyways. There was another article in the past few weeks in which “it was reported” that they found AC too cramped. So yeah it’s one or the other.
Push me, pull you.
On this episode of All My Royal Cult Relatives: all is status quo. Andrew will remain in Royal Lodge but must pay for upkeep. He probably did receive a nice chunk of money when mummy died but when will that run out? Peg and Can’t aren’t living together but want us to believe they are and that they don’t want Royal Lodge. Who knows where the sexy hunk of a statesman wants to live. Finally Chuckles is leaving it to the grey men to deal with his pedo brother so he doesn’t have to get his fat sausage fingers dirty. Stay tuned to another dull episode.
Yep. Snooze.
The press can’t talk about Kate and William’s living arrangements that’s why they keep raking over this Royal Lodge story.
Yup. I think they keep bringing this up because they desperately WANT to write about W&K living arrangements but can’t.
It’s interesting to me that the public doesn’t have any objections to the huge chunks of money spent by the RF. These are people who have never had a job (unless you count royaling as work). All their money has to have origins (at least at some point) in the public purse or shady sources.
And all this alleged housing trauma is many degrees different from what non-royal British folks experience. Now, that’s a housing crisis.
Hmmm, I keep thinking that this is Peggy wanting a big bachelor pad on the estate where the kids are with him mostly – they can visit Mummy in her little cottage on the estate whenever they like.
Mumbles is staying at AC regardless of whether William gets Royal Lodge or any other royal property.
Also I wonder if Ma has been spotted in Windsor? Given the ‘malicious poster campaign’ in Bucklebury am sure she’s hiding out in Windsor helping Mumbles with the kids as lets face it Peggy ain’t living there.
That cottage has to be a tight fit for everyone if Ma Middleton is staying with them! Of course, maybe they don’t want to reveal that, so they can’t officially go looking for the in-law quarters that Royal Lodge probably has in abundance.
If Charles has control of the inner royal security perimeter? No, Carol(E) is not allowed inside it for extended periods – if at all. That’s also why W&K won’t get space at Windsor Castle, because Charles will not allow Carol(E) to have that kind of access. William might have his solo apartment in Windsor Castle.
I think the RRs ARE talking about W&K’s living arrangements by talking about Royal Lodge so much. If no one is waiting in the wings to move into Royal Lodge, then why would there be such a fuss about it? Why are we hearing so much about it?
I think a few things could be going on:
1) the press is talking about Royal Lodge in relation to the Waleses so that people draw the parallels between Fergie and Andrew (divorced but able to live together at Royal Lodge since its so large) and William and Kate;
2) the press WANTS people to ask “well who would move into Royal Lodge if Andrew moves out?” and the answer is William.
3) someone is decidedly NOT happy that they were given Adelaide (cough Kate cough) and is still desperately making a play for Royal Lodge.
If you believe that william, the greatest stateman ever with illusions of grandeur lives in AC, I have a very nice bridge to sell you..
He’s living in Windsor Castle. The people who believe that he lives in Frogmore Cottage are equally deluded.
I think he stays primarily at KP. We’ve heard that the helicopter goes back and forth every night, and I think there’s a reason they kept that enormous “apartment” at KP when they officially moved to adelaide.
Just call me deluded then😂 cuz I saw it as a possibility.
I think once Harry was out – William went in there with a hammer or ax and destroyed the place. He’s so full of rage and hate no way he let the beautiful home where H&M had some not terrible memories survive.
I think he’s based in Norfolk at Sandringham (with regular visits to Windsor). We know Mumbles has been staying at Amner Hall but that’s likely part of the co parenting deal – time is split between Windsor and Norfolk. For the most part she’s based in Windsor with the kids.
AC is her divorce home and at the moment she’s getting to use the other Royal houses they have – in a divorce that will likely change.
Where’s the commenter who hears the helicopters near KP? Is it literally every night?
Can’t remember what the commenter’s name is but it’s someone who lives close to KP. She said the heli takes off almost every morning and lands almost every evening. So much for the environmentally conscious global statesman.
There has to be someone whose dedicated job is scrubbing social media of videos of Willnot’s helicopter coming and going from KP. I have seen video on Twitter, but I’ll be damned if I can find one now.
As much as I loathe Andrew the whole RL debacle does make me chuckle. A king and his heir are once again thwarted by a ‘spare’. 😆 😆 😆
So Windsor lodge has eight smaller cottages on it ALL housing staff??! Because I don’t understand why Eugenie and Beatrice can’t stay there instead of Frogmore.
1- they don’t want to be that close to their dad
2- this is Andrew. Those things have probably deteriorated into soggy house shaped lumps.
It sounds like everyone gets their very own house, how grand. Maybe they’re saving Frogmore cottage for George, he’ll be a teenager in a few years. This makes Peg look like an a$$hole for trying to solve homelessness.
The Global Statesman wants Fergie to know it is not him trying to squeeze Andrew out (at least presently; he was totally trying to push him out over a year ago) because he’s afraid she will go to America, she will have a hit talk show, and she will talk openly about trying to keep their home. And America already is dicey what with Harry’s truth bombs and Meghan’s quiet luxury. Even if the odds of Fergie breaking out are low, another on-the-record article by his lapdog rota reporters can’t hurt.
