A bitter row between King Charles and Prince Andrew appears to have been reignited in a long-running saga.
The monarch is said to be threatening to cut ties with his younger brother unless he leaves his 30-room Royal Lodge home in Windsor, after previously asking him to move into Frogmore Cottage. The King is said to have warned him of serious consequences if he continues to stay put. But it seems Andrew, who has a 75-year lease is keen to stay and is digging his heels in.
But it's not the first time a disagreement has broken out between the two men - another row about funding in 2011 was said to have left Andrew angry after it affected his daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. In fact, one royal expert said Charles, who was still Prince of Wales at the time, was forced to intervene in the debate about funding for Beatrice and Eugenie's security after it caused a row behind palace walls.
King Charles and Prince Andrew (Getty Images)It is thought the then heir to the throne stepped in after the younger of his nieces racked up huge security costs as she travelled the world on her gap year. A report published at the time suggested Eugenie spent more than £100,000 of taxpayers' money as she explored India, America, Thailand and South Africa.
She paid for hotels and travel herself, but the massive security bill, including overtime money, was funded by the taxpayer. Speaking on Channel 5 documentary Beatrice and Eugenie: Pampered Princesses?, royal expert Richard Kay said: "She was sort of flitting from country to country as most middle-class young people do who take gap years. But, of course, she was accompanied by police bodyguards. That meant that we the taxpayers were paying for policemen to accompany her to the fleshpots of the world."
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Beatrice and Eugenie with the father Andrew (Getty Images)Charles reportedly stepped in to control the spending, and it is claimed he suggested Eugenie and Beatrice didn't need costly security as it's unlikely they will ever become working royals - leaving Andrew furious. It is now understood that both princesses, who are not working royals, have any security they need paid for privately.
Both also hold down jobs with Beatrice working at software company Afiniti while Eugenie is a director at art gallery Hauser & Wirth - although they sometimes support their working royal relatives. However, it appears they might not make an appearance at Trooping the Colour in a few weeks.
Royal sources that invites would be in line with last year when only working members of the family were present. This would mean there will be no place on the Buckingham Palace balcony for the RAF flypast for members of the family including Eugenie and Beatrice or the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh's children Lady Louise Windsor, 20, and James, the Earl of Wessex, 16.
Last month Prince William hosted a Buckingham Palace garden party, where he was joined by his non-working royal cousins including Beatrice and Eugenie as well as Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips. Despite royal aides saying that William personally invited the other "young members" of the royal family to accompany him for the day, talk of permanent working royal roles for the cousins have been downplayed.
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