Why Queen prefers Windsor Castle over Buckingham Palace – ‘None of them wanted to go’

Queen ‘will stay’ at Windsor Castle says Paul Burrell

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Queen Elizabeth has only visited Buckingham Palace on a few occasions over the past year and a half, including the Opening of State Parliament and Remembrance Sunday. According to The Daily Mail, the Queen will reportedly move permanently to Windsor Castle. Many royal commentators have said over the years that Queen Elizabeth never wanted to live at Buckingham Palace in the first place.

As reported by royal biographer Penny Junor in her book ‘The Firm’, the Queen wanted to remain living at Clarence House after her father’s death.

But Winston Churchill pushed the move to Buckingham Palace, as it is the official home of the monarch and has been since Queen Victoria’s reign.

Junor said: “None of them wanted to go. They loved Clarence House; it was a family home, but Winston Churchill, who was then Prime Minister, insisted upon it.”

The monarch is clearly very fond of Windsor Castle which boasts 484,000 square feet of space and 1,000 rooms.

She chose to spend the majority of the coronavirus pandemic at the 900-year-old property along with her late husband Prince Philip and the ‘HMS bubble’ of 22 staff members.

The castle was also where her husband the Duke of Edinburgh spent the last few days of his life.

It is estimated to be worth £235million as the Queen’s favourite residence, and it is the longest-inhabited royal castle in the world.

The Duke of Edinburgh was buried within the castle grounds in April 2021, having returned to Windsor after spending a month in hospital.

Windsor is one of the Queen’s favourite residences and it holds a lot of happy memories for her.

The monarch was left distraught when a fire broke out at the castle in 1992, causing serious damage to the historic palace.

The Duke of Edinburgh served as chairman of the general restoration committee to repair the royal residence.

During World War II, the Queen, aged 13 at the time, and her younger sister Princess Margaret were evacuated to Windsor Castle for their safety.

The pair spent their pivotal years at the palace, and would put on plays to entertain household staff.

Windsor is also where the Queen has celebrated many weddings within her family, including Prince Edward to Sophie Rhys Jones in 1999, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle in 2018, as well as Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank that same year.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also introduced their baby son Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor to the world in May 2019 from the grounds of Windsor Castle.

Also, the Royal Windsor Horse Show, one of the Queen’s favourite events, is held annually in May on the private grounds of Windsor castle.

It is believed Queen Elizabeth will still spend the festive period at Sandringham as usual.

But according to The Daily Mail, royal staff have been told Windsor Castle will be known as her permanent home moving forward.

The 95-year-old monarch will most likely use Buckingham Palace less frequently, visiting for important London meetings.

The pandemic has created the possibility for the Queen to communicate virtually, so royal video calls may well continue.

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