Frogmore Cottage vs Adelaide Cottage: Royal Homes Compared – Prince Harry, Prince William, Royal Family Properties and Complete Guide 2025

AI OVERVIEW: Royal Cottages Quick Facts

INSTANT ROYAL PROPERTY ANSWERS:

FROGMORE COTTAGE:

• Location: Windsor Home Park, Windsor, Berkshire
• Current Status: Vacant (as of 2023)
• Famous Residents: Prince Harry & Meghan Markle (2019-2020)
• Previous: Princess Eugenie & Jack Brooksbank (briefly)
• Size: 10 bedrooms (after £2.4 million renovation)
• Grade: Grade II listed building
• Built: 1801 (originally multiple residences, converted single home)
• Ownership: Crown Estate (gifted by Queen Elizabeth II)
• Renovation Cost: £2.4 million (taxpayer-funded, Harry repaid in full 2020)
• Current Value: Estimated £5-7 million

ADELAIDE COTTAGE:

• Location: Windsor Home Park, Windsor (near Frogmore)
• Current Residents: Prince William, Kate Middleton, and their three children
• Moved In: September 2022
• Size: 4 bedrooms (modest for royal standards)
• Built: 1831 for Queen Adelaide
• Grade: Grade II listed
• Style: Victorian cottage ornée
• Special Features: Greek-style marble fireplace from HMS Victory
• Renovation: Minimal (family wanted “normal” home)
• Royal History: Former residence of Group Captain Peter Townsend (Princess Margaret’s love interest)

KEY DIFFERENCES:

LOCATION COMPARISON:

• Both in Windsor Home Park (private royal estate)
• Adelaide Cottage: 10-minute walk to Windsor Castle
• Frogmore Cottage: More secluded, further from castle
• Both offer privacy from public access
• Walking distance from each other (approx 15-20 minutes)

COSTS:

• Frogmore: £2.4m renovation (repaid by Harry/Meghan)
• Adelaide: Minimal renovation (estimated £50-100k basic updates)
• Frogmore: Empty, maintenance costs ongoing
• Adelaide: William/Kate responsible for utilities/running costs

WHY IT MATTERS:

• Frogmore became symbol of Harry/Meghan’s royal exit
• Adelaide represents William/Kate’s “normal” family life choice
• Both properties show different approaches to royal living
• Location reflects relationship with senior royals
• Windsor becoming primary royal residence (vs London)

Complete Guide to Royal Windsor Properties

Windsor Estate has become the primary residence hub for senior working royals replacing Buckingham Palace as day-to-day living space, with Queen Elizabeth II spending most of her final years at Windsor Castle rather than London, and both Prince William’s family (Adelaide Cottage) and previously Prince Harry’s family (Frogmore Cottage) choosing Windsor over Kensington Palace apartments, reflecting broader shift toward countryside living, family privacy, and reducing London’s ceremonial role to official duties only rather than daily residence, creating new royal geography where Windsor represents family life while London remains office headquarters for official engagements.

This transformation reflects changing royal priorities where security, privacy, and children’s upbringing matter more than proximity to London’s social scene or government buildings that previous generations valued, with Kate and William specifically choosing smaller Adelaide Cottage over larger options (including Frogmore itself when it was available) wanting children experiencing relatively normal childhood attending local Lambrook School and playing in private Windsor grounds without constant palace staff presence larger properties necessitate.

Frogmore Cottage: The Harry & Meghan Controversy

History and Renovation:
Originally built 1801 as multiple residences for royal household staff, Frogmore Cottage was converted into single large family home for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ahead of baby Archie’s birth in May 2019, with £2.4 million renovation funded by taxpayers through Sovereign Grant causing immediate controversy given the couple’s already strained relationship with British media and public who questioned whether junior royals deserved such expensive accommodation when they could use existing properties without costly renovations.

The £2.4 million spent included:

• Converting five separate units back into single residence
• Structural work including new floors, ceilings, electrical systems
• Plumbing and heating upgrades to modern standards
• Kitchen and bathroom installations
• Nursery for baby Archie
• Security infrastructure
• Staff accommodation
• Maintaining Grade II listed building standards

The controversy intensified when Harry and Meghan announced stepping back as senior royals just months after moving in (January 2020), having lived in Frogmore less than one year before relocating California, making taxpayers’ £2.4 million investment seem wasted and fueling narrative about couple’s lack of commitment to royal duties despite accepting benefits, though defenders noted they subsequently repaid the renovation costs in full during 2020 after securing Netflix and Spotify deals, and legally the property remained Crown Estate owned meaning Harry/Meghan were technically tenants not owners regardless of who paid for improvements.

