As you might expect, being a member of the British royal family usually comes with some pretty regal real estate. When Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II inherited the throne from her father, King George VI, she gained a collection of beautiful properties that the monarch and her late husband, Prince Philip, lived and worked in together across the years, as well as stately homes where members of the extended royal family now reside. From Buckingham Palace to Windsor Castle, Sandringham and Balmoral, click or scroll on to step inside the private homes of the royals and uncover their secrets...

On the eve of her Platinum Jubliee in February 2022, the Queen announced that Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall would be appointed Queen Consort when Prince Charles becomes king. Previously in January 2022, Camilla was made a member of the Order of the Garter, and before that in 2016, the Queen made her a member of her Privy Council. Once Charles is king, the royal family will be reorganising their living arrangements, with Prince Charles and Camilla moving into Buckingham Palace, and Prince William and Kate Middleton inheriting Windsor Castle, according to sources quoted by the MailOnline. 

Buckingham Palace is the London residence and administrative headquarters of the British monarchy. An international landmark, the palace has also been at the centre of national celebrations  – and mourning  –  for the British people. From Princess Diana's funeral to the London Olympics, crowds gathered along The Mall, a road which runs from the palace to Trafalgar Square in central London. Most recently, mourners left flowers and tributes outside the palace gates for the Queen's husband, Prince Philip, who passed away on 9 April 2021 at the age of 99.

The Queen is usually ensconced in the palace during weekdays, and for the past two years has often had to conduct official business over video calls due to the pandemic. In 2020 in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, she left Buckingham Palace on 19 March for Windsor Castle to self-isolate with her late husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, and a small number of staff. 

Measuring 828,000 square feet, Buckingham Palace comprises a total of 775 rooms, which include 19 state rooms, 52 royal and guest bedrooms, 188 staff bedrooms, 92 offices and 78 bathrooms – none of which are ensuite, a sign of the palace's old-fashioned layout. 

King George IV, who extended the palace in the 19th century at significant expense, was big on bling and the gilded state rooms certainly put Trump Tower to shame. They include the opulent 1844 Room and the White Drawing Room.

Other highlights range from the Throne Room (pictured) and Music Room to the Picture Gallery, which features works by Rembrandt and Vermeer and is currently undergoing a remodel. The palace also boasts 40 acres of grounds, a swimming pool, the Royal Mews stables and the Queen's Gallery, which exhibits 450 paintings at any one time.

The Queen has a nine-room private apartment but isn't said to be especially fond of the suite; it is her place of work after all. According to royal author Penny Junor's book The Firm, the Queen wanted to reside in nearby Clarence House but was persuaded to move into Buckingham Palace by Sir Winston Churchill. Here she is pictured in 2016, giving her annual Christmas speech. 

When Charles becomes king, it is rumoured that he and Camilla will move out of their current residence in Clarence House and into Buckingham Palace. The news came after the Queen’s message to the public on the eve of her Platinum Jubilee. The move to Buckingham Palace has been likened to living in the 'flat above the shop', with Charles purportedly intending to live and work there. Reports from MailOnline suggest that the Palace may be opened up more as a tourist attraction under the future King's vision, which could also include a slimmed-down monarchy and a tightening of ranks in the royal family, according to The Independent. 

In contrast to Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle is thought to be the Queen's favourite official home. The 1,000-room castle, which is located in Windsor Great Park, just west of London, dates from the 11th century and sprawls over 484,000 square feet.

The Queen chose to address the nation from the castle's White Drawing Room at the start of the coronavirus outbreak in April 2020. The moving speech, which evoked the wartime adage 'we'll meet again', was filmed with only one socially distanced camera operator at Windsor Castle. The White Drawing Room is filled with meaningful family heirlooms, including an ornate 18th-century cabinet and a carpet that survived the fire of 1992.

