King Charles cuts off Prince Andrew’s $2m allowance

Five years after Prince Andrew’s disastrous BBC interview, the King has severed his brother’s financial ties, a decision that may force the Duke to downsize.

The King is believed to have instructed the keeper of the privy purse, his finance director, to cease payments of Prince Andrew’s annual allowance. Picture: AFP

Calls to cut the Duke of York off from the royal family grew after his disastrous BBC interview in 2019 prompted outrage over his friendship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Prince Andrew stepped back from his royal duties and was stripped of his military titles and patronages, but managed to keep hold of his £1 million-a-year ($2m) allowance and continue living in the 30-room Royal Lodge.

Now, five years later, the King is said to have severed his brother’s financial ties, a decision that may force the Duke to downsize from his home at Windsor Great Park to the more modest Frogmore Cottage. The King is believed to have instructed the keeper of the privy purse, his finance director, to cease payments of the annual allowance, and he no longer funds his seven-figure private security detail.

The revelation has appeared in an updated biography by the royal writer Robert Hardman, which has been serialised by the Daily Mail.

Severing financial ties may force the Duke to relinquish his grip on the vast Royal Lodge.

“The duke is no longer a financial burden on the King,” a source said.

Andrew has not received an income since stepping down as a working royal because of his friendship with Epstein, who died in prison in 2019. However, after the death of Elizabeth II, in September 2022, Charles reluctantly funded security, as well as a hefty living allowance for his brother.

The Duke may be forced to downsize from his home at Windsor Great Park to the more modest Frogmore Cottage, pictured. Picture: Getty

Andrew’s refusal to move from the Royal Lodge has been a source of contention. Sources close to the duke have argued that he has a cast-iron, long-term lease on the late Queen Mother’s former home. However, he is ultimately responsible for its expensive upkeep.

A friend of Charles previously told The Times: “It can be done tidily or untidily. It can be done with grace and dignity or it can be forced upon him. It’s all rather sad. But as things stand, life at Royal Lodge is set to become increasingly cold and uncomfortable for the duke.

“The only question now is when he will realise that he has become a prisoner of his own pride.”

In cutting off Andrew’s allowance, the King has, according to Hardman, made good on his late mother’s determination to solve the “Andrew issue”.

The duke had made clear to the King’s advisers that they have no right to force him to downsize and has firmly rejected suggestions that he move to Frogmore, which, although smaller, with five bedrooms, has the added benefit of being inside the Windsor Castle security “ring of steel”.

Andrew will now have to find the money to maintain the property, with no visible sign of independent income. This is said to include the cost of protecting several valuable works of art and pieces of furniture borrowed from the Royal Collection, the treasure trove of antiques held in trust by the monarch on behalf of the nation. Andrew has asserted that he can continue to pay for his own upkeep, claiming to have found “other sources of income” related to his contacts in international trade.

“If he can find the money, then that is up to him, but if not, he will find that the King does not have unlimited patience,” another insider added.

Family friends said that although the matter had been temporarily resolved, Andrew’s “obstinacy” had “soured” family relationships.

Buckingham Palace and the Crown Estate declined to comment. The duke could not be reached for comment.

The Times