King Charles cuts off financial support for Prince Andrew

Since the death of Queen Elizabeth II two years ago, speculation has often arisen that Prince Andrew should move from the decadent property, the Royal Lodge, to a smaller house like the former Sussex home, Frogmore Cottage. But the prince refused, they say.

Even after his mother’s death, Prince Andrew remains enthroned in a 30-room home in Windsor. And this despite the fact that his brother, the reigning king, is said to have asked him to downsize. Prince Andrew has ceased to be a working and active royal since his connection to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was revealed. But no matter what King Charles asked his brother to do, he didn’t budge.

Now the king resorts to harsher measures. The author Robert Hardman claims in his book “Charles III: New King. New Court. The Inside Story” that the king is said to have cut off the financial resources for the maintenance of the Royal Lodge and security expenses. The total costs are said to amount to several million pounds per year.

If this claim is true, which has also been supported by the BBC in the past with statements such as “King Charles has no plans to support Prince Andrew financially indefinitely”, it would mean that Andrew himself is responsible for maintenance and security the Royal Lodge would have to take over. The historic 19th-century building in Windsor, which is listed and leased from the Crown Estate, is expected to incur significant costs to maintain the large property.

It is unclear how Prince Andrew, who paid around 14 million euros in a settlement to Virginia Giuffre in 2022 to avoid a public trial, plans to cover these high fixed costs in the future. The plaintiff accused the prince of abusing a minor at the time of his Epstein connection. The tumult surrounding this case also forced Prince Andrew to resign from his royal status.