Not all the estates of the royal family are privately owned by them — many of them are managed by organizations such as the Crown Estate and Historic Royal Palaces. In this review, we will find out which residences are owned by members of the royal family, where they are all located and for what needs they are used.
Context
Most of the land owned by the British royal family is part of the Crown Estate. This organization manages real estate worth 15.8 billion pounds. Crown Estate holdings include more than 287,000 acres of agricultural land and forests, various retail properties throughout the UK, several residences, almost the entire Regent Street and about 55% of the UK coastal strip.
Although the royal family nominally owns the Crown Estate, it is not actually the private property of the King. Crown Estate is an independent commercial business run by the Council. Most of the profits from real estate transactions go to the UK Treasury. According to the Crown Estate’s financial report, the royal family receives 25% of the treasury’s profits in the form of a “sovereign grant.”
It is clear that it is quite difficult to count every piece of agricultural land, monument, castle, commercial facilities and maritime possessions, so we will focus specifically on royal residences.
British royal residences are palaces, castles and houses occupied by members of the British royal family in The United Kingdom. Some of them belong to the crown (this is the state in all its aspects within the framework of the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth kingdoms and their divisions — ed.), while others are in the personal property of a particular member of the royal family and have been passed down from generation to generation.
And there are also objects under the jurisdiction of Historical royal Palaces. They are unoccupied royal palaces, which means they are not used as royal residences or offices. Among these are the Hampton Court Palace and the Tower of London.
There are about 115 former royal residences, and they belonged to representatives of the royal family in different years. Let’s figure out how many royal residences there are at the moment, where they are located and to whom they belong.
Current occupied royal residences
Residences owned by the Crown
1. Buckingham Palace
Location: London.
Residents: The King, Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.
Status: The official London residence of the King and the current royal palace. The King uses Buckingham Palace for official business, but does not reside in the palace. In addition, the state rooms of Buckingham Palace are open to visitors every summer.
ROYAL COLLECTION TRUST ©
2. Clarence House
Location: London.
Residents: King and Queen Consort (Camilla, wife of Charles III, became Queen Consort of the United Kingdom and 14 other Commonwealth realms on September 8, 2022, when her husband became king after the death of his mother, Elizabeth II – ed.).
Status: Official London residence. One of the last surviving aristocratic townhouses in London.
ROYAL COLLECTION TRUST ©
3. Kensington Palace
Location: London.
Residents: The Prince and Princess of Wales; the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester; Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.
Status: the current royal residence, as well as the historical Royal Palace.
Royalparks.org.uk ©
4. Ivy Cottage
Location: London, located in Kensington Palace.
Residents: Princess Eugenie and Mr. Jack Brooksbank.
Snowdon/Camera Press ©
5. St. James’s Palace
Location: London.
Status: The official residence of Princess Anne, as well as the London residences of Princess Beatrice of York and Princess Alexandra.
Britain Express image library ©
6. Thatched House Lodge
Location: Richmond, London.
Residents: Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy.
Status: Official country residence.
Alamy ©
7. Windsor Castle
Location: Windsor, Berkshire.
Residents: The King.
Status: The official country residence of the royal family. The oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world. It is open to visitors throughout the year.
ROYAL COLLECTION TRUST ©
8. Adelaide Cottage
Location: Windsor Manor, Berkshire. It is located in Windsor Home Park, near Windsor Castle.
Residents: The Prince and Princess of Wales.
MATRIXPICTURES.CO.UK ©
9. Frogmore House
Location: Windsor Manor, Berkshire.
Residents: Frogmore Cottage remains the Windsor home of the Sussex family, Harry and Meghan, even after they moved abroad.
ROYAL COLLECTION TRUST ©
10. The Royal Lodge
Location: Windsor Manor, Berkshire.
Residents: Prince Andrew, Duke of York.
Status: Official country residence.
Getty Images ©
11. Bagshot Park
Location: Bagshot, Surrey.
Residents: The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.
Status: Official country residence.
