Prince Andrew has been staying inside his grand 30-room mansion in the heart of Windsor for almost 20 years but recent reports have suggested that the King is eager for his younger brother to vacate the Royal lodge.
The Duke of York has allegedly been disobeying the monarch, who would like Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson to move into the smaller Frogmore Cottage property which was previously home to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
However the Prince, who is said to have signed a 75-year lease for the property, is reportedly not budging and will even remain in the mansion as it undergoes renovation works over the summer, the Mirror reports.
Here we take a closer look at what the lavish Royal Lodge is like inside and how Andrew ended up living in the royal home he is desperate to keep.
Weekend retreat
Andrew has been living at the Royal Lodge on the Windsor estate since 2004 and he shares it with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.
Royal Lodge dates back to the mid-17th Century but it only got its first royal residents in the mid 1930s when it was gifted to the late Queen Elizabeth II's parents George VI and the Queen Mother.
The then Duke and Duchess of York received the property in 1931 and used it as a weekend retreat, with the Queen Mother making several additions to the home.
The Royal Lodge also features a mini cottage or extravagant Wendy house called Y Bwthyn Bach, which was gifted to Her Majesty - then Princess Elizabeth - in 1932.
Even after the King's death in 1952, it was still used by the Queen mother as a grace and favour home up until she died there in March 2002 with Queen Elizabeth by her side.
Prince Andrew takes over
After the Queen Mother's death, Royal Lodge was leased to Prince Andrew.
Along with the main home, the lease included the Gardener's Cottage, six Lodge Cottages, the Chapel Lodge, police security accommodation and a whopping 40 hectares of land.
The Queen's second eldest son was made to pay for any renovations himself, which reportedly cost around £7.5m.
In 2004, he moved into Royal Lodge with his two daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie and soon after his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson joined them.
Unusual arrangement
Fergie, 62, tied the knot with Andrew in 1986 but unfortunately things didn't work out between them due to their busy schedules and they split in 1991.
In a 2021 interview, Sarah explained why she decided to continue living at Royal Lodge whenever she's in the UK.
She told the Sunday Times: "I travel a lot and I’ve always been able to make wherever I am home. If I am staying in a hotel I have the same family photographs and scented candles around me.
"When I’m in the UK I’m lucky enough to stay at Royal Lodge. I wouldn’t call it my home as that would be presumptuous," she added.
Their unusual relationship after their divorce has even meant they have previously been forced to deny that they had got back together.
Sarah once told the Daily Mail: "We're the happiest divorced couple in the world. We're divorced to each other, not from each other."
The pair both still currently live there along with their five Norfolk Terriers and the late Queen's two corgis Sandy and Muick.
What it's like inside
The luxurious Royal Lodge is believed to have a total of 30 rooms inside but, like most other royal living quarters, very few interior photos of it actually exist.
Fergie has previously given a sneak peak of the interior during her YouTube videos and Instagram snaps which shows off the bright conservatory with its extensive drinks cabinet and rustic dining room.
Eugenie has also given a glimpse of one of the rooms before as some of her official photos of her wedding day were taken inside the property.
Meanwhile on her Instagram account, she also has a snap of the garden which shows a swing with Eugenie's name engraved into it.
Some of Beatrice's wedding photos were also taken within the grounds of Royal Lodge.
It was reported in 2019 that the standard flag had been removed from the roof after Andrew announced he would be stepping down from his royal duties.
According to the MailOnline, Prince Andrew had previously flown the Duke of York Royal Standard from the flagpole above the Royal Lodge for years whenever he was staying there.
'Eviction' fears
Rumours of the King trying to force Andrew out of the Royal Lodge so it can be given to someone else have now been circulating for months.
It was recently reported that the Prince has recently allegedly refused yet another request from his older brother King Charles to vacate the premises as he fears he will "never be allowed back in again".
A source told the Daily Mail: "It's become farcical. Andrew has roof repairs scheduled later this summer which will take several months to complete and has been advised that staying in the house during those renovations could prove problematic.
"But he is reluctant to leave."
Initial reports suggested that the Royal Lodge was becoming too expensive to maintain amidst Charles' desires to squeeze royal budgets, with Prince Andrew also having his annual maintenance loan slashed this year, making upkeep of the huge property even more difficult.
The mansion is believed to be earmarked for the Prince and Princess of Wales but the length of the lease and the fact it's in Andrew's name means the King could face some potential problems in getting him to leave.
An insider who recently spoke to The Times said: "This is a lease between him and the Crown Estate. That’s not a matter for the King. It’s a matter for the chancellor of the exchequer.
"The only way you could get him to move out would be through an arrangement — he would have to agree."
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