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Where is Frogmore Cottage and do Prince Harry and Meghan Markle still live there?
FROGMORE Cottage is a royal residence and the former home of Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
After the release of Prince Harry's memoir Spare, the two finally handed back the keys in 2023.
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When did Harry and Meghan move into Frogmore Cottage?
The couple moved into the property after it had been extensively renovated in April 2019.
The renovations required were reported to have included new heating, wiring and utilities meaning the property had a "substantial overhaul".
The late Queen Elizabeth gifted the couple their cottage for the wedding.
Frogmore Cottage is located in the Frogmore Estate which has 33 acres of private gardens within the Home Park, adjoining Windsor Castle in Berkshire.
It was in the grounds of Windsor Castle that Harry and Meghan Markle got married on May 19, 2018, at St George's Chapel.
A reception then followed on Frogmore House's grounds.
The estate has been used for other royal functions, including the wedding reception of the Queen's grandson Peter Phillips, 44, and Autumn Kelly in May 2008.
When was the cottage renovated?
The cottage's refurbishment cost the taxpayer a huge £2.4 million and was completed in April 2019.
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Harry and Meghan agreed to pay back the money for the refurbishment when they moved to the United States and gave up their royal titles.
It was reported in 2020 that they paid back the money after securing their £112 million Netflix series 'Harry & Meghan'.
Inside Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's homes - from Frogmore Cottage's nursery for Archie and Lilibet to LA mansion
The royal residence now has a designer kitchen and refitted bathroom.
The main renovation took around six months but some work is still outstanding, such as repainting the exterior and landscaping the grounds.
Palace sources said that the cost will not be revealed as it is “part of a five-year repainting and repair programme”.
At a residents' meeting, neighbours of the royals were given a list of "do and don't commandments" which included:
- Don't approach or instigate conversation if you see the couple
- Do say 'Good Morning' or some other pleasantry if they speak to you
- Don't pet or stroke their dogs, even if they come over to you
- Don't offer to walk their dogs
- Don't ask to see baby Archie or offer to babysit
- Don't post anything through the letterbox of Frogmore Cottage
This included royal staff, officials who live in grace-and-favour houses, and Crown Estate employees.
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When did Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank live there?
After Harry, Meghan and Archie left for Los Angeles, it was reported they handed the keys to Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank in November 2020.
Harry has reportedly always been close to his cousin who is the youngest daughter of Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.
The Sussexes' gathered their possessions from the cottage in the middle of the night and left the property.
However, the new tenants didn't stay long and moved out six months later and into Nottingham Cottage on the Kensington Palace grounds following an alleged drama with the Cambridges.
When were Harry and Meghan evicted from Frogmore Cottage?
On February 28, 2023, it was exclusively revealed by The Sun that Harry and Meghan were evicted from Frogmore Cottage by King Charles.
Their eviction came following the release of Prince Harry's memoir Spare.
The memoir was an opportunity for Harry to tell his story following the events of Megxit.
Publishers Penguin Round House stated the book was ''raw, unflinching honesty'' as well as being ''full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief".
It added: "Spare takes readers immediately back to one of the most searing images of the twentieth century: two young boys, two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin as the world watched in sorrow—and horror.
"As Diana, Princess of Wales, was laid to rest, billions wondered what the princes must be thinking and feeling—and how their lives would play out from that point on."
It was reported the couple handed back the keys to the property on June 28, 2023.
Courtier Sir Michael Stevens said: “We can confirm that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have vacated Frogmore Cottage."
The property is now set to be rented out.
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