From Duke to Property Pest: Prince Andrew Is 'Letting Royal Lodge Rot' Amid Fierce Clash With King Charles Over Once Grand Mansion
Prince Andrew is so determined to emerge victorious in his feud over the Royal Lodge with King Charles, that the disgraced Duke is "letting" the property "rot" in the process.
"He is letting this place — it has 30-odd bedrooms, and he is letting it go to ruin," commentator and actress Lizzie Cundy told Nana Akua of GBN. "The conditions attached to the lease are that you have to paint it every five years and so on, he hasn’t done that."
"Even if there is a lease you have, he is not reaching the requirements," she added. "Royal Lodge is going to rot. If you look from the outside, it’s all chipped. Paint from the bricks is falling off, and it costs 400,000 pounds for the year for the upkeep. It's a lot of money. Andrew is out of favor and it cannot work. He really is in trouble, but he will not leave."
The King, who is reportedly on a mission to make Britain's royal residences "green friendly," feels that his younger brother's "living it up" at the Royal Lodge is a "waste of resources."
"I feel Andrew is so entitled and is so stubborn," royal commentator Kinsey Schofield told an outlet. "Everyone is speculating the Duke will have to leave the royal lodge because what other reason could there be to take his security away, it is not a secret that the king wants him out."
She then pointedly added, "I just think the King is trying to slim down his resources as Andrew is a waste of resources right now."
This follows earlier reports suggesting His Majesty has apparently "solved" his "black sheep problem" by addressing both Prince Harry and the Duke of York in one royal command.
"For King Charles, forcing Andrew to move to Frogmore solves several problems at once — it sends a message to Harry that, as a private citizen and no longer a working royal, he will never be allowed back to Frogmore," royal author Tom Quinn dished in June.
"It sends [a] message to Andrew that having disgraced himself, he can no longer expect to live in the grand style," he added. "And, finally, it means that a suitably grand residence can be made ready for the royals who really matter, William and Kate. Charles is determined that Royal Lodge is the only residence on the royal estate at Windsor that is big enough and regal enough for his heir."
When King Charles acceded to the British throne upon the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, 2022, the new monarch was determined at that time to "downsize the Crown." In addition to cost-cutting measures at his multiple royal residences, the King also saw "a way to make himself appear as if he is scolding the wicked Andrew," a palace insider shared.