‘No royals’ will move into Windsor Castle for the foreseeable future while King Charles ‘will only use Buckingham Palace as an office during five-year £369m renovation’
- Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace are both set to stay empty, sources say
- Buckingham Palace is undergoing major renovations which will take five years
- Monarch and Queen Consort will likely continue to call Clarence House home
Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace are set to stay empty for the foreseeable future with King Charles III opting to keep Clarence House as his permanent residence.
The monarch will reportedly not live in Buckingham Palace for up to five years and will instead wait for the completion of the site’s £370m renovation in 2027.
There were whispers Prince William and Princess Kate would move into Windsor but a source told The Sun there are now ‘no plans for them to leave Adelaide Cottage’.
The Prince and Princess of Wales recently moved into the four-bed cottage on Windsor estate with their three children in order to be closer for the school drop-off.
Balmoral Castle – a favourite of the late Queen Elizabeth II – is also expected to remain empty.
The new Monarch was spending at least one night a week at Windsor Castle (pictured) as the Queen’s mobility problems worsened in the year before her death
It’s understood they’ll spend three nights each week at Clarence House, two nights at Windsor Castle and weekends at Sandringham in Norfolk
The monarch will reportedly not live in Buckingham Palace for up to five years and will instead wait for the completion of the site’s £370m renovation in 2027
The publication reported it may be opened up to tourists in the near future.
Meanwhile the new King and Queen Consort Camilla are expected to split their time between several other castles.
Their primary residence will likely continue to be Clarence House – just 400 yards away from Buckingham Palace and where they’ve lived for 19 years.
The couple moved into the five-bed residence in 2003, one year after the Queen Mother died.
It is understood they’ll spend some time at Sandringham in Norfolk. The couple also have their idyllic countryside private residence, Highgrove House, near Tetbury in Gloucestershire.
King Charles acquired the grounds in 1980 and has devoted much of his spare time and energy into making the grounds and garden around the house immaculate.
It’s unclear whether they will reconsider their living arrangements once the 10-year refurbishments are completed at Buckingham Palace.
While the King will not call Buckingham home for the duration of the renovation, it’s understood he will continue to use available spaces for work and meetings.
‘Refurbishment is very far behind schedule but the Monarch should be living at Buckingham Palace,’ a source previously said.
‘It’s the heart of the monarchy in London, otherwise it risks becoming just a tourist attraction. We effectively have a king without a palace to live in.’
Buckingham Palace is about halfway through its biggest refurbishment since before the Second World War, which includes new wiring, plumbing and heating.
It’s understood King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla will choose to spend their weekends at Sandringham House in Norfolk (pictured)
The couple also have their idyllic countryside private residence, Highgrove House (pictured), near Tetbury in Gloucestershire. King Charles acquired the grounds in 1980 and has devoted much of his spare time and energy into making the grounds and garden around the house immaculate
Wallpaper in some of the rooms, including the Yellow Drawing Room in the East Wing, will ‘conserved and preserved’ by experts before being rehung.
The bill for the refurbishment will be met by taxpayers via the Sovereign Grant – the annual fee paid by the Government to the monarch – with a third of the cash set aside for maintaining Royal palaces.
The project involves ten miles of water pipes, 6,500 plug sockets, 500 pieces of sanitary ware (toilet, basins and the like) and 20 miles of skirting board being replaced after experts warned there was ‘serious risk’ of fire and water damage to the palace and the priceless works of art it contains due to palace’s perilous state of repair.
It is estimated that the benefits of the upgrade, including longer summer opening hours, more private tours and savings due to the improvements, could be around £3.4 million each year.
The work needed reflects the age of the building, which was first used as a royal palace by Queen Victoria and had not been decorated since 1952, the year the Queen ascended the throne.
A two-minute video shared on the Royal Family Instagram account in 2020 revealed how 19th century wallpaper is being removed ‘piece by piece’ from the Yellow Drawing Room as part of work in the East Wing. Pictured, the Yellow Drawing Room in 2018 ahead of the work
Source: Read Full Article
