He once lived in 30 room grade II listed mansion Royal Lodge, but the former prince, who will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, 65, has been banished to a small, “haunted and windswept” cottage on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
Here, he will live out of sight from prying eyes and, more importantly, 100 miles away from King Charles and the Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Catherine, who it’s said previously “shuddered at the thought of living of living so close” to disgraced Andrew.
Meanwhile, Andrew’s partner in excess, the former Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, 66, will no longer live on Crown Estate Property and will have to make her own living arrangements.
The new developments come as the palace issued a statement revealing Prince Andrew will be stripped of his “prince” title and will move out of the Royal Lodge where he has lived rent free alongside Sarah for decades, amid continued questions about his links to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The palace statement read: His Majesty has today initiated a formal process to remove the style, titles and honours of Prince Andrew.
Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. 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.
Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse.
It’s been reported that Andrew didn’t resist being stripped of his prince title, after his Duke of York title was removed earlier this month.
King Charles reportedly felt he had to take action to stop reputational damage to the crown after Virginia Giuffre’s posthumous memoir was published, in which she claimed Andrew had sex with her three times while she was trafficked as a teenager by Ghislaine Maxwell and Epstein.
Andrew continues to deny her claims.
Andrew’s new home will be one of the properties at Sandringham where the royals traditionally celebrate Christmas – but recent reports suggest he has been disinvited to the annual gathering and will only be able to see his family from a distance.
Some royal commentators even go as far as to suggest that his daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, who will keep their princess titles, may no longer see their father but choose to spend time in the royal fold instead.
It’s understood Andrew’s accommodation will be privately funded by King Charles.
The wider Sandringham estate covers approximately 20,000 acres (8100 hectares) with 600 acres (242 hectares) of gardens, where Andrew will be able to fish, horse ride and hunt, as well as dwell on his life.
While the exact property Andrew will live in has not been confirmed by the royal family, Sandringham has been long associated with spooky goings on. In 2000, Queen Elizabeth and her mother reportedly held a spiritual ceremony – known as an exorcism – at Sandringham House, after staff complained about strange and unexplained paranormal activity in the room where King George died in 1952.
Late royal biographer Kenneth Rose once said the Queen Mother decided to cleanse the room to rid it of “ominous spirits”.
Kenneth speculated that the ghost might’ve been the late Princess of Wales, Diana, but it’s not known whether the Queen and her mother actually believed in the paranormal or were simply appeasing their staff.
The King is also said to have had a paranormal experience on the estate, when he was the Prince of Wales. In John West’s book Britain’s Ghostly Heritage, he said Charles had a frightening encounter in the library, which led to him and a member of staff bolting from the room.
Now, it remains to be seen whether Andrew will be haunted by ghosts or his own past decisions, going forward.
