Who could move to Prince Andrew’s Royal Lodge home, are the Prince and Princess of Wales set to reside there?

Prince Andrew has called Royal Lodge his home since 2003 when he reportedly signed a 75-year lease for the property. Royal Lodge is situated around three miles south of Windsor Castle and was built in the mid-1600s. The late Queen Mother lived there from 1952 until she passed away in 2002, and over the years has been known as Lower Lodge and Great Lodge before becoming Royal Lodge. 

There have been reports that if Prince Andrew does move out of Royal Lodge, King Charles is keen to rent it out. There are also suggestions that another royal couple might move in when Prince Andrew vacates the property. One suggestion is Catherine, Princess of Wales, Prince William and their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

However, this suggestion is quite unlikely as the Prince and Princess of Wales are settled at Adelaide Cottage, however Adelaide Cottage is much smaller than Royal Lodge, which is a 30-room residence. 

When Catherine, Princess of Wales left hospital in January after undergoing abdominal surgery, she returned to the four-bedroom Adelaide Cottage to recover there. The family moved there from Kensington Palace in the summer of 2022. 

Adelaide Cottage was reportedly a favourite home of Queen Victoria and it is only a short walk from both Windsor Castle and St George’s Chapel. Group Captain Peter Townsend lived there with his wife Rosemary in the 1940s, his affair with Princess Margaret caused a national scandal. 

Another royal couple who could move to Royal Lodge instead of the Prince and Princess of Wales is the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh. They currently live in Bagshot Park which was leased to Prince Edward in 1998 for fifty years. He then extended the lease to 150 years, so it is again not likely that they will want to vacate it for Royal Lodge.