Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor departs from Royal Lodge and moves to temporary accommodation

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor departs from Royal Lodge, moving to Sandringham as the examination of Epstein connections grows stronger.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has departed from Royal Lodge in Windsor and has settled at the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk.

The former prince departed from the Windsor property on Monday night and is now residing in temporary accommodations on the Sandringham Estate while renovations are underway on what is anticipated to be his permanent residence. It is thought that he will eventually take up residence at Marsh Farm, which is also situated on the estate.

In October, Buckingham Palace announced that Mountbatten-Windsor would be vacating Royal Lodge, which coincided with the removal of his princely title. The palace has now confirmed that “formal notice has been served to surrender the lease.”

While he is anticipated to return to Windsor in the next few weeks to gather his remaining personal belongings, royal sources indicate that his permanent residence is now officially in Norfolk. He was last observed in Windsor on Monday, riding on horseback close to Royal Lodge, and was later captured on camera departing the area while waving at those passing by.

The decision comes after several weeks of debate regarding the conditions of the Royal Lodge lease. A report from the National Audit Office disclosed that when Mountbatten-Windsor entered into the 75-year lease in 2003, he made an upfront payment exceeding £8 million for repairs, which effectively mitigated future rent responsibilities. The agreement was founded on a theoretical yearly rent of £260,000.

According to the agreement, Mountbatten-Windsor might have been eligible for approximately £488,000 in compensation due to an early surrender of the lease. Nevertheless, a later report from the Crown Estate to MPs determined that the property needs such significant repairs that he is unlikely to obtain any compensation.

The King privately owns the Sandringham Estate and will take care of the expenses related to his brother’s new residence. Royal sources had previously suggested that the move was postponed until the new year to prevent the awkwardness of Mountbatten-Windsor being at Sandringham during Christmas, a time when the Royal Family typically comes together there.

In 1862, the Prince of Wales, who would later become King Edward VII, acquired Sandringham as a personal retreat. The estate covers an area of about 31 square miles, which is approximately equivalent to the size of Nottingham.

Mountbatten-Windsor remains under examination due to his connection with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Thames Valley Police is currently evaluating allegations regarding a report that a woman was sent to the UK by Epstein for a sexual encounter with Mountbatten-Windsor at Royal Lodge in 2010. The woman, who is not from Britain, was in her twenties at that time.

Mountbatten-Windsor has refuted any allegations of misconduct and has yet to reply to a recent inquiry for comment. The woman’s attorney, Brad Edwards, stated that she claims that following her overnight stay at Royal Lodge, she was offered tea and a tour of Buckingham Palace. This marks the first instance in which an Epstein survivor has alleged that a sexual encounter occurred at a royal residence.

In 2014, Virginia Giuffre emerged as the first woman to publicly accuse Mountbatten-Windsor of comparable behavior, claiming she was trafficked by Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell at the age of 17. Mountbatten-Windsor has repeatedly refuted the allegations. In 2021, Giuffre initiated a civil lawsuit in the US, which reached a settlement in February 2022 for an estimated £12 million. She passed away last year.

The release of millions of pages of documents by the US Department of Justice has sparked renewed attention, featuring images and emails that allegedly connect Mountbatten-Windsor to Epstein during the years following the financier’s guilty plea for soliciting a minor. In August 2019, Epstein passed away in a prison cell in New York while he was awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking.