Which Royal Palace/Residence Would You Live In?

[Purrs]

For fun, I thought I'd ask the following question. If you could live in a royal palace or residence which one would you choose? Not Choose? Why? (You can list any that I haven't, including ones that are no longer lived in by the royal family).

For me: (I have not seem most of these in person, only Holyroodhouse. I especially like to hear what people who've seen them think and about the other palaces/residences)

I'd Choose:

Windsor Castle, I love its history and the grounds.

Sandringham. Despite it's size, it seems more homey and less "starchy" than some of the other royal residences. Great gardens and grounds.

Not Choose:

Holyroodhouse: I love Scotland but I found Holyrood gloomy inside. I get the impression that the Queen doesn't care for it either as she only spends the minimum required time there. Good location though.

Buckingham Palace: Too office like for me and architecturally undistingushed. Great location though although I'd prefer Kensington Palace.

Balmoral? Most of it isn't open to the public, unable to find very many interior photos so it's hard to gauge it. Although I love the Scottish highlands, they can be awfully bleak. Not a fan of shooting which seems to be the big activity there.

edited to add: I initially intended this thread to be about the British royal family residences but I'm certainly open to adding residences from other countries, including ones that are no longer lived in by royals or no longer function as palaces. Therefore I would add:

Schonnbrun Palace (Summer Palace/Vienna Austria/Hapsburg dynasty):
Although it is very grand (and not always to my taste, I'm not a fan of baroque), this palace feels like a family lived here and is still on a human scale. It is so much more than a "cut rate Versailles" which another tourist told me when I visited. The grounds are lovely. It even has its own set of "Roman Ruins" (a folly built as ruins in 1778!)

[Friedrich Karl II]

Must check more these palaces but I couldn't live in Buckingham. Too massive to my taste. Kensington might be more my style. One of few palaces where I have visited.

[Mirabel]

Windsor Castle would be my first choice.
Then KP.

[ashelen]

Amaliengborg palace

[Biri]

Palaces not in use by a Royal family anymore (because there is no one reigning) are included or not?

[Pranter]

Balmoral or Mey Castle (without the tourists).


LaRae

[Moonmaiden23]

The Grimaldis Pink Palace on the Mediterranean would be my absolute first choice, Amalienborg Denmark second, and Windsor third because the history connected to it is amazing.

I would also have loved to live at Versailles in pre -Revolutionary France.

But in the heyday of the Russian czars NO palace in Europe could top the Alexander Palace at Tsarskoe Selo, the Catherine Palace, the Winter Palace or the Yusupov Palace on the Moika...mind boggling splendor.

[M. Payton]

Purrs:

What a delightful thread to have here and so here goes:

Balmoral is the to me the most beautiful place on earth, in spring it shines, in summer it is dreamy and fall, the colors of the rainbow abound and winter, of course is my favorite time of year it glows with untold beauty, soft and peaceful.

I could care less if it gets icy cold, bring it on I say, lite a fire in the fireplace, put on a sweater, give me hot tea and a great book with my needlework while I watch the snow fall all around me with all my dogs and cats sleeping beside me......to me that is heaven on earth, would ask for nothing more.

[Loyly]

I love this thread!

I choose Drottningholm.

[Purrs]

Originally Posted by Biri

Palaces not in use by a Royal family anymore (because there is no one reigning) are included or not?

Why not? I'd be interested.

[_Heather_]

Balmoral, definitely Balmoral. Followed closely by KP.

[Biri]

The Łazienki Palace in Warsaw:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%81azienki_Palace

[CyrilVladisla]

I would choose Leeds Castle because of the beautiful parklands and gardens.

[XeniaCasaraghi]

Nice to see people remembering that royalty and palaces go far beyond The UK

The
Winter Palace
Alexander Palace
Catherine Palace
Hampton Court
Gutengerg Palace (Leichenstein)
Schönbrunn Palace (Austria)
I'd visit Versailles but wouldn't want to live there.
I might live in the Forbidden City but I'd have to have a house tour first. [emoji7]

[Countessmeout]

I would love a home with history, but also feel like a home (not like townhouses like Kensington). Some of my favorite homes though are not royal, but noble owned homes. Broke my choices into 2 categories: UK or continent, and then royal or noble.

And I would be greedy and need both a city home and country home


If UK

royal:
-country home: Craigowan or Balmoral. I love the estate, but I find myself drawn somewhat more to the smaller lodge then the huge castle.

