Future Home for Prince Harry

[Countessmeout]

Posters are saying that Apt 4B is very opulent. Are there pictures we can see? I haven't found any in a google search.

No, because it belonged to an employee, no reason for there to be public published pictures of his private home. Just some descriptions of the work done inside.

 

[Lady Nimue]

No, because it belonged to an employee, no reason for there to be public published pictures of his private home. Just some descriptions of the work done inside.

Where are those descriptions? Here on TRF?

 

[Countessmeout]

Where are those descriptions? Here on TRF?

Yes, by me on the previous page, post 794. Very minimal but there.

There is also this

Meanwhile, it emerged that £115,000 had been spent refurbishing Peat’s own five-bedroom, four-bathroom apartment at Kensington Palace that he still shares with his wife Deborah. Mirrors were regilded and a magnificent sweeping staircase restored. The home was decorated with valuable paintings, chandeliers and antiques from the Royal Collection.
When Princess Diana, who had a neighbouring apartment at the palace, saw it, she famously observed: ‘It’s a grander house than mine.’

 

[Lady Nimue]

I see. So the descriptions are indeed minimal and buried in out-of-the-way articles not necessarily relevant to the topic, just mentioned in passing. Understood.

P.S. In my googling it became apparent that nothing of the interior of KP is available in pictures, unless an occupant, like Diana, or Princess Michael, or Princess Margaret, allowed a photo spread for some reason. There are some pictures of William's and Kate's place with the Obamas, and there are numerous renovation photos. That's it. Exterior but no more.

 

[Curryong]

These descriptions surely are relevant to the topic as we have been discussing the possibilities of Harry's future London home. This will almost certainly be at KP if he is going to be housed in a large apartment, and I for one found the description of the opulence of 4b very interesting, especially the sweeping staircase.

 

[Mirabel]

Princess Diana's old apartments are not empty, they are W,K & H's offices for their staff.

I don't see why the offices must be inside Kensington Palace.

Couldn't a nearby residence be purchased where the staff could work?
It's not likely that W,K, & H visit them every day.

 

[wyevale]

residence be purchased where the staff could work?

Possibly, but South Kensington is one of the most expensive areas in London, and [since it is largely residential and retail] there is little suitable office space locally.

 

[Kitty1224]

Why is it hard for some of you to believe Harry can have a large Kensington apt and a country home? Combining Apt 4a and 4b is logical. How many rooms does 4a have?

 

[Empress Merel]

According to that one picture that always shows up when you google Kensington Palace apartments, 4a is modest and 4b is more opulent.
I don't see why Harry couldn't have a base in Kensington Palace aswell as a country home either. It doesn't have to be a big grand house ala Amner Hall.

 

[jacqui24]

What we see if that every generation of royals are given different accommodations. The Gloucesters, who are cousins of the Queen, has the use of Apartment 1, which is huge while her children, other than Charles, have smaller accommodations. It's clear that there is discretion in this, especially as Charles plan on taking on less support for his extended family once he takes over. We shall see, but there are definitely options for Harry.

 

[Skippyboo]

Andrew, Edward and Anne -all got large country homes so they get small London accommodations. Margaret got the large London home and no country house. The Kents, Gloucesters could not afford to maintain their country homes.

 

[Tamara77]

No, even the information on it isn't clear. Some articles say 5 bedrooms, others 6. It has been a private residence for many years to royal staff, so not likely to have been photographed. And seems to have been updated during those times.

Thank you, Countessmeout!

 

[Lady Nimue]

Why is it hard for some of you to believe Harry can have a large Kensington apt and a country home? Combining Apt 4a and 4b is logical. How many rooms does 4a have?

I think the arguments are based on history and the fact that a country home requires up-keep (money, if not on a Crown Estate). It's all a matter of what Harry can afford or is willing to use his capital on. Also, why have a grand country home if one spends all one's time in London, and vice versa, why have a grand London home that stands idle most of the time because one is always at home in the country.

Fact is Apt 4B has been sitting idle for years and there are news articles going back to 2011 claiming that 4B us being kept free for Harry. It seems to me the decision was made long ago. Harry picked Apt 4B (maybe) but has not wanted to move in until he marries. ?

P.S. I would think, as well, that the woman Harry marries would have input into the future family's living arrangements.

