Bruised Andrew back in spotlight over secret rent deals

Updated June 5, 2026 — 8:37pm,first published June 5, 2026 — 9:56am

London: Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor made money from his Windsor estate despite paying a peppercorn rent for two decades.

The National Audit Office (NAO) revealed in a 50-page report that the disgraced royal leased the cottages “directly” to tenants for an undisclosed sum.

The revelation raises the possibility that Mountbatten-Windsor, 66, made a notable profit from the property while still a working member of the royal family, having leased it rent-free from the Crown Estate after making a £7.5 million ($14 million) payment for refurbishment in 2003.

The report was commissioned late last year following an outcry over Mountbatten-Windsor’s lease arrangements.

A royal source insisted that the properties were sublet to staff or their families at reduced rates to cover maintenance and running costs, rather than to generate profit. However, the income was paid directly to Mountbatten-Windsor, and it is not known how much he charged.

The NAO report also revealed that King Charles was paying the rent on two properties leased to Mountbatten-Windsor’s daughters, Princess Beatrice, 37, and Princess Eugenie, 36.

Mountbatten-Windsor was in effect evicted from his 30-room Windsor mansion, Royal Lodge, in October following “serious and disturbing” allegations over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

His eventual relocation to the King’s Sandringham estate in Norfolk drew a line under the so-called siege of Royal Lodge, after he resisted the move for some 18 months.

At the same time, he was stripped of all his titles. The former duke was then arrested on his 66th birthday in February, on suspicion of committing misconduct in public office. Thames Valley Police has since revealed that officers are also looking into sexual misconduct allegations. Mountbatten-Windsor denies any wrongdoing.

Stephen Parkinson, the director of public prosecutions, said on Thursday (London time) that the police investigation would look at a “pattern of conduct” over a number of years. He admitted the “complex” case could take more than a year to conclude.

Mountbatten-Windsor was photographed on Thursday at the wheel of his car, sporting a large bruise across his right cheek.

A well-placed source downplayed the severity of the bruising, insisting that there had been no accident or attack. However, the cause was not revealed owing to his right to medical confidentiality.

The NAO report was billed as an update on its 2005 report into royal property arrangements.

Prince and Princess Michael of Kent,