Jenni Mortimer looks back on her trip to London to provide coverage of the King's Coronation.
Video / NZ Herald
Visitors to Royal Lodge are often struck by its unexpectedly homely feel. Although a multi-million pound mansion in the heart of Windsor with no fewer than 30 rooms, the 17th century property has a large, formal drawing room, but the Duke of York and his ex-wife, Sarah, Duchess of York, spend most of their time in the kitchen and conservatory.
“If there’s such a thing as grand and homely, that’s what it is,” said a friend. “The Duchess has filled it with flowers and family photos; there are four dogs running around; there are play areas for the grandchildren in the corners of grand rooms. It is a family home – the hub – for all the Yorks.”
Little wonder, then, that Prince Andrew, 63, has “no plans to leave” his opulent pad of 20 years amid much talk of his “eviction” to nearby Frogmore Cottage after the King reportedly cut his brother’s annual allowance of £249,000 ($498,000).
At the weekend, it was suggested that the disgraced Duke “fears the royals may turn off the utilities to get him out,” with a source telling the Mail on Sunday that he is in low spirits and “refusing to budge” from the estate, which is understood to have been earmarked for the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children. “He is so fragile,” the source told the newspaper. “He’s refusing to see anybody. This has been his family home for the past 20 years. Is it really sensible to kick him out?”
Although confusion still reigns over exactly what the King has said to his brother about his future accommodation, a photograph of the Duke beaming broadly as he drove through Windsor Great Park on Monday morning appears to tell a different story.
Far from appearing vulnerable, Andrew seems in bullish mode, telling friends he has no intention of moving out because he has 55 years left on the 75-year lease he signed on the property in 2003.
As one source explained: “The Duke doesn’t recognise any of the recent reports that have appeared in the newspapers. The briefings certainly aren’t coming from him. His position has always been that he has a home of some 20 years with a 75-year lease on it in exchange for the £12million ($24m) he spent from the proceeds of Sunninghill Park to renovate it. It’s really quite straightforward. His personal funding of those renovations meant there was no cost to the royal finances and certainly no cost to the taxpayer.”
Dubbed “South York”, the Duke and Duchess sold nearby Sunninghill Park, their marital home, for £15m ($30m) in 2007. The sale raised eyebrows after Kazakhstan billionaire Timur Kulibayev paid £3mi($6m) over the asking price, only for the 12-bedroom mansion, which was a wedding gift from the late Queen, to remain empty for almost a decade. The original house, which was likened to chez Ewing in the 1980s US drama Dallas, has since been razed to the ground and a new modern “mega-mansion” built in its place.
Of the remaining £3m ($6m) from the proceeds of sale, the source added that £2m ($4m) went back into the royal budget while the final £1mi ($2m) was split equally between the Duke and the Duchess, who still live together despite divorcing in 1996.
King Charles III wears the Imperial State Crown and holds the Sovereign's Orb and Sceptre as he leaves after his coronation ceremony at Westminster Abbey. Photo / AP
“So much for the idea that the Yorks are money-grabbing,” added the insider. “Quite the opposite is true.”
So what exactly is going on?
Curiously, should the King – in his quest to provide a more value for money monarchy – resolve to evict Andrew, it could actually end up costing the royals.
Under the terms of the agreement, if the lease is terminated early, the property would revert to the Crown Estate and the Duke would then be entitled to a small amount of compensation for the refurbishment costs, because 25 years is the cut-off after which no compensation is payable.
Alienating his albeit unpopular brother could also cost the King in other ways. Both he and the Queen have earned plaudits for appearing magnanimous towards the Duke after he was forced to step down from public life in 2019 after his disastrous Newsnight interview, in which he justified as “honourable” his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Following the death of their beloved mother last September, the King allowed his brother to wear his military uniform during the lying-in-state vigil at Westminster Hall despite him no longer holding any royal or military patronages.
Both the Duke and Duchess, who adopted Queen Elizabeth’s remaining corgis, Sandy and Muick, were invited to spend last Christmas at Sandringham House in Norfolk with the rest of the royal family – with Andrew even making a rare public appearance to attend the Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene church.
The couple were also invited to join in the Easter festivities at Windsor Castle, when the Duke again appeared, without his ex-wife, at the Easter Sunday service at St George’s Chapel.
Then, at the coronation earlier this month, Andrew was permitted to wear his lavish ceremonial robes of the Order of the Garter. In another sign of the King and Queen welcoming the Yorks back into the royal fold, the Duchess was invited to watch the Coronation Concert from the royal box at Windsor Castle.
Before the coronation, a friend described the Duke as “standing four square behind the King,” who was credited with showing “some serious EQ (emotional intelligence) by ensuring the family is given the opportunity to pull together”. The pal went on to suggest that “some palace staff and parts of the media are well behind the curve in their understanding of this private family unity.”
The Royal Lodge debacle therefore threatens to undo the current status quo at an already fragile time for royal relations.
As one source close to the Yorks put it: “After everything Harry has said and done, does the King really want to alienate another spare?”
Prince Andrew and Princess Eugenie arrive ahead of the coronation of King Charles III and Camilla, the Queen Consort in London. Photo / AP
The furore also runs the risk of shining the spotlight on the King’s own, cost-inefficient living arrangements as he continues to split his time between no fewer than three official royal residences: Buckingham Palace, Clarence House and Windsor Castle – as well as spending time at Highgrove House, which is owned by the Duchy of Cornwall. (The King privately owns Sandringham as well as Balmoral Castle and Birkhall in Scotland.
With the Waleses currently residing at Adelaide Cottage in Windsor, the Duke vacating Royal Lodge would only leave him with another property conundrum to solve.) Royal aides are already in talks about how to handle what one described as “the empty property issue”, amid talk of some Crown properties being permanently opened to the public to justify their existence.
With the Duchess of York having recently spent £7m ($14m) on two Belgravia flats which she plans to convert into a single home as an investment property for their daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, there is an argument for the Yorks to go it alone. But again, this could result in the King facing criticism for stripping his nieces of their birthright, since the terms of the lease state that only they can inherit Royal Lodge either directly or in a trust established solely for their benefit for whatever remains of the 75-year term.
The monarch, 74, would arguably be unwise to alienate the princesses, of whom he is fond, not least when Eugenie, who is heavily pregnant with her second child, appears to be the only member of the royal family in regular contact with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. It would also appear poor form after the princesses have earned respect for how well they have coped with their father’s fall from grace, and even supported the King and Queen during the coronation by taking part in the Big Help Out.
With the Princess Royal having recently baulked at the idea of a slimmed-down monarchy (“I’m not quite sure what else we can do”) “Bea” and “Eug” could come in handy now there appears to be too few “working” royals to press the flesh. While there may not be a public appetite for them to become fully fledged members of The Firm, they have been quietly carrying out charitable engagements for years and could arguably be put to better use in the absence of their father from the royal scene, along with Prince Harry and Meghan.
As “the family home – the hub for all the Yorks”, the King would perhaps be wise to acknowledge that cutting Andrew out of Royal Lodge could end up costing him more in the long run.