 

[Osipi]

One thing, I think, that we can pretty much count on as a given is that Harry and his family will have a London based residence and by all logistics, Kensington Palace seems to be the most logical place that it will be.

The country home angle is really what is up for speculation. We don't know what Harry and his family will prefer or even where they may prefer it to be. They'll find somewhere that resonates with them when the time comes. If we look at Charles, we notice that he went totally personal in his choice of Highgrove. He also had the perk of being able to convince the Duchy of Cornwall that buying Highgrove was a good investment to make.

For all we know, once Charles does become King, Harry and his growing family may prefer Birkhall or they may prefer somewhere in Norfolk on the Sandringham estate or near to it. Then again, they just might opt out for a little grass shack somewhere in Africa to "escape" to every now and then.

For now, Nottingham Cottage at KP fits the bill for a single Harry and even cozy and comfy for newlyweds. I don't see them having to make major decisions about residences right yet but they most likely have a general idea of what those decisions will be.

 

[tommy100]

I can't see Harry not having some sort of country house to use. I suspect a KP apartment for city use, to me the question is how big the house in the country will be.

 

[Pranter]

Realistically, due to time and ages H&M will probably only have 1 or 2 children even if she does a CP Victoria! So the need for a large space at KP may not be that great...the same for a country home. It could be rather modest in size as opposed to some great pile.


LaRae

 

[Kitty1224]

I think the arguments are based on history and the fact that a country home requires up-keep (money, if not on a Crown Estate). It's all a matter of what Harry can afford or is willing to use his capital on. Also, why have a grand country home if one spends all one's time in London, and vice versa, why have a grand London home that stands idle most of the time because one is always at home in the country.

Fact is Apt 4B has been sitting idle for years and there are news articles going back to 2011 claiming that 4B us being kept free for Harry. It seems to me the decision was made long ago. Harry picked Apt 4B (maybe) but has not wanted to move in until he marries. ?

P.S. I would think, as well, that the woman Harry marries would have input into the future family's living arrangements.

4B is more opulent if it has 6 bedrooms, and 4a no one lives in it so I can see it being combined for him. Who knows Harry could have a country home if he wanted to.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

One thing, I think, that we can pretty much count on as a given is that Harry and his family will have a London based residence and by all logistics, Kensington Palace seems to be the most logical place that it will be.

For all we know, once Charles does become King, Harry and his growing family may prefer Birkhall or they may prefer somewhere in Norfolk on the Sandringham estate or near to it. Then again, they just might opt out for a little grass shack somewhere in Africa to "escape" to every now and then.

Birkhall doesn't seem practical for children going to school. The areas around Norfolk, Gloucestershire or Windsor seem more viable.
I don't think there is a doubt that Harry will have a London home, how big seems to be the question. I agree KP seems logical.
4a could possibly work if he has a larger country home, 4a&b combined if he gets a small home to use on one of the Crown Estates or land privately owned by the monarch. We'll know eventually.

 

[Empress Merel]

I think the arguments are based on history and the fact that a country home requires up-keep (money, if not on a Crown Estate). It's all a matter of what Harry can afford or is willing to use his capital on. Also, why have a grand country home if one spends all one's time in London, and vice versa, why have a grand London home that stands idle most of the time because one is always at home in the country.

Fact is Apt 4B has been sitting idle for years and there are news articles going back to 2011 claiming that 4B us being kept free for Harry. It seems to me the decision was made long ago. Harry picked Apt 4B (maybe) but has not wanted to move in until he marries. ?

P.S. I would think, as well, that the woman Harry marries would have input into the future family's living arrangements.

But again, why does it have to a grand home? It could perfectly well be a small home with just the right amount of bedrooms for them and their future children. I never saw the use of having two reception rooms and the likes.

 

[Abbigail]

Realistically, due to time and ages H&M will probably only have 1 or 2 children even if she does a CP Victoria! So the need for a large space at KP may not be that great...the same for a country home. It could be rather modest in size as opposed to some great pile.


LaRae

Depends on what you mean by large space. I doubt they'd prefer a residence with less than 5 bedrooms, as I'm sure they would want a room or two available for guests. If Meghan's parents came to visit, for example, they would require two separate bedrooms. Add two children into the mix and 5 bedrooms seemingly become the minimum.

