Andrew requests to end lease on another Windsor property after paying £13,000 in rent

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has requested to terminate his tenancy on East Lodge, a Crown Estate property situated near his previous Sunninghill Park residence in Berkshire.

Documents confirm the former royal had been paying approximately £13,000 per year in rent for the Grade II-listed thatched cottage.

The Crown Estate indicated the termination request arrived following a Freedom of Information inquiry submitted by the BBC in January concerning the property.

“Since then… we have received a request for us to consider an early termination of the lease,” the Crown Estate told the publication.

Andrew requests to end lease on another Windsor property after paying £13,000 in rent

The tenancy was originally scheduled to conclude in July 2027.

The single-storey 19th-century cottage, positioned approximately five miles from Windsor between the town and Ascot, is understood to have served as staff accommodation.

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor initially acquired the East Lodge tenancy in February 1998, with an opening annual rent of £3,500 payable to the Crown Estate.

Provisions for inflation-linked increases meant that by the 2020 renewal, payments had reached £8,047 yearly, continuing more than a decade after Sunninghill Park itself was sold.

East Lodge is located near Sunninghill Park in Berkshire

A late August 2025 document suggests the rent had climbed to £12,922 following a summer review.

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor lived in Sunninghill Park until 2004. After that, he moved into the Queen Mother’s former residence, Royal Lodge.

He subsequently departed Royal Lodge for Sandringham, Norfolk, in February 2026 amid mounting pressure following the release of the Epstein files.

The move came within months of renewing the East Lodge lease, after intensified public examination of his connections to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein led to him being stripped of his titles.

Sunninghill Park was home to Andrew and Sarah Ferguson in the early years of their marriage

He has constantly denied any wrongdoing regarding Epstein.

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor’s new residence, Marsh Farm, is a property owned by King Charles III, with no expense to taxpayers.

The Crown Estate operates as an independent commercial entity, directing its profits to the Treasury whilst maintaining an obligation to secure optimal value for the public.

The Public Accounts Committee has announced it will launch an inquiry into royal leases later this year.

Sarah Ferguson pictured with Beatrice and Eugenie at Sunninghill Park in 1993

Chairman Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown stated the committee’s examination would “aid transparency in public-interest information, as part of its overall mission to secure value for money for the taxpayer”.

The Crown Estate has confirmed that early termination of the East Lodge lease will proceed, though the precise timetable depends on arrangements for current occupants once Mr Mountbatten-Windsor relinquishes his involvement.

Previous documentation suggests the lodge has housed employees of the former Duke of York, with the Crown Estate describing day-to-day occupancy as a private matter distinct from the tenancy itself.

GB News has contacted Mr Mountbatten-Windsor and the Crown Estate for comment.