I wonder if Kate’s wardrobe is stuck at KP or Anmer, where she’s now not allowed to go, and that’s why we are suddenly only seeing pantsuits. I mean, this lady isn’t Hillary Clinton. The sudden pantsuit-only wardrobe is really weird to me.
She has wardrobes at every location, and assuredly has one stored in the adjacent service quarters next to AC. Girl does not travel with an overnight bag and makeup in her purse.
Aren’t they tired of living a constant lie? It’s clearly eating away at the pair of them, so why not just come clean? It’s been obvious for a while that AC is Keen’s separation home, with access to Anmer during co-parenting hours. I think Baldy splits his time between KP & Norfolk. Local residents complaining about his helicopter coming and going everyday was a dead giveaway. They need to drop this phoney act once and for all. It’s cringeworthy.
So the king is pragmatic about his brother, “He knows his brother has got to have somewhere to live and he loves his brother, so he was never going to chuck him out on his ear,” but when it comes to his dear boy, Harry, whom he pledges to love as part of his PR campaign, he has no problem chucking him out on his ear. SMDH
THAT is what stood out for me too. That more than anything else.
Just Jesus people. Read the fucking commonwealth.
I think the new details included here are really telling. It reads to me like either (1) planted Andrew-positive talking points because they reached a deal and this was part of his terms, or (2) someone sucking up to Andrew directly by appealing to his ego and then tiptoeing into practicality over reno costs. First, they make a point to launder Andrew’s reputation by once again saying that he didn’t want to settle, he was forced to, and then essentially saying ‘he’s fully entitled to Royal Lodge, but since he agreed to this *totally unfair* settlement and can’t make money anymore, he won’t be able to afford the maintenance for much longer.’ See, he’s not being evicted like that evil H & M, he’s agreeing to leave because he’s So PrAcTiCaL. What a team player!’
It also seems to lay the groundwork for talking points about the difference in security needs for Andrew and those of the Wales family including two future kings. They’ll say that surely Andrew’s modest security needs are a better fit for the Windsor-included security of Adelaide rather than the more private Royal Lodge.
I really wonder if all of this stalling and will-they-wont-they with RL is because they’ve actually been working on those needed renovations since the story was first floated and have just been stalling all this time until it’s done and they can move in (whether it be the whole family or just Will and heaven knows who).
Miss Kate is a beautiful woman. But the photos of her the past month or so are not good. And her wardrobe is just off. She has a nice athletic shape. But her clothes are not matching her shape. It gives her an exaggerated too long and gangly stretched appearance. Her torso seems just to look awkwardly long along with her neck and arms, that was not something I noticed in the past. I wish she would hire a stylist. If she has one, they should be banished.
Someone here once said “white British women age like spoilt milk “
(gotta feel for her on that one point)
Edited to add: of course looking at Andrew above I guess that includes the men… it’s an appealing character shining through that can make the difference
They age like milk is the saying.
He knows his brother has got to have somewhere to live and he loves his brother, so he was never going to chuck him out on his ear.”
Too bad he didn’t feel the same way about his son.
This is the comment I was looking for.
Word.
Yes to many of the points raised above and I’m going to zero in on this excellent piece of writing:
‘ it is unclear what happened to the proceeds of the sale of the couple’s former marital home to a Kazakh tycoon and a ski lodge in Verbier.’
They sold their marital home (in part) to a ski lodge?
That was poorly written.
Andrew sold the remains of Sunninghill Park to a Kazakh tycoon.
Andrew and Sarah later purchased a ski lodge in Switzerland. With what money, esp with Fergie’s creditors at the gates, is unknown. When they sold it, after failing to pay half of what they owed to the previous seller? Fergie’s creditors again wanted to know where the money went.
Fergie’s ex, Paddy McNally, may have funded some of that Swiss home.
In that top photo, Kate — in that terrible dress — looks like she’s waiting for a horse-drawn wagon to pick her up from her Plum Creek log cabin.
That couple clearly radiates hostility; there’s no way they’re living in close quarters.
That terrible dress is by (or inspired by) a racist, homophobic, pro-putin russian designer that she wore a few months after the invasion. I can’t remember if KP tried to cover it up. She is the dumbest woman alive.
“They have a very necessary and well-honed ability to separate out even the most contentious topics away from their time together as a family,” said the insider, “and that is a survival technique for them as a family and it has been very successful.”” Is that some kind of a joke? That certainly is not the case when it comes to Harry and Meghan.
Weirdly enough , these costumey kind of dresses with hats suit her ..takes the attention away from her stick figure and though dated, it sort of goes with her role as a successor to Queen mum and the like . Also at least it’s not a desperate copy of Meghan ..she cannot compete there because the contrast is too stark.
The dress is awful!
How is someone simultaneously thin and facially bloated? I realize this is an older pic, but my gaia, such a stark difference in this mid covid photo to now. Ultherapy? Face lift?
It’s alcohol that causes that kind of bloated puffy face. Unmistakeable
William is for sure happy that Kate is living at Adelaide while he lives at KP with whomever he likes.