Andrew’s Friends Reveal Charles Paid a ‘Handsome’ Amount to Make Him Vacate Royal Lodge

King Charles and Andrew Mountbatten Windsor step out of church. (Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Patrick van Katwijk)

Oct. 31 2025, Updated 07:44 AM. ET

Prince Andrew’s fall from grace saw him stripped not only of his titles, honors, styles, and relevance, but also of his home of more than two decades. After King Charles stripped his disgraced brother of his titles, the Palace announced that he would vacate Royal Lodge and move to a private residence, funded privately. Yet, one crucial detail was conveniently left out of the official announcement. Friends of Andrew Mountbatten Windsor now reveal that he didn’t leave empty-handed. In fact, he walked away from Royal Lodge with a deal as lucrative as it is contentious.

Image Source: Getty/The Print Collector-Heritage Images — A Grade II listed house in Windsor Great Park in Berkshire, England, known as the Royal Lodge since the late 1820s. (Image Source: Getty| The Print Collector-Heritage Images)

In the wake of renewed public outrage over his association with Jeffrey Epstein and the release of Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, Nobody’s Girl, the pressure on Charles to sever ties with his brother intensified. The book, which reiterates in disturbing detail Giuffre’s allegations about abuse, had pushed the Palace into a corner.

But what has angered critics even more is the revelation that Mountbatten Windsor may have been paid millions to surrender his lease on Royal Lodge, now his former residence in Windsor. The Daily Beast reported, the King offered his brother a 'handsome' payoff to vacate the property as a trade-off that ensured the Duke of York’s final retreat from privilege came with a generous cushion.

Prince Andrew with then-17-year-old Virginia Giuffre. (Image Source: U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals)

Royal aides have argued that this is why Mountbatten-Windsor did not object to the removal of his titles. A close confidante of the former Prince told The Daily Beast that he made it clear that giving up Royal Lodge would require 'financial recompense.' The lease, the friend claimed, had '50 years remaining' and was considered part of his daughters’ inheritance. “In this country, you can’t seize people’s assets,” they said. “Charles was always going to have to pay him off — and he’s done what he should have done in the first place.” Another friend of both Mountbatten Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, who has long shared Royal Lodge with him, spilled, “The pension is handsome.”

Signed in 2003 for $1.3 million, the 75-year lease on the historic property was obtained from the Crown Estate. Mounbatten Windsor subsequently invested nearly $10 million in refurbishments, the BBC reported. Now that he has agreed to surrender the lease, the Crown Estate would reportedly have to pay him about $7,43,000.

Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew at the Virgin London Marathon in 2010. — Sarah Ferguson and Andrew Mountbatten Windsor at the Virgin London Marathon in 2010.(Image Source: Getty Images | Indigo)

Buckingham Palace has not commented on the reported payout, but documents obtained by The Royalist confirmed that the King will privately fund Mountbatten Windsor’s next residence, and as per PEOPLE, it will likely be on the Sandringham estate. In addition to the new home, the disgraced royal is also expected to receive 'appropriate private provision,' effectively a direct allowance from the monarch. He will likely also be permitted to continue earning money privately.

The official Palace statement partly read, “His lease on Royal Lodge has, to date, provided him with legal protection to continue in residence. Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease, and he will move to alternative private accommodation. These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him.”