Farewell to Frogmore Cottage
It was clear that the real eviction from Frogmore Cottage was a crucial moment in Harry and Meghan’s divorce from the rest of the Royal Family when the move was given its own nickname, being dubbed Frogxit. An exit within an exit (the Megxit) within an exit (the Brexit) that had definitively changed the cards on the table for the youngest son of King Charles and Lady Diana and for his whole family, who was left without a royal protected residence to take refuge in the case of a prolonged stay in the United Kingdom, which, not surprisingly, has not happened since.
Renovations and Expenses
The move from Frogmore Cottage, which had been donated to the Sussexes by Harry’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, was not easy for the couple, who had also recounted this moment with nostalgia in the Netflix docuseries: “That moment gave us the opportunity to look back and review our entire story from the beginning,” Meghan said tearfully. Harry had also told his bombshell autobiography Spare the importance of that place for the couple: “we have always adored that place. From the first minute,” the Prince writes. “It seemed that we were destined to live there. We couldn’t wait to wake up in the morning, take a long walk in the gardens, go to greet the swans”. Yet, despite this declaration of love for that place, it was the release of Spare that made the cup overflow, prompting the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to move their remaining belongings out of the Crown Estate-owned residence. The confirmation of Harry and Meghan’s farewell to the house near Windsor Castle only comes now, on the occasion of the annual report on the Sovereign Grant, the agreement by which members of the British royal family use public money to pay for their official duties, and then account for them to their subjects. “We can confirm that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have left Frogmore Cottage,” said Sir Michael Stevens, Keeper of the Private Finances. “We won’t go into the details of the agreements, but it can be said that, as previously stated, the Duke and Duchess have paid the expenses incurred by the Sovereign Grant in relation to the renovation of Frogmore Cottage, thus leaving the Crown with a significantly enriched estate”. The renovation of the Home Park estate carried out by Harry and Meghan, according to the Royal accounts of 2019, had cost 2.4 million pounds (about 2 million and 8 thousand euros).
Future of the Residence
Sir Stevens refused to make any comments or statements about the future of the residence, nor on the possibility that it will be assigned to Prince Andrew (who in turn would have been “evicted” by Kate and William): “Today we will not discuss any details of the Duke’s private lease agreement,” Sir Stevens said in the face of journalists’ persistent questions.
