Kate Middleton and Prince William used to live in a luxurious home at Kensington Palace, but according to one royal expert, the couple "surprised a lot of people" when they decided to pack up and move to Windsor in 2022. While it was largely reported that Kate and William wanted to be closer to Queen Elizabeth, who was living at Windsor Castle at the time, it turns out the move made sense for a number of other reasons.
The Prince and Princess of Wales now reside at Adelaide Cottage, a nearly 200-year-old property that was built as a summer retreat for Queen Adelaide in 1831, per Architectural Digest. With just four bedrooms and no staff accommodations, it's much smaller than their four-story KP residence, which includes a massive 20 rooms.
Along with the benefit of being close to Windsor Castle and William's grandmother—who died just months after their move—several royal experts pointed out that the more "modest" home allows the family to have a taste of normalcy.
"I think they surprised a lot of people when they moved there," royal expert Duncan Larcombe told OK magazine (via Hello!). “There are plenty of other places they could have moved to, but Adelaide Cottage fits with their desire as parents to be a normal family, where there aren’t servants and they don't have 30 rooms."
Since they don't have room for live-in staff, the prince and princess can enjoy a more private life. "William would much rather have his kids around him, in the rooms next door to where he’s sleeping," Larcombe continued.
If you've ever been to Kensington Palace as a tourist, you know that privacy isn't exactly a selling point of the property. When the Wales family travels by helicopter it lands quite literally in their backyard along a fenced area that's accessible to the public—a scene I've witnessed on several occasions. Moving to the private Windsor estate means none of that scrutiny from people strolling through the park.
Author Katie Nicholl told OK that the family is "very, very happy" at Adelaide Cottage. "Being able to live in the middle of Windsor Home Park, where they're not overlooked and can come and go in complete privacy, makes the downsize from Kensington Palace worth it on every level."
Unfortunately, their quiet existence experienced a bit of a shake-up recently when masked burglars broke into a farm on the Windsor Castle estate. After stealing two vehicles, the burglars crashed through a gate that the Wales family uses to access their home.
Security scares aside, the family seems to be thriving in Windsor. "There's not a huge amount of space, but Adelaide Cottage ticks all the right boxes," Nicholl added.
