LONDON -- The former Prince Andrew has been awarded 302,000 pounds (about C$569,000) in compensation after he was forced to surrender the lease on his long-time home ahead of schedule due to the public outcry surrounding his relationship with the convicted sex-offender Jeffrey Epstein. The Crown Estate released the compensation figure on Friday as it announced that the former prince, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, had fully vacated the Royal Lodge, a 30-room stately home surrounded by parkland near Windsor Castle, west of London. Mountbatten-Windsor was entitled to compensation because he moved out of the property less than 25 years into his 75-year lease, the Crown Estate said. The money was deducted from the 1.8 million pounds Mountbatten-Windsor owed because of the condition of the property, meaning he actually paid the Crown Estate about 1.5 million pounds. The Crown Estate is an independent company established by Parliament to manage a vast portfolio of property throughout the United Kingdom that is nominally owned by the sovereign but is operated for the benefit of taxpayers. “The lease for Royal Lodge has ended and our focus now is firmly on its future use and the opportunities to generate additional financial value for the nation from its early return,” the Crown Estate said in a statement. King Charles III stripped his younger brother of his princely title and ordered him to leave Royal Lodge last year as the monarch sought to shield the rest of the royal family from the continuing scandal of Mountbatten-Windsor’s relationship with Epstein. The moves came as the U.S. Justice Department released millions of pages of documents from its investigation into Epstein, revealing previously unknown details about his links to the former prince. Mountbatten-Windsor’s continuing residence at Royal Lodge was a particularly sensitive issue for many people because he paid only a nominal rent on the house and surrounding estate. The former prince signed a 75-year lease on Royal Lodge in 2003, when he was still a working member of the royal family, attending public events on behalf of his mother Queen Elizabeth II and serving as Britain’s special trade representative. The lease required Mountbatten-Windsor to spend 7.5 million pounds on renovating the property and make a one-time payment of 1 million pounds. Mountbatten-Windsor was entitled to compensation for the renovation expenses if he surrendered the lease within the first 25 years, the Crown Estate said. Mountbatten-Windsor, 66, gave up his role as trade envoy in 2011 and stepped away from all royal duties in 2019 because of concerns about his relationship with Epstein. After he moved out of Royal Lodge in February, Mountbatten-Windsor moved to a home on the Sandringham Estate in eastern England, which is privately owned by the king. By Danica Kirka, The Associated Press