Getty Images ©
12. Holyrood Palace
Location: Edinburgh, Scotland.
Residents: The King.
Status: The official residence of the King in Edinburgh and the home of Scottish royal history.
ROYAL COLLECTION TRUST ©
13. Hillsborough Castle
Location: County Down, Northern Ireland.
Residents: The King.
Status: Official residence in Northern Ireland, as well as the residence of the Secretary of State of Northern Ireland.
gov.uk ©
Royal residences in private ownership
1. Highgrove House
Location: Gloucestershire, England.
Residents: The King and Queen Consort (country family residence); the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Status: The management of the house was transferred to William, Prince of Wales, when he inherited the Duchy of Cornwall.
Getty Images ©
2. Llandovery (Llwynywermod)
Location: Middfye, Carmarthenshire, Wales.
Residents: The Prince and Princess of Wales.
Status: The usual country residence of Prince William of Wales as the current heir to the throne.
3. Tamarisk, or Tamarisk House
Location: St. Marys, Isles of Scilly, England.
Residents: The Prince and Princess of Wales.
Status: Country holiday home.
4. Sandringham House
Location: Sandringham Estate, Norfolk, England.
Residents: The King.
Status: Inherited from the mother of the current king.
visitnorfolk.co.uk ©
5. Anmer Hall
Location: Sandringham Estate, Norfolk, England.
Residents: The Prince and Princess of Wales.
Status: Elizabeth II’s wedding gift to Prince William and Catherine.
6. Balmoral Castle
Location: Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Residents: The King.
Status: Inherited from the mother of the current king. Prince Albert bought the property for Queen Victoria in 1852.
ROYAL COLLECTION TRUST ©
7. Burkhall
Location: Balmoral Estate, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Residents: The King and the Queen Consort.
Status: The King inherited the house when his grandmother died in 2002, when he was still the Prince of Wales.
geograph.org.uk ©
8. Craigowan Lodge
Location: Balmoral, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Residents: The King.
Status: Inherited from the mother of the current king. Today it is mainly used to receive dignitaries.
9. Gatcomb Park
Location: Minchinghampton, Gloucestershire, England.
Residents: Princess Anne, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II.
Status: A private residence, which was presented to the Princess by her mother in 1976.
Alamy ©
EXPRESS ©
Does the British royal family own anything outside of England?
Although Queen Elizabeth previously owned real estate in various parts of the world, by the time of her death she no longer owned property outside the UK. It is noted that in the period from 1949 to 1951, the Queen and her husband, Prince Philip, lived in Malta, but they rented the house in which they lived, and did not own it.
As members of the British Commonwealth, many countries around the world are considered symbolically belonging to the royal family. These countries include Australia, Canada, Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and The Grenadines, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu. Some members of the royal family own real estate outside the UK. According to Hello magazine, King Charles owns a farm in Romania, and Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle own real estate in the United States worth $14.65 million, where they currently reside.
The main photo: Royalparks.org.uk ©
The most frequent questions about the real estate of the British royal family
Who owns most of the royal lands and real estate?
Most of the land and real estate belongs to the Crown Estate organization, which manages assets independently of the royal family. The kings nominally own these assets, but are not actually private owners of them.
How many residences are privately owned by the royal family?
Nine country residences owned by the King and other members of the royal family personally. Among them are Sandringham, Balmoral, Gatcombe Park and others.
Who lives in Buckingham Palace?
Buckingham Palace is used by the King for official purposes, but he does not live there.
Which residences belong to the Prince and Princess of Wales?
The Prince and Princess of Wales own Highgrove House, Llandovery in Wales, Tamarisk in the Scilly Isles and Anmer Hall in Norfolk.
Does the royal family own real estate outside the UK?
At the time of Queen Elizabeth II’s death, she did not own real estate abroad. However, King Charles III owns a farm in Romania, and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle bought a house in the United States.
Author
Yulia Yanukovych Editor-in-Chief
I am responsible for the work of the editorial office. I write expert interviews and guides.
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