Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Won’t Have a Place to Call Home in the U.K.
Updated: Mar. 06, 2023
The Sussex's cozy home is now going to another royal family member.
Next time Prince Harry and Meghan Markle visit the U.K., they may need to search a little harder for a place to stay. Why? The two don’t have an official residence in the U.K. to call theirs anymore.
According to a spokesperson for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the couple has been asked to vacate their previous official U.K. royal residence, Frogmore Cottage. Frogmore Cottage was the pair’s residence since 2019. The cottage was a personal gift from Queen Elizabeth II.
Here’s the latest on what’s happening with the residence now.
What happened to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Frogmore Cottage?
The move comes off the heels of the January release of Prince Harry’s controversial memoir, Spare and the couple’s highly discussed December Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan.
Sources also claim that King Charles III made the choice to oust the couple from the cottage shortly after the memoir was released. Now, the residence is reportedly being offered to the king’s younger brother, Prince Andrew.
Even when the two gave up their working royal duties, they stayed in the cottage for both the Queen’s jubilee and her funeral. Nonetheless, the couple’s spokesperson states that “we can confirm The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been requested to vacate their residence at Frogmore Cottage.”
Meanwhile, Buckingham Palace has yet to make an official comment on the matter.
What is Frogmore Cottage like?
Located about an hour’s drive from London, and around a mile and a half from Windsor Castle itself, Frogmore Cottage has been home to several people with royal connections. These include the Grand Duchess Xenia Romanov from Russia, and Abdul Karim (the subject of the 2017 film Victoria and Abdul), as well as other members of the British royal family. It was named Frogmore because the low-lying marshy surroundings are home to dozens of noisy frogs, something that disgusted Queen Victoria when she visited. Don’t miss these secrets you never knew about Windsor Castle.
But what is the Frogmore cottage like? Of course, the precise cottage details are a closely guarded secret, but we do know that the cottage is Grade II listed (meaning there are some restrictions on how this historic building can be renovated), it has two stories, and a white stucco exterior.
Despite the fact that the residence will no longer belong to the couple, the cottage is newly renovated thanks to the duo. There are a total of five bedrooms on the property, which had ten prior to a renovation reportedly done by Vicky Charles of Charles & Co design studio. Additionally, the cottage maintains two orangeries and a vegetable garden along with a yoga studio.
Although the pair have lost the official U.K. residence, their first Montecito California mansion isn’t too shabby—with a value of over $33 million. However, if the two ever do decide to fly back across the pond—for the King’s upcoming coronation, perhaps?—they’ll have to look for a home of their own.
Sources
- CNN: “Duke and Duchess of Sussex asked to vacate UK home Frogmore Cottage”
- Good Morning America: “Prince Harry, Meghan asked to ‘vacate’ Frogmore Cottage, their UK home”
- Independent: “Insider Frogmore Cottage, the residence at the centre of a new royal row”