- city home: Hasn't been a royal residence in a long time, but would revert Queen's house back into a residence. Loved it when in Greenwich.
https://www.flickr.com/search/?w=all...eenwich&m=text

non-royal:
-city home: No palace. I would go with Syon House (home of the Duke of Northumberland). Designed by my favorite architect, Robert Adam. And gardens by Capability Brown are a bonus.
https://www.syonpark.co.uk/explore/about-syon-house

-country home: Harry Potter fan in me is tempted by Alnwick, but would pick another Robert Adam home (have loved him since my art days)

Seton Castle | Privately Owned, Beautifully Restored Georgian Castle, Near Edinburgh, Scotland.


My ideal would be a mix. Syon house as my London city base, and Craigowan as my country home.



continent:

royal:

-city home: Hermes Villa in Vienna
-country home: Chambord palace in Loire Region of France

non-royal:
-city home: Las Duenas, Seville Spain (belongs to House of Alba)
-country home: Villa Rotonda in Northern Italy








Dream:
-my every day home would be Syon House in London for when I am working
-my country home for riding and horses would be Craigowan
-my vacation home would be Villa Rotunda in Italy to escape winter

[Purrs]

Originally Posted by Biri

The Łazienki Palace in Warsaw:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%81azienki_Palace

Thank you for posting this -if I ever get to Poland, it will be on my must see list. So glad, it was not destroyed in the war.

[Purrs]

Some more castles I've seen (in the early 1980s):

Another very famous and amazing castle I've seen is Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Germany (although be prepared to climb a lot of stairs!) It did belong to a king, King Ludwig II of Bavaria. I don't know if I'd want to live there but is really quite incredible. Apparently the outside was the inspiration for the castle at Disney World but it is *much* more interesting.

Bayerische Schlösserverwaltung | Neuschwanstein

It even has a grotto (cave) inside it.
Bayerische Schlösserverwaltung | Neuschwanstein | Tour of the castle | Grotto and Conservatory




If we are adding nonroyal palaces/residences into the mix,

I'd add Cawdor Castle in Scotland which is a really interesting castle that I visited on my honeymoon in the early 80s...the then 6th Earl of Cawdor had lot of signs posted showing his very dry sense of humour.
Welcome to the Official Homepage of Cawdor Castle

It also has a dungeon (discovered in 1976) with no entrance or exit (people were just thrown down a chute) and a tree in the cellar.
https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co....tle/index.html



Also saw Eilean Donan Castle on my honeymoon. It is fairly small inside with lots of stairs and has the most spectacular setting of any castle I've ever seen (you may recognize as it's been used in many movies and ads). It really looks just like the photos you've seen, it is a breathtaking setting.
http://www.eileandonancastle.com/

[Osipi]

As we're on the subject of castles and such, there is one castle that stands out in my mind when I think about them. Personally, if I were to live in a castle, I think I'd prefer something like the Castle of Mey or any castle in remote areas of Scotland. I'm not much of one for a congested city life.

If I had to vote though for the most interesting castle, I'd have to vote for Solomon's Castle near Ona, Florida. I visited there when I lived in Florida (wouldn't want to move back there though) and the guy that built it is a genius. The entire castle and all that is in it is created out of junk. That's right. Hit the junkyard and build a castle.

https://www.florida-backroads-travel...ns-castle.html

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUser...a_Florida.html

[Marengo]

I am mostly going for Southern Europe, as the weather is better.

I can't choose but for summer residences I would pick three:

Miramare Castle on the Adriatic coast of Trieste. A home to Maximilian of Austria (later Emperor of Mexico) and his wife Pss Carlota of Belgium. The house is nothing special but the location is wonderful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miramare_Castle

The island Isola Bella of the Borromeo family in the Lake Maggiore: http://www.isoleborromee.it/eng/isola-bella.html

The Achilleion in Corfu, Greece, built by Empress Elisabeth:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achilleion_(Corfu)

I do love the above suggestions of the Villa Rotonda and the Duenas in Seville of the Alba family.

For spring perhaps schloss Nymphenburg in Munchen, Bavaria: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nymphenburg_Palace

Autumn in the Palacio de Pena in Portugal. The palace itself is rather kitch but the surrounding area is beautiful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pena_Palace

For winter either the Villa Borghese in Rome or something in Paris. The palais du Luxembourg would be great if it comes with the park & the paintings of Maria di Medici: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...Paris_2011.jpg

[Empress Merel]

I would choose Neuschwanstein, without a doubt. Schwerin Castle isn´t too shabby either, just like Burg Hohenzollern. Germany in general has outstanding buildings. I would want them all.

Moszna Castle in Poland is another example of a gorgeous castle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moszna_Castle