It has been the home of kings and queens and the playground of a future monarch.
Royal Lodge, now in the spotlight amid current occupant Prince Andrew’s alleged refusal to move, has maintained its current form since the 19th century.
Situated on 98 acres in Windsor Great Park, the property was once known as King’s Lodge, but the Duke of Cumberland changed its name when he became King George IV in 1820.
William IV demolished part of the Royal Lodge and for sixty years it was used primarily as a house of “grace and favor” by senior members of the Royal Household.
In 1931, King George V gave his son, Prince Albert, Duke of York, and his wife permission to take over the property and they moved in the following year.
They used the 30-room Royal Lodge as a private country house, even after becoming Duke and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1936.
Princess Elizabeth and her sister Margaret spent many happy days playing in the garden and making use of Y Bwthyn Bach, the miniature thatched cottage that the people of Wales gave to the future queen to mark her sixth birthday in 1932.
A grand looking Royal Lodge where Prince Andrew resides with his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson.
Royal Lodge, now in the spotlight amid the alleged refusal of current occupant Prince Andrew (pictured riding a horse in the grounds of his home earlier this month) to move out, has held its own current since the 19th century.
Photos taken last month show paint crumbling and cracks forming on the walls of Prince Andrew’s Royal Lodge home.
After the death of George VI in 1952, the Queen Mother continued to live at Royal Lodge on weekends until her death in 2002.
His grandson, Prince Andrew, current Duke of York, has lived there since 2004. His daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, love the place as much as he does.
Andrew, who now lives in the property with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, signed a 75-year lease with the Crown Estate when he moved in, making an initial payment of £1 million.
The deal included a nominal rent of £260,000 a year.
Andrew, who remains a pariah from public life amid the fallout from his relationship with pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, has spent almost £7million on extensive renovations and repairs to the property.
He has refused all of his brother’s requests to move into tiny Frogmore Cottage.
George VI with his family in the Queen Mother’s beautiful gardens at Royal Lodge
It was called Royal Lodge from the early 1820s. Above: a representation of the lodge from 1823.
The Grade II listed building in Windsor Great Park in 1937
A general view of the Royal Lodge at Windsor in April 1942.
In 1960, Princess Margaret’s engagement photos with her future husband Anthony Armstrong-Jones were taken at Royal Lodge.
The gardens reflect the character of the late Queen Mother, who spent many hours working there.
He did not change the entire 98 acres, but instead concentrated on the 30 acres surrounding Royal Lodge that he preferred to call his personal garden.
The royals installed walkways lined with hedges, trees, and beautiful flower beds containing all their favorites, including azaleas, their particular favorites.
The garden became a haven of rest and tranquility, where she spent countless hours and days accompanied on occasion by the then Prince Charles.
As evidenced by her transformation of Highgrove House, she has always shared her grandmother’s passion for flowers and plants.
The Queen Mother in a window of the small Welsh house in the grounds of the Royal Lodge
Princess Elizabeth and her sister, Princess Margaret, on bicycles in the grounds of the Royal Lodge, April 1942.
Also in the grounds of Royal Lodge is Y Bwthyn Bach (the literal translation is the little house), which was a gift to the six-year-old Princess Elizabeth in 1932.
Princess Elizabeth and her sister, Princess Margaret, outside Y Bwthyn Bach in 1933.
The Queen Mother concentrated on the 30 acres surrounding the Royal Lodge that she preferred to call her personal garden, installing paths lined with hedges, trees and beautiful flower beds. Above: King George VI, Queen Elizabeth and her daughters, Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret, sitting in the garden of the Royal Lodge, 1946
The Queen Mother’s drawing room at Royal Lodge, 1981
Princess Margaret’s official engagement photographs were taken in the grounds of the Royal Lodge. Above: With her future husband Anthony Armstrong-Jones when her engagement was announced in 1960
Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong-Jones pose inside the Royal Lodge after the announcement of their engagement, February 27, 1960.
Princess Beatrice looks beautiful in the Queen’s dress on her wedding day at the Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge, Windsor in 2020
Sarah Ferguson poses inside the Royal Lodge. You can see the beautiful gardens behind it.
Prince Andrew and Fergie have preferred to reorganize the interior of the house, making it more current and modern.
There is a majestic living and dining room and splendid arched Gothic windows.
However, the shelves are said to be filled with Sarah’s collection of novelty teapots.
The Royal Lodge grounds include a gardener’s cottage and the Royal Chapel of All Saints, where Princess Beatrice and Edo Mapelli Mozzi were married in 2020 in a ceremony attended by the late Queen and Prince Philip.
There is also a swimming pool and a tennis court.
If the King has his way, Andrew will have to give up these pleasures for the more modest surroundings of Frogmore Cottage or another property.
If rumors are to be believed, Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, could be the next occupants of the Royal Lodge with their young family.
