Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has made a “humiliating” move out of Royal Lodge after coming under pressure from the King.
A source confirmed that Andrew had relocated from the Windsor mansion to an undisclosed address on the King’s Sandringham estate in Norfolk. Charles, who was concerned by the latest revelations in the Jeffrey Epstein files released by the US Department of Justice, is understood to have asked his brother to expedite the move.
It is thought that Andrew will be allowed to return to Royal Lodge to pack more moving boxes and keep appointments near his old home.
A car believed to be transporting Andrew outside Royal Lodge
TOBY SHEPHEARD/REUTERS
Andrew gave notice on the lease for Royal Lodge in November after a protracted battle with the King. However, a series of revelations about his friendship with Epstein, the convicted paedophile, led to Charles stripping Andrew of his titles and privileges.
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Building work has started on Marsh Farm, Sandringham, which has been earmarked as a future home for Andrew. However, palace sources have indicated that an “interim” property has been found elsewhere on the estate.
The Sun reported that Andrew left his £30 million, 31-room mansion late on Monday evening, three days after the disclosure of three million pages of documents relating to the US investigation into Epstein. They included a picture of Andrew on all fours over an unidentified woman who was lying on the floor.
An undated photo released by the US Department of Justice on January 30, 2026
AFP / US DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
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He was driven 132 miles to Sandringham and is said to have spent time at Wood Farm cottage. A friend of Andrew’s told the newspaper: “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.
“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.”
The Times revealed in October that Andrew had not paid rent on the property for two decades, paying only a “peppercorn rent” after a deposit. The process of removing Andrew from Royal Lodge, the former home of the late Queen Mother, has taken about two years.
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In 2024 Andrew refused advice to move out of Royal Lodge. Friends of the King said at the time: “It can be done tidily or untidily. It can be done with grace and dignity or it can be thrust upon him.”
Police said on Tuesday night that they were reviewing a claim that Epstein had sent a woman to Andrew’s home “for sexual purposes” in 2010. The review does not necessarily mean a criminal investigation will take place.