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Prince Harry and Meghan told to vacate UK royal property

March 1, 2023

The couple was reportedly told they would have to give up their home in the UK on the royal family's Windsor estate.

https://p.dw.com/p/4O8HV
Prince Harry and Meghan stands behind King Charles III and Camilla, the Queen Consort at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II
The Sussexes live in California but they used Frogmore cotage when they were in the UKImage: Martin Meissner/AP Photo/picture alliance

King Charles III has instructed Prince Harry and his wife Meghan to vacate their UK home, British media reported on Wednesday.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been informed that they should vacate the property on the royal family's Windsor estate outside London, The Sun newspaper reported on Wednesday.

Charles has asked them to move out of Frogmore Cottage for good to allow Prince Andrew to move in, according to The Telegraph.

"We can confirm the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been requested to vacate their residence at Frogmore Cottage," a spokesperson for the US-based couple said after the initial media reports.

The couple have moved into the home following their marriage in 2018.

After quitting their royal duties in 2020, they moved to California, but Frogmore Cottage remained their British base.

Doubts on whether Harry will attend his father's coronation

Harry and Meghan were reportedly told to vacate the property in January, just days after the prince published his tell-all memoir "Spare".

"Initially they were given just weeks, but now they have at least until after the coronation" in May, their unofficial biographer Omid Scobie wrote on Yahoo news.

The couple had yet to hear if they will be invited to Charles' crowning.

They have been using Frogmore on the few occasions they have been back in the UK, such as for celebrations for the late Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee last year.

Harry's cousin Princess Eugenie and her husband were given use of the property after the couple left, but The Sun said they had since moved out.

Prince Andrew not keen to move

Charles' brother, Prince Andrew, who was forced to quit his royal role over his relationship with convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, was reportedly offered the cottage,

The king, who has long favored a slimmed-down monarchy, was said to be considering axing Andrew's £250,000-a-year (€218,000 $300,000) grant. That move could see him forced out of his current residence, the 30-room Royal Lodge, also on the Windsor estate, due to its massive upkeep costs.

Andrew reportedly wants to keep living at the Royal Lodge.

Buckingham Palace said it would not comment on the reports. 

zc, lo/ar (AFP, Reuters)