King Charles III Ensures Future for Queen Camilla Amid Royal Lodge Feud
King Charles III has ignited a feud with his brother, Prince Andrew, by pushing for the Duke of York to vacate the Royal Lodge, a lavish 30-room estate in Windsor Great Park. Reports indicate that the monarch’s motive is to secure a future residence for his beloved wife, Queen Camilla, in case of his passing.
Friends of Prince Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, claim that King Charles is ensuring that the Royal Lodge remains available for Queen Camilla, especially given the King’s health struggles. The Duke of York has resided in the estate since 2004 under a 75-year lease from the Crown Estate, sharing the property with his ex-wife, whom he divorced in 1996, via Sky News.
The growing maintenance issues at the Royal Lodge have provided King Charles an opportunity to relocate the Yorks to the smaller Frogmore Cottage. Daily Mail Editor Richard Eden reported that friends of the Yorks suggest the King views the Royal Lodge as a potential future home for Queen Camilla. “Like anyone who has been seriously ill, the King is said to have been thinking about every possible contingency. Who wouldn’t?” Eden wrote. “He will know that, were his wife to outlive him, she would be left with a somewhat uncertain status.”
Should King Charles pass away, Queen Camilla would become stepmother to Prince William, who would then ascend the throne as King William V. As the new monarch, William would inherit all the crown’s assets, just as Charles did from his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth, when she passed in 2022. This inheritance includes Clarence House, the London residence of Charles and Camilla, as well as Highgrove House in Gloucestershire, which William already owns as the Prince of Wales.
Eden emphasized that King Charles is determined to provide Camilla with a “country bolthole” like the Royal Lodge, considering Prince William’s favorable position. Charles has taken significant steps to ensure Camilla’s status, even influencing the late Queen Elizabeth’s decision to title her Queen Consort upon his ascension.
Eden also dispelled rumors that Charles was evicting the Yorks to reserve the Royal Lodge for Prince William and Kate. He noted that a source close to the Prince and Princess of Wales stated they were “very happy” living in their current home, Adelaide Cottage, on the private grounds of Windsor Castle, and had no desire to move.
Photographs published by the Daily Mail recently revealed the Royal Lodge’s shocking state of disrepair, following reports that the Yorks could no longer afford the upkeep of the 19th-century, Grade II-listed property since Prince Andrew was stripped of his royal duties.
As the feud between King Charles and Prince Andrew escalates, the monarch’s determination to secure Queen Camilla’s future has become increasingly apparent. The eviction of the Yorks from the Royal Lodge seems to be a strategic move to ensure that the Queen Consort will have a comfortable and fitting residence, even if the King’s health were to decline.