Meghan and Harry ‘struck deal to hand Frogmore without knowledge of royals’

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry ‘blindsided’ senior royals when they handed the keys to Frogmore Cottage over to Princess Eugenie, an insider has claimed. 

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who currently reside in an £11million mansion in California, reportedly discussed plans for Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank to move into the property without consulting the royal family.

A source told the Sun on Sunday: ‘Senior royals were initially blindsided by the idea for Harry and Meg to let Eugenie and Jack move in.

‘Obviously the Queen was told after the couples had spoken about the plan. 

‘But it is very much a deal done between Harry, Meghan, Eugenie and Jack. There is a close bond between them.’ 

Eugenie, 30, and Mr Brooksbank, 34, reportedly moved into the five-bedroom home a fortnight ago after speaking directly with the Sussexes. 

An insider claimed on Friday that Harry and Meghan had their possessions shipped off to California after ‘removal vans pitched up in the dead of night and cleared out the cottage.’ 

This was said to be a ‘pretty strong sign’ the couple have ‘no plans to return’ to Windsor.    

Eugenie, 30, and her husband Jack Brooksbank (pictured), 34, moved into the five-bedroom home in Windsor two weeks ago, reports claim

The two couples have now been dubbed the new ‘Fab Four’, a term once used to describe Harry, Meghan and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.     

Eugenie and Jack, who married at St George’s Chapel in October 2018, are expecting their first child in the New Year and are said to be ‘delighted’ with Frogmore Cottage. 

Meghan and Harry spent £2.4million from the Sovereign Grant on renovations on Frogmore Cottage – an outlay of public money which became controversial after they quit as working royals in March.

But the Sussexes reimbursed taxpayers in full for the renovation in September.

A source previously said: ‘Emptying their home and handing over the keys is a pretty strong sign Harry and Meghan have no plans to return.

‘It appears they are tying up loose ends as they plan to extend their stay in the US perhaps permanently.’

However, it was said Harry and Meghan will retain Frogmore Cottage as their home in Britain, and suggested when visiting the UK they will share it with Eugenie and Mr Brooksbank. 

Suspicions were reportedly raised after lights were spotted inside the cottage around two weeks ago. Staff are said to have been sent in to prepare the home for its new tenants. 

The pair, who married at St George’s Chapel in October 2018, are expecting their first child and are said to be ‘delighted’ with Frogmore Cottage (pictured)

Harry and Meghan’s furniture is being shipped to their £11million mansion in California (pictured) after they allegedly gave away the keys to Frogmore Cottage, in Windsor, 

Princess Eugenie, the younger daughter of Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, and Mr Brooksbank had been living at Ivy Cottage at Kensington Palace.

The couple will now be much closer to the Princess’s parents, who live four miles away at Royal Lodge, Windsor Great Park, and less than a mile from Windsor Castle, where the Queen is spending lockdown with Prince Philip. 

Buckingham Palace said it could not comment on whether Princess Eugenie and her husband are going to be paying rent on the Crown Estate property – and if so, to whom – or how long the arrangement was due to last.

A Buckingham Palace spokesman said: ‘Frogmore Cottage is the private residence of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and as such any arrangements are a matter for them.’

The reported change in tenant comes after Harry and Meghan reimbursed taxpayers in full for the £2.4million used to renovate the Windsor home.

The couple – who had been paying back the cash in monthly instalments – announced in September that they had totally refunded the Sovereign Grant for the redevelopment of five-bedroom Frogmore Cottage on the Queen’s Berkshire estate.  

Sources close to the couple also claimed that they would no longer be receiving handouts from Prince Charles as they sought to establish ‘financial independence’. 

It was revealed in the wake of the couple’s decision to step back from their royal roles and to live in America that the Prince of Wales would make a private financial contribution to help them during their first year away.  

 It is understood Eugenie (pictured with her husband) and her cousin reached a ‘private agreement’ over the Grade II-listed cottage though it is not known how long it will last

An insider has claimed Harry and Meghan had their prized possessions shipped off to California after ‘removal vans pitched up in the dead of night and cleared out the cottage’

A source told The Telegraph: ‘They are not receiving support in any way shape or form from any external person other than themselves.’

However, another source told the Mail that the move, which came after it was revealed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had secured a lucrative deal to produce shows for streaming giant Netflix, said to be worth in the region of $100million (£75million), would not make them immune to scrutiny.

The source said: ‘This has come as something of a surprise,’ they admitted, ‘and it can only be assumed this has something to do with the Netflix deal. Maybe it now means he can afford to pay the money back in full at once or maybe he has been irritated by the criticism that the deal has led to of his finances. No one really knows.

‘But if he thinks that it will make him immune from public and media scrutiny, he is misguided.

‘This new, highly visible media role that he is seeking in the US makes him more of a public figure than ever.’

The £2.4million in public money that was used to convert Frogmore from what had been five small staff cottages into a larger country home for the couple has been a particular bone of contention since they quit as working royals in January.

Critics had argued that not only should the cash be refunded in full after their move to California, but they should also forfeit their right to even live at Frogmore, which was given to them by the Queen.

Those calls intensified after they recently bought an £11million nine-bedroom, 16-bathroom mansion in Montecito, Santa Barbara, with a £7.5million mortgage. 

MailOnline has contacted Buckingham Palace and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for comment on the latest claims.