Prince William has inherited a vast country estate that King Charles initially bought for his eldest son in the hope that he would settle down to family life. The country estate in Herefordshire was acquired by the Duchy of Cornwall when William was still at university and it was tipped that Charles, then a prince, hoped his progeny would start a family of his own.
But William had other plans and development at Harewood End, which included rebuilding a grand mansion that was demolished by the SAS, was halted. But, as Gloucestershire Live reports, William has now inherited the lot as part of the £1bn Duchy of Cornwall estate - and could, if he chose, restart plans to build a grand country house on the land.
The Duchy acquired the 900-acre delipidated estate in 2000, and three years later work started on an ambitious £8-£9 million renovation of farmhouses, cottages and other agricultural buildings.
Around the time William graduated from university in Scotland where he was living in a shared house with Kate Middleton, architect Craig Hamilton designed a Georgian-style mansion, complete with columns, allegedly for the pair.
The plans for a mansion house in the countryside were approved by Herefordshire Council planners in November 2004, but King Charles dropped the project.
Speaking at the time, a Duchy spokesman said: " Although planning consent for a statement house was granted some time ago, the Duchy never took it forward.
"The regeneration project at Harewood Park is now complete and the estate comprises a number of let residential and office units in converted barns, together with farmland."
When plans were revealed to build a grand mansion as a centrepiece for the estate, it was rumoured that Charles would give it to William and his then-girlfriend Kate upon their marriage.
In 2007 the couple split briefly and Charles successfully submitted plans for a much scaled-down six-bedroom, mini-mansion at Harewood End.
Kate and William later reunited and married in April 2011. After their wedding, they moved to Anglesey due to William's work with the RAF but it was still thought they would eventually live in the new house in Herefordshire.
However, in 2015, they were instead gifted by the Queen Anmer Hall in Norfolk, where they spent much of lockdown with their children George, Charlotte and Louis. Their official London residence is Kensington Palace.
Now, Prince William has inherited the estate in Herefordshire and could, if he chose, build a grand mansion on the land.
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