Harry and Meghan have packed up and moved out of Frogmore Cottage for good.
The house, on the Windsor estate, was their official UK residence, on which the Duke and Duchess of Sussex kept paying the rent even after they quit the Royal Family and moved to California.
It is an indication, among many others, that they have no intention of returning to the UK to live, and do not intend to spend long periods of time in Harry’s country of birth where his father is King.
Buckingham Palace would not say who would be moving into the house – or when.
The annual Sovereign Grant report shows that Frogmore Cottage remains vacant and a palace official confirmed that Harry and Meghan had “only just left” and packed up their things.
Prince Harry and Meghan paid back the £2.4 million that had been spent from public funds on renovating the cottage before they moved in.
They agreed a reduced rent, when they relocated to the US, after offering to pay the refurbishment costs themselves.
Sir Michael Stevens, the Keeper of the Privy Purse who is in charge of royal finances, admitted that the renovations of Frogmore Cottage had left the Crown Estate, which owns the property, with “an enhanced asset”.
Asked about speculation the next tenant would be Prince Andrew, royal officials refused to comment.
The Duke of York, the disgraced son of the late Queen, currently lives with his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, at Royal Lodge, also on the Windsor estate.
There is speculation the King wants his brother to move out, which would free up the property for the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children.
“We will not be discussing any details of the Duke’s private lease arrangements,” Sir Michael said as he unveiled the royal’s annual report and accounts for the last financial year.
When they were members of the working Royal Family, some of Harry and Meghan’s costs were met by the Sovereign Grant – the pot of money raised from a proportion of the Crown Estate profits to fund the work of the Monarchy.
But their office was also funded by the Duchy of Cornwall, when the estate belonged to the previous Prince of Wales, the then Prince Charles.
In moving to the USA, the Sussexes announced they wanted to become financially self-sufficient and they achieved this through a number of lucrative deals with Netflix, Spotify and the publication of Harry’s memoirs, Spare.
The Spotify deal has been terminated after one season of podcasts by Meghan, called Archetypes.
Frogmore Cottage was extensively redeveloped after Harry and Meghan got married and they had planned to make it their main residence.
It was where their son, Prince Archie, spent his first few months after he was born in 2019.
When the Sussexes announced their intention to leave the Royal Family and set up a new life in California, they retained Frogmore so they had a UK base.
Since then, relations between them and the rest of the Royal Family have soured, hitting a low point following their six-part Netflix series last year and Harry’s book this year when he made a number of accusations about his brother, Prince William and step-mother Queen Camilla.
Confirmation that Harry and Meghan have left Frogmore Cottage for good will therefore come as no surprise to anyone.
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