King Charles will be in “perpetual orbit” if he chooses to divide his time between his more than a dozen royal residences, from London to Transylvania, a royal historian has claimed.
It has been well known for some time that the newly crowned monarch has no desire to move to Buckingham Palace, preferring to reside at his current home Clarence House throughout his reign.
The ‘frugal’ king’s preferences will also likely have implications for the use of Balmoral, with those close to him suggesting he will continue to use a smaller house on the estate, using only the actual castle from the Prime Minister’s visits.
Royal biographers have now suggested the King may be using ongoing renovations to Buckingham Palace as an excuse not to move into what is the world’s most famous royal residence.
Instead, it has been suggested that the 775-room Palace of Westminster, London, which the late Queen Elizabeth called home throughout her reign, could be open to the public all year round.
King Charles will be in ‘perpetual orbit’ if he chooses to divide his time between his more than a dozen royal residences, from London to Transylvania
Royal biographers have now suggested the King may even be using ongoing renovations to Buckingham Palace as an excuse not to move into what is the world’s most famous royal residence.
Royal historian Hugo Vickers, who claimed the king would always be on the move, if he tried to divide his time between the many castles and stately homes across the country.
“I think you’ll find he’ll stay at Clarence House, which even Queen Elizabeth wanted to do, but Winston Churchill made him go to Buckingham Palace.”
Royal expert Ingrid Seward, editor of Majesty magazine, also told The Times: “Maybe in the end he will have to move to Buckingham Palace, but I don’t think he wants to.”
“Buckingham Palace is so huge, impersonal and red, with red carpets and curtains. That’s not his style. He can decide it should be accessible to the public all year round.
The stately home could be opened as a ‘gallery’ or ‘presidents’ guest house’ as part of King Charles’ plans to live in a different royal residence.
Others have claimed Buckingham Palace was considered “unsuitable” for modern life by King Charles, who would prefer to reside at Clarence House throughout his reign.
It comes amid King Charles’ plans to create a ‘lean’ monarchy, which is less expensive and has fewer working royals.
But the palace, which has 19 state rooms, 240 bedrooms, 78 bathrooms and 92 offices, could instead be opened as an art gallery to display “one of the largest private art collections in the world. “.
The King’s preferences for small stately homes may also have implications for Balmoral (pictured) where the late Queen felt most at home
The king is still expected to spend his summers at Castle Mey in Caithness in Scotland (pictured)
It could also be used as a “seat of the monarchy” and an official guest house where people on “state visits” could stay.
Traditionally, her state rooms and gardens were only open to the public for ten weeks a year, from July to October, when the late Queen was at Balmoral.
The private art collection includes works by Rembrandt, Rubens, Titian, Vermeer and others.
And the palace is six years into a decade of taxpayer-funded £369million renovation.
A source close to the King told The Sunday Times: ‘He likes it at Clarence House, is quite thrifty and wouldn’t want to hire an interior designer to redo Buckingham Palace for him.’
“People who come to Britain on state visits expect to stay at Buckingham Palace, so that it can become a gallery and guest house for presidents.”
The source added: ‘The Royal Collection is one of the largest private art collections in the world and it would be a fantastic way to get it seen more widely.
The private art collection includes works by Rembrandt, Rubens, Titian, Vermeer and others.
The King’s preferences for small stately homes may also have implications for Balmoral, where the late Queen felt most at home.
While at the sprawling Scottish estate, Charles often chose to stay at Birkhall – a smaller eight-bedroom house.
Another source told The Times: “He loves Birkhall. I would be amazed if he gave that up.
‘I think it’s much more likely than the rest to be at Balmoral on Prime Minister’s visits, but treat it like an office.’
The King is still expected to spend his summers at Castle Mey in Caithness in Scotland.
A source close to the King told The Sunday Times: ‘He likes it at Clarence House (pictured), is quite thrifty and wouldn’t want to hire an interior designer to redo Buckingham Palace for him’
The private art collection includes works by Rembrandt, Rubens, Titian, Vermeer and others
Traditionally, its state rooms and gardens are only open to the public for ten weeks a year, from July to October. Pictured: The palace ballroom, used for state banquets
The palace is six years into a decade of taxpayer-funded £369million renovation. Pictured: The White Living Room
The building needs an ‘urgent overhaul’ to avoid the risk of fire, flooding and damage, as the electrics, plumbing and heating haven’t been updated since the 1950s, according to the ministers.
In 2020, a two-minute video shared on the Royal Family’s Instagram account showed how 19th-century wallpaper was being carefully removed ‘piece by piece’ from the Yellow Drawing Room as part of work in the East Wing.
The wallpaper was expertly ‘conserved and preserved’ before being hung up in the magnificent reception room at the front of the palace.
Speaking in the video, wallpaper conservator Allyson McDermott explained, “We remove beautiful wallpaper, 19th century Chinese wallpaper, piece by piece. We will then bring it back to our studios to store and preserve it for the future.
She continued: “It’s the perfect time. The paper is in desperate need of conservation. It’s very acidic, very fragile. It’s a wonderful opportunity to do that while all the work is going on around the palace.
The building needs an “urgent overhaul” to prevent the risk of fire, flooding and electrical damage. Pictured: The Yellow Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace