After eleven years as The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Catherine gained a small portfolio of properties across the UK. Now, as heir apparent to the throne, William and his family are likely to upgrade their residences in time. So, from Sandringham to Windsor and in-between, this post takes a look at Will and Kate’s Houses, currently:
Kensington Palace; Apartment 1A
Top Arrow: Apartment 1A. Bottom Arrow: the offices of The Prince and Princess of Wales
The Drawing Room of The Prince and Princess of Wales in Apartment 1A, Kensington Palace
The Drawing Room of The Prince and Princess of Wales in Apartment 1A, Kensington Palace
The Drawing Room inside Apartment 1A, Kensington Palace
Kensington Palace is a complex of cottages and apartments housing royals and royal staff. After tying the knot in 2011, it was announced that Prince William and his wife Catherine were to move from the bachelor cottage of Nottingham Cottage to a family residence within the palace itself. Apartment 1A, which had been home to The Queen’s sister Princess Margaret from 1963 to her death is 2002, was offered and immediately underwent renovations, including the removal of asbestos and upgrading plumbing and electrics which had remained untouched for decades.
The couple and their newborn, Prince George, officially moved into the apartment in 2013. Finally, in April 2016, some photographs from inside the apartment were released to the public when President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle visited the couple at their apartment. The images were the first time the interiors of Apartment 1A had been seen since Princess Margaret’s time in the building. Original elements, such as the door pediments, fireplaces, and even the black-and-white tile flooring in the entrance hall all remained, while contemporary fittings turned the space into a welcoming home. Some selected images released years later showed the reception room again, providing further insight into the couple’s comfy-but-refined style, using timeless pieces that will no doubt last throughout the family’s incumbency at the residence.
The apartment comprises of twenty rooms set over four floors, with five reception rooms, three ‘principle’ bedrooms with their own dressing rooms and bathrooms, in addition to nursery ‘accommodation’, along with staff quarters and ancillary rooms such as luggage room, linen store and pantry. The apartment also comes with a sizeable garden and is a short walk across the courtyard from The Prince and Princess of Wales’ official offices (as pointed out in the first image above), which used to act as the home of the former Prince and Princess of Wales in the late 1980s and 1990s.
Anmer Hall, Sandringham
Showing St Mary’s church and the newly built orangery on the Anmer estate
Still showing the orangery and garden at Anmer Hall
The kitchen inside Anmer Hall
Like any aristocratic family, when the then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge married they gained both a London residence (above) and a country retreat. Anmer Hall on the Sandringham estate was gifted to the couple by The Queen as the family’s main home outside of their work in London. The Georgian hall is only 3 miles from Sandringham House where the royal family spend Christmas Day. The Grade-II property is set over two storeys and comes with ten bedrooms and a orangery, known as the ‘garden room’, which was added by the Waleses in 2013 (see in the images above).
The renovation of the property included landscaping, new roofs, a new tennis court, swimming pool and the addition of a chicken coop and bee hives, where the family make their own honey. A new kitchen was also installed, which was briefly glimpsed during the 2022 jubilee when the family released pictures of the children making cupcakes ahead of a street party in Wales (see above). In 2021, the family also released a video montage showing peeks of Anmer’s gardens, to commemorate the couple’s 10 year wedding anniversary. As a protective and private family, these are the only glimpses into the home’s style and Ben Pentreath-designed decor since they moved to the property. According to British Vogue, the dining room of the property is painted in “bold jewel green”.
Adelaide Cottage, Windsor
In the summer of 2022 it was announced that the family of five would be temporarily moving to Adelaide Cottage on the ground of Windsor Park, in order for the children to start a new school in September. The ‘cottage’ is actually a set of two buildings merged together; Adelaide Cottage and Adelaide Lodge. An enclosed brick-walled courtyard joins the cottage to the red brick lodge, while a further extension is believed to have been added to the rear of the cottage decades after the original building.
The original cottage, built in 1831, stands at the central point of the plot, with a substantial side extension later photographed in 1900s. The cottage’s extension, which holds the ‘AR’ royal cypher for Queen Adelaide, includes a second storey, four looming chimney towers, an entrance hall and a smart porte cochère, which continues to stand over the gravel turning circle today. Today, the home enjoys a meandering gravel in-and-out drive, reasonable sized gardens, a red brick outbuilding and gatehouse; perfect for a small security detail.
Learn more about Adelaide Cottage in this previous post.
View Kate Middleton’s childhood homes in this previous post or see more royal residences by browsing the ‘royalty‘ tag, including a look inside Balmoral Castle, Buckingham Palace and Sandringham House.
feature image: Pete Souza, The White House, public domain.
All images used under fair use and fair dealing guidelines