Prince William moves and sows doubt about the future of the Buckingham Palace in London

Crown prince William. Nevertheless, his family have planned to settle in a new property on the Windsor field, arousing questions about the future of the Buckingham Palace, currently renovated at great expense.

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According to the tabloid The Sunthe princely couple and their three children found in Forest Lodge, manor of eight rooms in Windsor, west of London, their “house forever”.

The Palais de Kensington. Consequently, which manages the communication from William and Kate, confirmed to AFP that the family was going to move “later this year”.

She already lived in the prince william moves sows doubt royal domain, in a smaller accommodation.

If the future king. Moreover, his family settle definitively in Windsor, the palace of Buckingham, in repair in the center of London, will cease to be the official residence of the British monarch as she had been since 1837.

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For the commentator Royal Richard Fitzwilliams, this “would be a disaster if Buckingham was sidelined”.

“It is an emblematic building, comparable to the White House and known all over the world,” he said to AFP.

Located in the heart of the capital, the 755 -room palace is a very popular attraction for tourists. About 500,000 visit it each year prince william moves sows doubt during the summer months.

$ 689 million

From an institutional point of view. it is the beating heart of the British monarchy, with its numerous official ceremonies, Garden-Summer parties and its famous balcony, from where the royal family greets the public during ceremonies like the anniversary of the king (Trooping the Color).

King Charles III, 76, does not live there, however, because major renovation works are in progress. A site valued at 369 million pounds (just under 689 million Canadian dollars) and which has to last until 2027.

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Charles, who announced in early 2024 to suffer from cancer whose nature has never been revealed, prince william moves sows doubt assured that he intended to make the palace of Buckingham his London base once the work is completed.

The fact remains that “given his fight against cancer, it might not happen” underlines Richard Fitzwilliams.

The monarch has never hidden preferred his residence in Clarence House, London, where he has lived since 2003.

Many residences

Buckingham Palace is only many properties used by the royal family, whether deprived or belonging to the crown.

The favorite residences of the deceased queen Elizabeth II were the castle of Windsor. the Château de Balmoral, in Scotland, where she retired every summer.

The Noëls had passed to Sandringham House, in eastern England.

Charles. he has invested a lot in his Highgrove House residence in the west of England, where he designed gardens and an entirely organic farm.

As for William and Kate, they also have several residences in London and the English countryside.

William has prince william moves sows doubt never addressed the question of the future of the Buckingham Palace. According to the Daily Mail. he could, once become king, register in the footsteps of his father by opening the institution more to the public.

For Richard Fitzwilliams, Buckingham “must absolutely remain the center of the monarchy, which William and Catherine live there or not”.

“I fear that a future part -time king hidden in Forest Lodge … can lead to a drop in support for his subjects,” wrote the Daily Mail columnist, Amanda Platell.

A Yougov survey published in 2024 revealed that only a third (35%) of 18-24 year olds said they were in favor of maintaining the monarchy. against “fairly wide” support in the general population.