 

[Osipi]

But again, why does it have to a grand home? It could perfectly well be a small home with just the right amount of bedrooms for them and their future children. I never saw the use of having two reception rooms and the likes.

This absolutely makes a whole lot of sense. From what I've observed is that the younger royals (Will and Kate for example) are more along the lines of "doing things themselves" rather than have a household filled with cooks and butlers and upstairs and downstairs maids and did lavish entertaining.

We've seen the Cambridges add a family type kitchen to their apartment 1A at KP where its easy to imagine Kate cooking dinner and the kids feeding Lupo morsels under the table. Harry and Meghan's relationship has been reported to being a lot of staying in and shopping for food at Waitrose and cooking for themselves at Nottingham Cottage. If both couples are having a London base for a residence (near schools and their office), they have Diana's old apartment to use as reception rooms and for their staff (such as the Obama visit was used).

If we think that William and Kate present a more "do it yourself" type of an environment, I can imagine that Harry and Meghan would very likely be the same and perhaps even more so. Neither couple seem to dote on opulence and lavish surroundings with oodles of noodles of "help". I think the grand old country piles and the Downton Abbey portrayal of the "Lady of the Manor" are fading into a rich but old traditional way of living when it comes to the up and coming young royals. Times have changed. Things cost far more these days to keep up than they used to and the times of the grand country piles with balls and country pursuits aren't at the level that they used to be.

Of course I could be wrong as I don't *know* these people or how they spend their private time but this is how it appears to be for me.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

But again, why does it have to a grand home? It could perfectly well be a small home with just the right amount of bedrooms for them and their future children. I never saw the use of having two reception rooms and the likes.

It also has to be viable for security-a perimeter area and lodging for RPOs. Things most people don't have to think about.

 

[Empress Merel]

If it's on one of QE's estates, that might not cause too much of a problem?

 

[Skippyboo]

You also have to house all the security people in a country house. Why do you think the Middletons moved to a larger house after William and Kate got married? The RPOs stay with the royals 24/7 when they aren't in a secured palace like KP.

 

[Kitty1224]

Birkhall doesn't seem practical for children going to school. The areas around Norfolk, Gloucestershire or Windsor seem more viable.
I don't think there is a doubt that Harry will have a London home, how big seems to be the question. I agree KP seems logical.
4a could possibly work if he has a larger country home, 4a&b combined if he gets a small home to use on one of the Crown Estates or land privately owned by the monarch. We'll know eventually.

Honestly why does it matter? He can have both a huge country home and london home in Kensington.

 

[Pranter]

Depends on what you mean by large space. I doubt they'd prefer a residence with less than 5 bedrooms, as I'm sure they would want a room or two available for guests. If Meghan's parents came to visit, for example, they would require two separate bedrooms. Add two children into the mix and 5 bedrooms seemingly become the minimum.

Large space relatively speaking to that lifestyle. I would say 5/6 bedrooms would be consider small/average for someone in his/their position. Probably not the size of Amer Hall though..but then again they might want a big space for other reasons too.


LaRae

 

[tommy100]

I think they could have country home just not a massive estate, I'm not sure they would get a Gatcombe/Highgrove style estate but they could easily afford the upkeep of a 5-6 bedroom house with possibly even a small cottage or two in the grounds without having acres and acres to look after.They would have access to the royal estates after all.

 

[Kitty1224]

I think they could have country home just not a massive estate, I'm not sure they would get a Gatcombe/Highgrove style estate but they could easily afford the upkeep of a 5-6 bedroom house with possibly even a small cottage or two in the grounds without having acres and acres to look after.They would have access to the royal estates after all.

Did you ever think maybe Charles will give Harry a large country home? We do not know what will happen. But Apt 4a and 4b combined makes sense for london home.

 

[Pranter]

Did you ever think maybe Charles will give Harry a large country home? We do not know what will happen. But Apt 4a and 4b combined makes sense for london home.

I figure Charles will assist Harry buying or refurbishing a country home.


LaRae

 

[O-H Anglophile]

Honestly why does it matter? He can have both a huge country home and london home in Kensington.

Why do you feel so strongly that Harry should have a large London home and a huge country estate? He has money but most of it is tied up to provide him with an income, so I don't see him spending his own money on a large country estate to keep up. If it is about equality with William, in certain respects he will never be equal- William will be King one day.
I can see them with a country place similar to the Middletons' current home.