Prince William appears set to break with royal tradition when he eventually ascends to the throne. The future King reportedly has no plans to move into Buckingham Palace, the official London residence of British monarchs since 1837.
Instead, William and Kate are said to prefer maintaining their current country lifestyle away from central London.
This surprising decision was revealed by a "well-placed source" who spoke about William's plans for his future reign.
Privacy appears to be a key factor in the royal couple's decision-making process.
Prince William ‘won’t move into Buckingham Palace’ as future King plans major royal shake-up
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The source indicates that William is particularly concerned about maintaining privacy for his children as he takes on the responsibilities of kingship.
"He'll be asking, if [the children] are still young when I take on the big job, how do I maintain that privacy?" the insider told the Times.
This consideration seems to be driving the preference for continuing their more secluded country lifestyle rather than relocating to the highly visible Buckingham Palace in central London.
The source was quite direct about the royal couple's reluctance to move to Buckingham Palace.
Buckingham Palace is recognised worldwide as the home of the British monarch and the centrepiece of the UK's constitutionPA"I'm pretty sure that they won't move into BP. You can't imagine him saying, 'Great, let's move back to central London,'" the insider stated.
This suggests a deliberate choice to maintain distance from the traditional royal headquarters.
The decision would represent a significant departure from centuries of royal protocol, with Buckingham Palace having served as the official residence and administrative headquarters of the monarch.
Another source adds that William will likely want to continue participating in school runs with his children.
Princess Kate and Prince William moved their family to Adelaide Cottage in 2022PAThis practical consideration further explains his preference for maintaining their current lifestyle.
"William has played a very smart hand. He has chosen it. He has shaped it as he wanted to," the source explained.
"He was thinking about this early because he didn't want to drift and then find that he hadn't had a say in it. It's one of the defining qualities of the man."
This suggests William is deliberately crafting his approach to kingship on his own terms.
Kate and William are known to love the countryside
PAAccording to royal author Tom Quinn, "succession planning" has been ongoing for years.
"The people I've spoken to have said that the succession planning, as they call it, began even before Charles' diagnosis," Quinn stated.
He added: "I mean, he's the oldest Prince of Wales to become king in history, so succession planning had begun before Charles came to the throne simply because of the age issue."
