King Charles III will not leave his brother Prince Andrew “homeless”, a royal source has been quoted as saying, amid reports that the duke fears being forced out of the Royal Lodge in Windsor.
Andrew, 63, has reportedly been telling friends that he might have to move out of the 98-acre estate by September if the King cuts his royal allowance, a move that would leave him struggling to cover the cost of maintenance.
The Duke of York is expected to have his £249,000 annual allowance cut from April, which he has been relying on since standing down as a working member of the royal family in 2019.
Several members of the royal family have been told to expect less money from the private Duchy of Lancaster fund, which was overseen by Queen Elizabeth II before her death in September last year.
However “the King is not going to leave his brother homeless or penniless”, the Telegraph quoted a royal source as saying.
The duke bought a 75-year lease on the Royal Lodge, formerly the home of the Queen Mother, for £1m after she died in 2002. Since then he has spent about £7.5m repairing and renovating the property.
He reportedly pays to live in the 30-room house under a lease equivalent to £250 a week with his former wife Sarah.
Andrew’s only other income is a pension that he receives from the Royal Navy. He also received an inheritance from the late Queen and his father Prince Philip.
The Daily Mail first reported that Andrew’s place at the Royal Lodge was in jeopardy, with a source telling the newspaper: “He’s not being explicitly kicked out but it’s expected that he won’t be able to afford the maintenance.”
“Royal Lodge has a swimming pool, 98 acres of land and is already in need of some repair,” another source told the daily. “This is about Charles telling Andrew that he can use his own money to pay for things. The same goes for other members of the family, such as Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.
“And while there is leniency with working members of the family, who have offices funded by the Sovereign Grant, there have been other examples.
“Sophie and Edward’s daughter Lady Louise, for example, inherited Prince Philip’s carriage but Charles doesn’t feel like he should pay for the upkeep of the ponies to pull the carriage.”
The King, reports suggest, is mindful of the fact that his brother was already given a house – Sunninghill Park in Berkshire – as a wedding present by the Queen, which he chose to sell to a Kazakh billionaire for £15m in 2007.
The King also bears the “expense” of Andrew’s private security since his Met police armed guards were removed.
And the duke’s legal costs in his high-profile sexual abuse case were also reportedly privately funded by the late Queen to the tune of millions of pounds, as well as part of the eventual settlement. Andrew paid his accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre more than £12m in an out-of-court settlement last year.