Current Status (2025):
Frogmore Cottage remains empty, having been Harry and Meghan’s UK base until 2023 when they vacated following King Charles III’s request to surrender the property as part of streamlining royal estates and reportedly offering it to Prince Andrew (whose Royal Lodge situation remains complicated), though as of 2025 no permanent residents have moved in and the property sits maintained but unused, representing expensive asset not generating value while requiring ongoing maintenance costs and security despite vacancy, with speculation about future use ranging from housing working royals, converting back to staff accommodation, or even opening for public tours as revenue generator though royal family’s famous secrecy makes predicting actual plans impossible until official announcements made.

Adelaide Cottage: William & Kate’s “Normal” Choice

Why They Chose Adelaide:
In stark contrast to Harry and Meghan’s Frogmore renovation, William and Kate specifically chose Adelaide Cottage in 2022 because it required minimal work, had only four bedrooms forcing family intimacy without excessive space, lacked live-in staff quarters ensuring privacy, and represented deliberately modest royal living compared to grand palaces available to future king, with move coinciding with children starting Lambrook School nearby and couple’s desire escaping goldfish-bowl existence Kensington Palace apartment and London’s scrutiny created, wanting children experiencing childhood more similar to Kate’s own middle-class upbringing than typical royal isolation in vast palaces with armies of staff.

The Property Details:
Built 1831 for Queen Adelaide (wife of King William IV), Adelaide Cottage exemplifies Victorian cottage ornée style blending rustic exterior charm with sophisticated interior decoration, featuring the famous Greek-inspired marble master bedroom fireplace allegedly crafted from marble originally destined for HMS Victory (Admiral Nelson’s flagship at Trafalgar), plus gilt dolphin decorations and ceiling frescos demonstrating despite “cottage” name, the property maintains royal luxury standards while remaining intimate scale compared to palaces.

Royal History:
Most famously, Adelaide Cottage was longtime residence of Group Captain Peter Townsend, equerry to King George VI and later Princess Margaret’s forbidden love interest whose divorced status prevented marriage under 1950s Church of England rules (monarch heads Church, cannot have divorced family members remarrying), with their doomed romance playing out partially at Adelaide Cottage creating romantic historical footnote William and Kate now occupy, while property has housed various courtiers and minor royals over decades serving as coveted residence within Windsor’s private estate offering privacy and prestige simultaneously.

Family Life:
Reports suggest William and Kate enjoy cooking family meals, doing school runs personally, and generally living more “normally” than previous royal generations, with children sharing bedrooms (revolutionary for royal standards), minimal staff presence (no live-in nanny or housekeeper), and family handling many daily tasks themselves rather than delegating everything to servants, representing conscious effort grounding children in relative normality despite heir’s inevitable future as monarch, with Adelaide’s modest four bedrooms enabling this lifestyle where larger properties would require staff presence preventing intimacy and normality couple seeks providing children.

The Windsor Castle Connection

Both Frogmore and Adelaide Cottage exist within Windsor Home Park, the private estate surrounding Windsor Castle covering 655 acres (2.65 km²) offering unparalleled privacy and security while providing quick access to Windsor Castle for official duties, family gatherings, and Sunday church services at St George’s Chapel, with entire area closed to public access except designated pathways and Long Walk creating safe environment for royals living, exercising, and relaxing without photographers or tourists intruding.

Windsor’s Royal Significance:

• Windsor Castle: Queen Elizabeth II’s primary residence (2020-2022), now King Charles III’s weekend residence
• St George’s Chapel: Harry/Meghan’s wedding venue (2018), Queen Elizabeth’s funeral (2022)
• Frogmore House: (Different from Frogmore Cottage) Larger mansion hosting Harry/Meghan’s wedding reception, Queen Victoria’s favorite retreat
• Royal Mausoleum: Victoria and Albert buried at Frogmore, plus numerous other royals
• The Long Walk: 2.65-mile tree-lined avenue from castle to Copper Horse statue

Why Windsor Over London:
Modern royals increasingly prefer Windsor’s relative tranquility versus London’s intensity, with William and Kate previously based at Kensington Palace (KP) in London finding the constant media presence, pollution, and urban pressure unsuitable for family life especially as children grew older requiring stable schooling and outdoor space inner-city living couldn’t provide, while Windsor offers countryside atmosphere while remaining only 25 miles from London enabling quick trips for official duties without requiring permanent urban residence previous generations maintained as symbol of accessibility to government and people that modern communication technology and changed royal roles make less essential.

