Prince Andrew Leaves Windsor’s Royal Lodge for Sandringham Amid Renewed Epstein Scrutiny

London – February 4, 2026 – Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, has vacated the 30-room Royal Lodge on the Windsor Estate and relocated to Norfolk, according to sources familiar with the move.

The departure follows an order issued last October requiring him to leave the property after King Charles III removed him from official royal duties and stripped him of his titles amid continuing fallout from his association with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Royal sources previously indicated that Mountbatten-Windsor would be accommodated on the King’s private Sandringham estate. The BBC reports he is currently in temporary housing there while a permanent residence is prepared. He is expected to make occasional trips back to Windsor during the transition and was seen riding in Windsor Great Park earlier this week.

Long-running controversy over Royal Lodge

Mountbatten-Windsor had held a 75-year lease on Royal Lodge, reportedly secured for £1 million with a nominal annual rent. Public anger intensified last year after the posthumous memoir of Virginia Giuffre renewed allegations that he had sexually assaulted her when she was a teenager—claims he has consistently denied. He has said he never met Giuffre.

Giuffre died by suicide in April at the age of 41. Mountbatten-Windsor has repeatedly rejected all allegations connected to Epstein.

The late Queen Elizabeth II had granted him the right to reside at Royal Lodge, a property owned by the Crown Estate. The decision by King Charles to remove him from the residence marked one of the monarchy’s most decisive efforts to distance itself from the scandal.

Fresh attention from newly released US documents

The move coincides with renewed scrutiny after the release of additional US Department of Justice documents linked to the Epstein investigation.

Among the materials are undated photographs that appear to show Mountbatten-Windsor on the floor beside an unidentified person whose face is redacted. The images were released without captions or context, and do not on their own indicate wrongdoing.

The documents also include a 2010 email exchange between Epstein and Mountbatten-Windsor discussing a dinner meeting with a woman described by Epstein as a “26-year-old Russian.” The correspondence shows Mountbatten-Windsor agreeing to meet her. No evidence of criminal conduct is presented in the emails.

Thames Valley Police said it is assessing reports concerning a woman allegedly taken to an address in Windsor in 2010 “for sexual purposes.” It is not clear whether this relates to the same individual referenced in the emails.

The royal household has not commented on the latest disclosures.