Prince Edward paid an Easter weekend visit to his disgraced brother at his bolthole on the Sandringham Estate because he is worried about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s mental state, the Daily Mail can reveal.
As the police inquiry into Andrew’s links with paedophile billionaire Jeffrey Epstein gathers pace, Edward has become increasingly concerned about the wellbeing of the older sibling with whom he once shared a close bond.
The visit by Edward, accompanied by his wife Sophie, was the first by any member of the Royal family since Andrew went into ‘exile’ in Norfolk.
The trip to see him at his temporary Wood Farm home was described as ‘a brotherly welfare check’.
Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on 19 February on suspicion of misconduct in public office over allegations he shared confidential material with the convicted child sex offender while serving as the UK’s trade envoy.
Those close to Edward describe him as ‘deeply unsettled’ in recent weeks — worried not just by the lurid allegations that have once again engulfed his elder brother, but by fears for Andrew’s mental and physical state as the police inquiry continues.
Whereas King Charles has drawn a decisive line, insisting that Andrew remove himself from the public scene and leave Royal Lodge in Windsor for Sandringham, Edward is said to be quietly playing the role of mediator.
Prince Edward (pictured, left, with his brother Andrew, right, during a service at St Paul’s Cathedral in 2015) visited his brother over Easter weekend
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Prince Edward (pictured, left, with his brother Andrew, right, during a service at St Paul’s Cathedral in 2015) visited his brother over Easter weekend
The former prince was spotted making the trip from Wood Farm to Marsh Farm, on the Sandringham Estate, with only his dogs for company, on Monday
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The former prince was spotted making the trip from Wood Farm to Marsh Farm, on the Sandringham Estate, with only his dogs for company, on Monday
The trip to see him at his temporary Wood Farm home (pictured) was described as ‘a brotherly welfare check’
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The trip to see him at his temporary Wood Farm home (pictured) was described as ‘a brotherly welfare check’
A source said: ‘Edward and Sophie had dinner with Andrew one night over the weekend and they talked things through.
‘It’s true to say they both feel sorry for Andrew and how far he has fallen and they are worried about his fragile state of mind.
‘They do feel for him, but of course that doesn’t excuse his behaviour.
‘It’s a difficult balancing act supporting him while not condoning what he has got involved with.
‘Andrew still maintains has not done anything wrong and thinks he will be vindicated one day but I think Edward will have tried to talk some sense into him and made it clear his days as a working royal are over.’
In public, Edward has only called for people to concentrate on the victims of the Epstein scandal.
‘I think it’s all really important, always, to remember the victims and who are the victims in all this,’ he said in February, before Andrew’s arrest.
But a royal source told the Mail: ‘Privately he is still supporting his brother.
‘Both he and Princess Anne are understandably concerned about Andrew’s mental state and what is going to become of him.’
The source played down any suggestion of a disagreement over the brothers’ respective property arrangements.
Reports at the weekend had suggested the brothers had been at odds because Edward and Sophie had expected Andrew, 66, to have vacated the farmhouse by last Thursday.
But royal sources insist there was ‘no bad blood’ between the brothers, and 62-year-old Edward’s visit to Andrew was ‘borne entirely out of concern’.
The late Queen Elizabeth’s two youngest sons enjoyed a ‘friendly’ exchange – as well as dinner with Sophie, 61 – and there was ‘no real discord’ over the holiday accommodation, said an insider.
Prince Edward and Sophie usually stay at Wood Farm when visiting Sandringham but were unable to do so this Easter as Andrew was still resident there.
Thai was because final building work was not quite finished at Andrew’s new permanent home, Marsh Farm, less than a mile away
Instead, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh were put up in the Gardens House, a modest commercial holiday-let property closer to Sandringham House itself.
But royal sources today insisted that the brothers had not fallen out over this.
Prince Edward and Sophie stayed at Gardens House (pictured) on the King’s Sandringham estate instead of their usual Easter bolthole Wood Farm because Andrew was staying their instead
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Prince Edward and Sophie stayed at Gardens House (pictured) on the King’s Sandringham estate instead of their usual Easter bolthole Wood Farm because Andrew was staying their instead
