King Charles' 'most important' royal home that late Queen never lived in
Ever since 2003, King Charles' London base has been Clarence House - and that hasn't changed since his accession owing to the extensive building work currently taking place at Buckingham Palace. However, before he took over the former home of his grandmother, the Queen Mother, Charles had a different building to call home which is located just next door.
While many people may believe that the most senior royal residence is Buckingham Palace as it has been an official residence of the monarch since Queen Victoria's reign, that isn't the case. Despite Buckingham Palace's 775 rooms and iconic reputation as the centre for public celebrations, it is St James's Palace around the corner that is the highest ranking royal home.
While the red brick palace has links that stretch back to the times of King Henry VIII, the late Queen never called it home - but many of her relatives have.
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St James's Palace was built by order of King Henry VIII in the 1530s and was considered as the second most important London residence by most Tudor and Stuart monarchs. In first place was the Palace of Whitehall which was destroyed by a devastating fire in 1698.
St James’s was used increasingly by the Georgian monarchs and was considered as the official and ceremonial home of the monarch. Yet, it was once again side-lined when Buckingham Palace became the principal royal residence in 1837.
Both King George I and King George II used the palace as their principal residence in London and housed their mistresses there. King George III, however, found St James’s too small and instead favoured his new home, Buckingham House (later Buckingham Palace) and Windsor Castle.
The tradition set by George III was formalised by Queen Victoria in 1837 whereby the official residence of the monarch was Buckingham Palace and St James’s would be used for formal occasions and public audiences.
The royal website explains that it was a "residence of Kings and Queens of England for over 300 years until the reign of Queen Victoria". The site also touches on the importance of the home as it is where "the accession of a new Sovereign" takes place.
The late Queen never lived at St James's Palace as she made her family home at Clarence House before the sudden death of her father, King George VI, in 1952.
The current members of the Royal Family who keep their offices at the palace include Princess Anne, Princess Alexandra and Princess Beatrice.
King Charles also lived within the palace at York House with Prince William and Prince Harry after his separation from Diana, Princess of Wales in 1992.
Famous events that have taken place there include the weddings of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and the union of King George V and Queen Mary (then The Duke and Duchess of York).
Several royal christenings have also taken place at the palace, including those of Prince George (October 23, 2013) and his younger brother Prince Louis’s (July 9, 2018).