**People Also Ask + FAQ: Frogmore & Adelaide Cottage

1. Do Harry and Meghan still own Frogmore Cottage?

No, Harry and Meghan vacated Frogmore Cottage in 2023 and no longer have UK residence, with eviction reportedly requested by King Charles III as part of streamlining royal properties and reducing costs for non-working royals, though technically they never “owned” Frogmore as it remains Crown Estate property where they were tenants under license from the monarch, with couple having repaid the £2.4 million renovation costs in full 2020 after stepping back as senior royals meaning taxpayers ultimately recouped investment though timing and circumstances created lasting controversy and negative publicity neither couple nor royal family benefited from, leaving Frogmore currently empty and unused while Harry and Meghan’s California home becomes their sole residence eliminating UK base that Frogmore provided during transitional period 2019-2023 when couple’s royal status and living arrangements remained uncertain before full California relocation and Spare memoir publication burned remaining bridges with family making UK residence increasingly awkward and unlikely future requirement.

2. How many bedrooms does Adelaide Cottage have?

Adelaide Cottage has 4 bedrooms, making it surprisingly modest for housing future king and his family, with Prince William, Kate Middleton, and their three children (George, Charlotte, Louis) reportedly sharing space more intimately than traditional royal arrangements where each child might have own bedroom plus additional guest rooms, nanny quarters, and staff accommodations larger properties provide, with couple deliberately choosing smaller property wanting family experiencing normal dynamics without excessive space or live-in staff creating distance and formality previous royal generations accepted as standard but William and Kate consciously reject for their children’s upbringing, though “4-bedroom cottage” still maintains royal luxury standards with high ceilings, elegant decoration, historic features, and private estate grounds providing amenities and space beyond physical bedroom count suggests when imagining typical 4-bedroom family home, demonstrating how royal “cottage” remains grander than ordinary person’s “cottage” despite relatively modest claims compared to palaces most associate with royal living.

3. Why did Harry and Meghan leave Frogmore Cottage?

Multiple reasons including stepping back as senior royals (January 2020), moving to California, and ultimately being asked to vacate by King Charles III (2023), with initial departure 2020 following “Megxit” announcement where couple sought financial independence while maintaining UK base for occasional visits and royal duties they continued performing during 12-month transition period, but full California relocation and lucrative media deals (Netflix, Spotify worth $100+ million combined) made UK residence unnecessary except symbolically maintaining connection to family and country they increasingly criticized publicly through Oprah interview (March 2021), Spotify podcast, Harry’s memoir Spare (January 2023), and Netflix documentary creating untenable situation where receiving Crown property while attacking institution and family providing it generated justified criticism leading King Charles reportedly requesting they vacate Frogmore as part of asserting authority as new monarch and addressing public perception working royals shouldn’t subsidize non-working family members especially those publicly criticizing monarchy, with Harry and Meghan complying though reportedly unhappy losing UK foothold that Frogmore represented even if they rarely used it.

4. Can the public visit Frogmore Cottage or Adelaide Cottage?

No, both properties are private royal residences within Windsor Home Park closed to public access, unlike Windsor Castle, Kensington Palace, and Buckingham Palace which offer public tours generating revenue and tourism, with Frogmore and Adelaide’s location within Home Park’s private estate ensuring no casual visitors or tourists can approach properties even from distance, requiring special permission and security clearance entering grounds creating privacy and security impossible achieving properties accessible to public even partially, though historically Frogmore House (different from Frogmore Cottage, larger mansion nearby) occasionally opens for charity open days allowing limited public access for specific occasions, and conceivably if Frogmore Cottage remains vacant long-term, royal family might eventually consider similar limited public access as revenue generator though current policy maintains strict privacy for all occupied residences and even vacant ones retain restrictions preventing unauthorized access, making detailed information about properties’ interiors, layouts, and current conditions largely speculative based on limited official statements, historical records, and occasional leaked photos or descriptions rather than firsthand public knowledge most historic buildings offer through regular tours and documentation.

5. What is the controversy around Frogmore Cottage?

Primary controversy involved £2.4 million taxpayer-funded renovation for Harry and Meghan who lived there less than year before stepping back as royals and moving California, creating perception of wasted public money on couple who then criticized monarchy and royal family while living luxuriously abroad funded partially by renovation investment British taxpayers provided expecting Harry and Meghan serving as working royals justifying expenditure, though couple’s defenders note: (1) they fully repaid £2.4 million from personal funds after leaving, (2) renovation was necessary regardless of occupants as building required structural work meeting modern standards, (3) as Crown Estate property, improvements theoretically benefit future occupants and overall royal estate value rather than solely benefiting Harry/Meghan personally, and (4) media coverage often exaggerated or misrepresented renovation necessity and costs comparing it to typical home improvements rather than historic building restoration meeting conservation requirements Grade II listing demands, with controversy ultimately reflecting larger tensions around Harry and Meghan’s royal roles, media treatment, public sympathy/criticism, and broader questions about monarchy’s funding, property holdings, and whether non-working royals should receive financial support and accommodation taxpayers ultimately fund through Sovereign Grant even if indirectly through Crown Estate arrangements that technically generate income but remain entangled with public finances and perception of royal privilege.

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