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The future now looks deeply uncertain for Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, as the fallout from their parents’ links to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein continues to cast a long shadow.
It’s a bleak period for the York sisters, who have been forced to watch Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson’s very public downfall unfold. While Beatrice was photographed visiting her parents at Royal Lodge following Andrew’s decision to relinquish his Duke of York title, Eugenie has not been seen — and both appear to be keeping their distance as the scandal rages on.
In recent months, the sisters have reportedly become “rare visitors” to Royal Lodge, the grand 30-room Windsor residence they once called home. Prince Andrew, under growing pressure to vacate the property, is believed to have long hoped to keep the estate within the family — with the intention of one day passing it on to his two daughters.
The future now looks deeply uncertain for Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, as the fallout from their parents’ links to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein continues to cast a long shadow.
It’s a bleak period for the York sisters, who have been forced to watch Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson’s very public downfall unfold. While Beatrice was photographed visiting her parents at Royal Lodge following Andrew’s decision to relinquish his Duke of York title, Eugenie has not been seen — and both appear to be keeping their distance as the scandal rages on.
In recent months, the sisters have reportedly become “rare visitors” to Royal Lodge, the grand 30-room Windsor residence they once called home. Prince Andrew, under growing pressure to vacate the property, is believed to have long hoped to keep the estate within the family — with the intention of one day passing it on to his two daughters.
Instead, the York family remained together at Sarah and Prince Andrew’s former marital residence, Sunninghill Park.
The sprawling Surrey mansion, nestled in the affluent village of Windlesham, stood empty for two years before being sold in 1999 for £1.5 million. It later returned to the market in 2016 for £4.2 million, listed by the private owners who had purchased it from the royals.
Known as Birch Hall, the estate features seven bedrooms, four bathrooms, and five reception rooms, spread across five acres of manicured grounds. The property includes vast lawns, a tennis court, a heated outdoor swimming pool, and a separate two-bedroom staff cottage. Later additions by new owners include a media and games room, an elegant orangery, and a fully equipped home gym — blending royal heritage with modern luxury.
When the property was listed for sale in 2016, Andrew Russell of estate agency Strutt & Parker told the Daily Mail: “It’s probably one of the very best village houses in north Surrey — there aren’t many like it that come on the market. It’s a true country house, sitting on five acres of beautiful grounds.”
He continued: “The house itself is an exceptionally attractive and imposing property. Some of the rooms are quite dramatic, with high ceilings and full-length sash windows. It boasts a swimming pool, a tennis court, and gardens filled with magnificent specimen trees dating back to Victorian times.”
Reflecting on the property’s royal ties, Russell added: “The owners bought it from trustees acting on behalf of the Queen in 1999. The trustees had originally purchased it in 1997 for the princesses, and I imagine it was chosen because it’s such a lovely house in a sought-after village — the gardens are more like parkland. But the family never ended up moving in.”
He also described how the property’s later owners had given it a stylish modern update: “They reconfigured the staircase and completely refurbished the house throughout, moving the kitchen so it now overlooks the garden and swimming pool.”
Princess Beatrice now resides in a £3.5 million farmhouse in the Cotswolds with her husband, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, and their children. Princess Eugenie and her family, meanwhile, divide their time between Ivy Cottage at Kensington Palace and their main home in Portugal.
