King Charles III Still Hasn't Found a Tenant for Frogmore Cottage After Evicting Harry & Meghan
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It’s that time of year in the U.K. when tax-paying citizens get to see how the monarchy is funded with their dollars. King Charles III’s annual Sovereign Grant report was released on Tuesday, July 23, and there seem to be quite a few questions as to why Frogmore Cottage — a beautifully renovated property on the grounds of Windsor — continues to be vacant.
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Royal fans know that Charles unceremoniously evicted Prince Harry and Meghan Markle from their U.K. home even though it was a wedding gift from Queen Elizabeth II, and they held the lease. The real estate snatch came in the wake of their Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan, and the Duke of Sussex’s memoir, Spare — it felt like a punishment. But the palace promised it was done for a reason — Harry needed to move out because Prince Andrew needed to move in. The scandal-ridden younger brother of Charles no longer had the funds to maintain his 30-room residence, Royal Lodge.
Now, royal critics are demanding to know what King Charles plans to do with the property because an empty home means a bigger financial burden on the taxpayers. A Buckingham Palace spokesperson told the Daily Mail that people shouldn’t assume that Andrew is waiting to move in. “I think at this point I wouldn’t speculate on who would be the future occupant of Frogmore Cottage,” they said.
Even though Harry and Meghan conceded to the king, Prince Andrew has continued to stand his ground in the real estate battle. The original thought was to have Prince William and Kate Middleton move into Royal Lodge, but they prefer the coziness of Adelaide Cottage because they do not want any household staff living with them. The four-bedroom home doesn’t leave any room to spare, and they like it that way. So, who would move into Royal Lodge? Well, Jane Barr’s From Berkshire to Buckingham newsletter in early July claimed that “Charles is truly determined” to move Andrew out in favor of a place for Queen Camilla in case she outlives her husband.
That leaves Charles with an empty property and a younger brother who doesn’t seem to care. That’s why the king might have to enact a bit of tough love on Prince Andrew. “He is taking longer than desirable to recognize the reality of the situation, even though it is clearly the most sensible course of action,” a palace insider told The Times in June. “If he doesn’t agree to move to a property better suited to his needs, then the King may have to reconsider the levels of support he is willing to provide.” It may take such a drastic action to get Andrew to collect his belongings and high tail it to Frogmore Cottage before anti-monarchists start getting a little louder about the irrelevancy of the monarchy in the modern world.
Before you go, click here to see the 100 best photos of the royal family from the past 20 years.
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