Living in one of the most prestigious residences of the British monarchy, paying little more than symbolic rent, was not enough. Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, brother of King Charles III and former Duke of York, was not satisfied and sublet them. Result: an income of over 2,000 pounds – approximately 2,400 euros – generating income from three cottages on the Royal Lodge estate in Windsor.
The news comes from an official report from the British House of Commons commission responsible for overseeing the use of public resources. The document reconstructs the economic relations between the former prince and the Crown estate, the body that manages part of the Crown’s real estate assets and transfers the profits to the British Treasury.
The rents collected by Andrea and the Royal Lodge contract
According to what was reconstructed by the parliamentary commission, Andrea had obtained a 75-year lease in 2003 for Royal Lodge, a large residence immersed in the Windsor estate. The agreement included the initial payment of one million pounds, a commitment to support renovation works of 7.5 million and, subsequently, a symbolic rent.
The contract also allowed the former prince to sublet three of the eight cottages on the property, personally retaining the proceeds. For much of the lease period, one of the properties was rented to an employee of the royal family at a below-market price. From late 2021, for a period of less than a year, all three cottages were rented out simultaneously, producing a combined income of more than £2,000 per month, before maintenance and running costs.
The property includes a 30-room main villa, with seven bedrooms on the upper floors, surrounded by 40.3 hectares of land (approximately 403 thousand square meters). Inside the estate there are large gardens, a tennis court, eight cottages, staff accommodation and security facilities.
However, it is not possible to reconstruct how much Andrea actually collected in the entire period spent at Royal Lodge: the Crown estate does not in fact have a complete accounting of the proceeds from the sublets.
The return of the villa and the money paid by Charles III
The parliamentary report comes after Andrea’s exit from Royal Lodge, which occurred as part of the former prince’s progressive distancing from the public life of the monarchy, against the backdrop of the scandal linked to his relations with Jeffrey Epstein. Andrea has always denied having committed any wrongdoing.
The lease was formally closed on 8 October 2026, after 23 years, with an economic transaction that also involved the sovereign.
According to parliamentary documentation, the agreement provided for a gross amount of 1.8 million pounds, from which 301,967.66 pounds of compensation due to Andrea for the early return of the property were deducted. The net balance recognized to the Crown Estate was therefore approximately 1.5 million pounds, approximately 1.8 million euros. The sum was made available by King Charles III.
Parliament’s criticism: “The Crown estate must change the rules”
The parliamentary committee criticized the body for failing to identify specific lessons from the management of the Royal Lodge contract and for failing to collect financial information on the sublets.
MEPs now ask that a more rigorous rule be adopted in future contracts: prohibiting subletting unless previously authorized by the owner, accompanied by the communication of the relevant economic information.
The report does not establish that Andrea violated the conditions of the contract: subletting was expressly permitted. The problem highlighted by the parliamentarians rather concerns the economic conditions of the agreement and the lack of tools to control the income generated through the Crown’s properties.
But where has Andrea gone? The former prince has meanwhile moved to the royal estate of Sandringham, in Norfolk.