Windsor Castle is the Queen's official country residence and although some formal engagements are usually conducted at Windsor, it's essentially her place to unwind. Her Majesty normally spends most of her private weekends at the castle and stays there during Easter, as well as in June for Royal Ascot and the Order of the Garter service (pictured). However, she spent most of 2020 and 2021 at the castle, isolating due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

The fairytale castle is famed for its magnificent state apartments, considered by many experts to represent some of the finest examples of Georgian style. The gilded rooms are decorated with priceless antiques and paintings by Rubens and Holbein.

Other highlights include the medieval St George's Chapel and Hall (pictured), and a wealth of treasures, from the artworks that are displayed in the Drawings Gallery, to King Charles II's bed chamber and Queen Mary's sumptuous doll's house. The chapel was also the location for the ceremonial funeral of Prince Philip, where he is lying at rest in the Royal Vault until the death of the Queen, when they will be buried together in the church's King George VI memorial chapel. 

The private apartments at Windsor are hardly ever photographed. This rare glimpse inside the Queen's private sitting room, which shows Her Majesty meeting the former New Zealand Prime Minister John Key in 2015, was shared via the British Monarchy's official Twitter account.

Like Buckingham Palace, maintaining Windsor Castle is a costly process. The infamous 1992 fire that ripped through the building caused £36.5 million ($50m) worth of damage – it took 250 firefighters 15 hours to tackle the devastating blaze. The UK government signed off a £26 million ($33m) refurbishment project.

In more recent years, one of the biggest occasions marked at Windsor Castle was the wedding of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry on 19 May 2018. Watched by the world, the couple exchanged vows in front of 600 guests at St George’s Chapel in the grounds of Windsor Castle.

If the rumour mill is to be believed, Prince William and Kate Middleton could take over Windsor Castle when Prince Charles becomes king. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who are currently based in London at Kensington Palace, are said to be the likeliest choice to inherit the monarch's beloved castle. However, for the time being, they may have their eye on the Queen's 'forgotten castle'. 

Fort Belvedere is located seven miles from Windsor Castle in Windsor Great Park. Built between 1750 and 1755 for Prince William Augustus, it was expanded by King George IV who added an octagonal dining room, three-storey annexe and a large flag pole. After being occupied by many members of the royal family, it was lived in by Edward VIII until his abdication from the throne in 1936. Fort Belvedere then stood empty until 1955, when the Queen's cousin, Gerald Lascelles moved in. 

Known as the Queen's 'forgotten castle' because she has never lived in the home, rumours suggest that Kate and William are considering the fort for their new family residence, according to reports from the Evening Standard. The Grade II-listed country house is situated close to the homes of other notable British royals, including the Earl and Countess of Wessex's estate and Frogmore Cottage – the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's home, where Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank are currently living. Here we see famed jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie pictured playing the piano at Fort Belvedere on 6 June 1963.

Fort Belvedere underwent another huge renovation by Edward VIII in 1929 and again a few years later in 1932 when he added a swimming pool, a tennis court and stables within its grounds, according to Architectural Digest. After reportedly feeling that they lack privacy, as well as tiring of the chaos of city life, will the Cambridges make the move to Fort Belvedere?

Windsor was also a very special place for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, as it was the setting for their engagement photoshoot and wedding reception. Taken in the grounds of Windsor's Frogmore House in December 2017, this engagement photo shows the happy couple relaxed and smiling. They later relocated to Nottingham Cottage within the grounds of Kensington Palace for the birth of baby Archie. The young family are currently living in Los Angeles, not far from Meghan's mother Doria, after stepping down as senior royals at the end of March 2020. According to reports, Harry will be renewing their Frogmore Cottage lease in order to continue serving the Queen.

But Meghan and Harry aren't the only royals to tie the knot in Windsor. On 17 July 2020, Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mozzi were married in a small private ceremony at the Royal Chapel of All Saints at the Royal Lodge in Windsor. Just three miles from Windsor Castle, the Royal Lodge has been the official residence of the Duke of York since 2004, following the Queen Mother's passing two years' earlier.

The Grade II-listed house is where Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie spent much of their childhoods. A wooden swing engraved with Eugenie's name still sits in the garden to this day. The lodge is where Prince Andrew, Sarah Ferguson, Princess Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, isolated together in the initial coronavirus lockdown. 

