Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has officially begun his royal exile after finally moving out of his sprawling Windsor mansion in the dead of the night.
The Sun reports that three months after the former prince was handed his eviction notice from the 31-room Royal Lodge by the King, he is now at his temporary accommodation, the much more modest Wood Farm Cottage on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk.
Andrew will relocate permanently to the nearby Marsh Farm in April once renovations there have been finished. It was thought that he would stay at Royal Lodge until the works were done, but was reportedly pressured to pack up and get out earlier than expected as the King became “increasingly concerned with shocking revelations” regarding Andrew, according to the publication.
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“He had planned to cling on at Royal Lodge a little longer but with the latest batch of Epstein files it was made clear to him that it was time to go,” a friend of Andrew’s told The Sun.
“Leaving was so humiliating for him that he chose to do it under the cover of darkness.
“He didn’t want to have a big emotional goodbye even though Royal Lodge is a place where he had so many family memories.
“Theoretically he could have stayed until Marsh Farm was ready but the headlines were only getting worse. Also, the fact he’s been seen driving around Windsor laughing and looking like he hasn’t a care in the world hasn’t gone down well with the Royal Household.”
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It has now been reported by The Guardian that British police are to review fresh allegations that late convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein allegedly sent a woman to the UK to have sex with Andrew at the Royal Lodge in 2010.
According to the masthead, the woman claimed over the weekend via her US lawyer, Brad Edwards, that she spent the night at the then-prince’s residence in Windsor. The woman, who is not British, was said to be in her 20s at the time.
“We are aware of reports about a woman said to have been taken to an address in Windsor in 2010 for sexual purposes. We are assessing the information in line with our established procedures,” a Thames Valley police spokesperson said in a statement to The Guardian.
“We take any reports of sexual crimes extremely seriously and encourage anyone with information to come forward. At this time, these allegations have not been reported to Thames Valley police by either the lawyer [of the woman] or their client.”
The relocation and subsequent police investigation followed weeks of controversy surrounding rent payments to the Crown Estate, which leased the property.
Andrew was last photographed Monday riding horseback near Royal Lodge and later driving from Windsor Castle, waving at onlookers. He’s expected to return to Windsor in coming weeks to collect remaining belongings, though Norfolk is now his permanent base.
The Sandringham Estate is privately owned by the King, who will cover costs for his brother’s new accommodation.
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Senior royal breaks ranks over Andrew
Prince Edward has urged people to “remember the victims” in the first public remarks made by a senior royal on the Jeffrey Epstein scandal currently engulfing his brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
The Duke of Edinburgh appeared at the World Government Summit in Dubai on Tuesday, where he was asked by celebrity.land reporter Eleni Giokos how he was coping in the wake of the explosive new details about Andrew’s friendship with the convicted sex offender.
“Well, with the best will in the world,” the King’s youngest sibling responded.
“I’m not sure this is the audience that is probably the least interested in that.
“They all came here to listen to education, solving the future, but no, I think it’s all really important always to remember the victims and who are the victims in all this?
“A lot of victims in this.”
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Edward is the first member of his family to break his silence on the shocking new insight into Andrew’s ties to Epstein, which were unearthed in millions of documents released by the US Justice Department on Friday.
Edward’s remarks came as pressure mounts on Andrew to pass on what he knows about Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes as the latest drop of documents related to the case continues to send shockwaves around the world.
Royal sources told the Daily Mail this week that “providing testimony is now a matter for Andrew and his conscience”, and that those with relevant information should “participate in any lawful inquiry on any subject”.
Earlier this week, Mr Starmer said in reference to Andrew that “in terms of testifying, I have always said anybody who has got information should be prepared to share that information. “You can’t be victim-centred if you’re not prepared to do that.”
Buckingham Palace has not officially commented on the recent mass release of files, many of which highlight the friendship between the convicted pedophile and the former Duke of York.
Many of the emails between Andrew and Epstein were sent after his conviction on child sex offences and while the King’s brother was a working member of the royal family, and also held an official role as the UK trade ambassador.
Prior to her death last year, Virginia Giuffre, formerly known as Virginia Roberts, alleged that she’d had three sexual encounters with Andrew, including once when she was just 17, while she was being sex trafficked by Epstein.
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Andrew has firmly denied all allegations of wrongdoing and has also denied ever meeting Ms Giuffre.
In 2022, he settled a civil case she brought against him in the US for a reported $24 million, which came with no admission of liability.
This week, a second woman, said to be from outside Britain and in her 20s at the time, has come forward alleging that she spent the night with Andrew at Royal Lodge and had later been given a tour of Buckingham Palace.
It’s understood the King was not aware ahead of time of the shocking details buried in the documents, with the Palace discovering the extent of the situation at the same time as the rest of the world.
In October last year, amid growing outcry over Andrew’s links to the Epstein scandal, the Palace released a bombshell statement confirming that the King had “initiated a formal process to remove the Style, Titles and Honours of Prince Andrew”.
The decision was due to “serious lapses in Andrew’s Judgement,” the BBC reported at the time.
“These censures are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that he continues to deny the allegations against him,” the statement read.
“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.”
Andrew had already agreed to give up his Duke of York title after it emerged he had remained in touch with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein longer than he previously claimed.
The Palace statement also said that Andrew’s lease on the Royal Lodge, on the grounds of Windsor Great Park, would end.
“Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease and he will move to alternative private accommodation”.
It concluded: “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.”
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.news.com.au ’
