bitchy | Jobson: Prince William promised that KP would be his permanent home

There is still much to discuss after the Times of London article dropped about Prince William and the Cambridges’ move to Windsor. The move has been endlessly telegraphed for the past year, and it often felt like William and Kate were negotiating with Prince Charles and the Queen publicly, begging for one of the bigger properties on the Windsor Castle complex. They clearly wanted the big medieval-looking fort, or failing that, Frogmore House (which is a palace). No one has confirmed which property they’re actually getting, but it seems likely that they’re being given Adelaide Cottage, which is nowhere near as “grand” as William and Kate think they need. Which is curious in and of itself – why aren’t they being given one of the grander homes?

The Times article also confirmed what I long suspected, that the Cambridges won’t actually be “giving up” one of their current homes. They still plan to maintain Kensington Palace Apartment 1 AND Anmer Hall as their homes, making the Windsor property their third dedicated “home.” (I’m not counting the Balmoral guest cottage, but maybe I should.) The Times said that KP “will remain their London home, housing their private and press office, and Anmer Hall, their Norfolk home, will still be used regularly.” They also plan to retire to Anmer Hall once their kids are done with school. Which is also bizarre.

Anyway, all of the talk about William and Kate needing a family home in Windsor has upset people like royal commentator Robert Jobson, who felt the need to remind everyone that William and Kate promised that KP would be their permanent home. Which is why the British taxpayer picked up the £12 million cost of rehabbing and refurbishing Apartment 1 back in 2013-2014.

Charles is fighting back pic.twitter.com/juR454nBeW

— vernesa (@vernesa27292271) June 12, 2022

It’s worth asking questions on this issue, but the story isn’t actually “omg they’re never going to use KP, all of that taxpayer money down the drain on a property they’ll never use.” The actual story is that William probably will be in KP permanently while Kate and the children are in Windsor. KP will clearly be in use, not only the residential living space (for William) but the extensive office space, which houses William’s incandescent operation and all-white staff. Meanwhile, Kate gets a smallish cottage in Windsor and the kids are going to school just a short distance from her parents. Kate will probably be splitting her time between Bucklebury and Windsor. THAT is the story.

As for the “Charles fighting back” thing… as I said, this whole “move to Windsor” issue has felt like a public negotiation between the Cambridges and Charles/Liz. I kind of believe that Charles used William’s need for a Windsor home to renegotiate some sh-t. I think Charles is more than fine with the Cambridges being nominally “hidden away” in Windsor, honestly.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Instar and Backgrid.