In 1976, the Queen purchased Gatcombe Park estate from the former Home Secretary Lord Butler of Saffron Walden for her daughter, Princess Anne, and her first husband, Captain Phillips. In 2013, Princess Anne and her current husband Timothy Laurence were joined by her daughter Zara and her husband Mike Tindell on the Gloucestershire estate. 

Surrounded by 700 acres of land, the estate also plays host to a handful of equestrian events including the annual Festival of British Eventing, which was set to run in August 2021 as normal before being cancelled at the last minute due to covid restrictions. The Festival is ready to return with gusto in August 2022. 

The busiest of the working royals, Princess Anne stays in the main Grade II-listed manor house on the estate. The Princess is shown here in her living room which boasts a cosy floral sofa and armchair, wooden furniture and plenty of family photos. 

Gatcombe Park is also run as a working farm with livestock including cattle and breeding horses. Known for favouring a country lifestyle, Princess Anne also has a London residence in St James's Palace that she stay in when conducting official business.

Just 11 miles south of Windsor, Bagshot Park has been a royal residence for around 200 years and is more recently the home of Prince Edward and his wife, Sophie Wessex, since their wedding in 1999. Sat in 51 acres of land, the Grade II-listed main house, which is located in Surrey, is beautifully landscaped with pristine gardens, trees and winding paths for the family to enjoy. 

Prior to the couple's wedding, the impressive manor underwent extensive renovations under the watchful eye of Prince Edward, costing more than an estimated £2 million ($2.8m), which was part-funded by the Crown Estate and partly by Prince Edward himself.

As a private house, the public rarely gets a glimpse inside the home. But this rare sneak peek shows the lavishly decorated billiard room, which features 241 wooden panels that were individually carved by Ram Singh, students of the Mayo School, and carpenters in Amritsar in India, after being commissioned by the Duke and Duchess of Connaught to showcase Indian design. 

The home has been leased to Prince Edward and Sophie Wessex for 150 years at a cost of £5 million ($6.9m). Today the royal couple live at the estate with their two children, Lady Louise Windsor and James, Viscount Severn. 

Holyroodhouse dates way back to 1128 when it was founded as a monastery. It was converted into a palace by King James IV of Scotland in the early 16th century and further additions were made by his successor, King James V of Scotland, as well as later kings and queens.

The Great Gallery displays an extensive array of portraits of Scottish monarchs, both mythical and real. Moreover, the palace is said to be haunted, namely by the ghost of 'Bald Agnes', a woman who was executed for witchcraft in the 16th century. Rumour has it that she's been spotted walking through the state rooms on more than one occasion.

Staying in bonnie Scotland, Balmoral Castle is the Queen's Highlands vacation home. Unlike Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and Holyroodhouse, which are owned by the Crown Estate, it is the personal property of the Queen. Balmoral has been a royal residence since 1852 when it was acquired by Prince Albert for Queen Victoria.

As an escape from her hectic schedule, the Queen would normally spend her summer vacation at Balmoral in August and September. While Windsor is said to be Her Majesty's favourite official home, Balmoral is thought to be her preferred private residence. In 2020 when the pandemic struck, the Queen stayed at Balmoral from August until mid-September, before staying at Sandringham in Norfolk with Prince Philip and then returning to Windsor Castle to isolate.

While many people would imagine the Queen to surround herself with luxury, Balmoral is pretty frugal – as far as castles go – and is rumoured to be more than a little draughty in the winter months. However, the estate certainly isn't stuck in the Dark Ages – in 2020, plans for a new hydroelectric turbine were given the go-ahead, building on the existing hydro scheme established in 2014. The eco-technology will help power the vast property, with surplus electricity sold back to the grid. 

Most of the castle is out of bounds to the general public, particularly during the late summer when the Queen and her family are normally in residence. Fee-paying visitors can view the grounds and the castle's ballroom at other times, however.

