Following his dramatic fall from grace, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor faces an uncertain future after being stripped of his princely title on Thursday. The younger brother of Britain’s King Charles III, who was once eighth in line to the throne, now confronts questions about his residence, finances, and potential legal troubles.
Buckingham Palace announced that Andrew (65) will be forced to leave his 30-room mansion at the sprawling Windsor Castle estate. The move comes after revelations that he had effectively paid no rent on the Royal Lodge as a result of a controversial 2003 lease deal. Instead, he will relocate to a house on the king’s private Sandringham estate in eastern England.
“He’s been sent up… to the royal equivalent of Siberia,” royal biographer Robert Hardman told the BBC. The remote country retreat reportedly houses 150 residential properties, giving Andrew plenty of lodging options. Palace sources indicated the move would take place “as soon as practicable,” though commentators suggest it could take months, possibly to avoid an awkward encounter during Christmas celebrations at Sandringham – to which Andrew is notably not invited.
The king will privately fund the relocation and provide financial support for his brother, whose income sources remain largely unclear since stepping back from royal duties following revelations of his ties to convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew no longer receives the yearly £250 000 (R5 696 955) awarded to active royal family members, and Charles reportedly stopped paying him an annual £1 million allowance in 2024.
The Guardian newspaper reported Sunday that Andrew could receive a one-off, six-figure payment as well as an annual stipend as part of his relocation plan. Beyond a modest naval pension and significant financial assets, his future funding remains uncertain.
Legal challenges continue to loom over the former prince. Calls have intensified for Andrew to be investigated over allegations that he sexually assaulted Virginia Giuffre, Epstein’s main accuser, including claims he had sex with her twice when she was just 17 – all of which Andrew denies. He agreed to pay Giuffre millions of dollars in 2022 to end her civil sexual assault case against him and has never been questioned under oath.
Some US Congressional Committee members investigating the Epstein case have urged Andrew to travel to the United States and testify. Giuffre’s brother Sky Roberts said Andrew “needs to be behind bars.” London’s Metropolitan police previously investigated Giuffre’s claims but announced in 2021 they were taking no further action.
“I think there’s now renewed vigour for them to look at this properly,” Andrew Lownie, the former prince’s biographer, told AFP. Anti-monarchy campaign group Republic has hired lawyers to explore pursuing a private prosecution. The Met are also investigating claims in Giuffre’s posthumous memoir that Andrew asked an officer to dig up dirt for a smear campaign against her.
“He’s not out of the woods yet. I mean, he’s got some worries,” Lownie added, noting that new court documents could be unsealed in the US, resulting in further embarrassment.
Despite being struck off the official roll of peerage Friday – a key step in formalising the removal of his titles—Andrew remains eighth in line to the throne. The UK government has stated it has no plans for legislative action to change this, which would require a lengthy and complicated process involving the assent of all Commonwealth nations where the king serves as head of state.
Independent lawmaker Rachael Maskell, who has proposed a bill to formally remove Andrew’s titles by law, argues parliament should take time to make the change.
The scandal has prompted calls for greater scrutiny of the royal family’s secretive finances. According to Lownie, a parliamentary committee should investigate Andrew’s controversies, including his time as a UK special trade envoy, as well as “wider issues of royal secretiveness.”
“This is an opportunity for the Royal Family to be a bit more transparent about the way they behave, particularly over their finances,” Lownie said.
The parliamentary Public Accounts Committee has written to the Crown Estate and the Treasury demanding explanations for Andrew’s “peppercorn payment” lease arrangement for the Royal Lodge.
However, Lownie believes Thursday’s decisive action could help restore public confidence in the monarchy, which has been weakened by the former prince’s prolonged downfall.
“Andrew has been basically booted out. He’s now distanced from them,” Lownie said. “There is every chance that trust and respect can be restored.”
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