Birkhall is part of the Balmoral Estate and is one of several properties that belong to Prince Charles. Since inheriting it from the Queen Mother after her death in 2002, he enjoys spending summers at the residence with the Duchess of Cornwall. The couple spent their honeymoon there in 2005 and it's also where Prince Charles recovered from coronavirus in 2020.

Here, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles are being presented with a first edition of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother: The Official Biography by the author William Shawcross in the garden of Birkhall. The late Queen Mother loved Birkhall and when visiting she would indulge in her love of salmon fishing, often while wearing tartan and tweed. Over the years, the famously green-fingered Prince Charles has made a passion project of restoring the beautiful gardens to their former glory, though they were sadly devastated by flooding in 2016. 

When Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall stay in London, they call Clarence House home. Standing directly next to St James's Palace, the residence was previously home to the Queen Mother, as well as to the Queen – then Princess Elizabeth – and the Duke of Edinburgh following their marriage in 1947. 

Prince Charles and Camilla regularly welcome guests from around the world to their London home. Before the Prince moved into the property, it underwent an extensive revamp with everything from colour schemes to upholstery overhauled. Most meetings take place in the formal living room with its blue-toned furniture, fringed lamps and historic artwork. Here, Prince Charles can be seen hosting King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands at Clarence House in October 2018.

Prince Charles spends a lot of his time at Clarence House in the grounds, which feature magnolia trees and a vegetable and fruit garden brimming with tomatoes, apples and pears. The royal enjoys hosting outdoor meetings, events and parties in the gardens and even used them as the background to his 2018 Christmas card (pictured). 

Highgrove House in Gloucestershire has been one of Prince Charles’ private residences since 1980. He moved into the estate with Princess Diana after they were married in 1981 and Princes Harry and William spent many of their formative years there. In 1987, Charles remodelled the Georgian house, which is managed and owned by The Duchy of Cornwall. 

When the Prince of Wales first arrived at Highgrove House, the garden was sparse apart from an old cedar tree. Over a period of 38 years, Prince Charles has transformed the 15-acre grounds into a tranquil oasis, complete with an organic farm and renewable energy systems.

As the Prince of Wales, it’s apt that Prince Charles has a residence in the land of his title's namesake. The Prince and the Duchess of Cornwall normally make an annual summer visit to Llwynywermod, their restored farmhouse in Myddfai, a small village in the county of Carmarthenshire. 

Previously a model farm, it was renovated using locally sourced materials and traditional Welsh craftsmanship. The land surrounding the charming house features a courtyard with a fountain and two small wildflower meadows, including one with an apple orchard. Prince Charles is pictured inside the property here, along with the First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford, in 2019.

Like Balmoral, Sandringham House in Norfolk is one of the Queen's private homes. Her Majesty spends Christmas at Sandringham and stays until February. It is from here that she has recorded many of her famous annual messages to the nation. However, in 2020 and 2021 the Queen stayed at Windsor Castle for the Christmas period due to coronavirus restrictions. 

As well as the main house, the spacious estate includes several well-appointed houses. The Georgian Anmer Hall, for instance, is the country home of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Kate Middleton, after it was given to them by the Queen as a wedding gift. 

Hillsborough was built in the late 18th century by Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire, and was remodelled in the 19th and early 20th centuries. More stately home than castle, the two-storey Georgian mansion is set in 100 acres of rolling grounds.

Kensington Palace has been a royal residence since the 17th century. Today, the iconic palace is home to the apartments and offices of members of the royal family, and historic areas of the estate are usually open for the general public to visit.

It is currently the official residence of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their three children – Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. The family lives in 1A, a 20-room apartment, and before they moved in, they undertook a £4.5 million ($6m) refurbishment. The apartment was formerly home to Princess Margaret, the Queen’s sister. 

Set in around 60 acres of manicured grounds, the palace boasts some of the most well-kept gardens in London. One of the most popular spots is the Sunken Garden, which is where Prince Harry and Meghan Markle posed for their official engagement photos. It dates back to 1908 and features an ornamental pond, fountains and terraced flowerbeds. Certainly fit for a royal affair!

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