Prince William and Princess Kate moved into their ‘forever home’ in Windsor last November, signalling a major shift in not just their personal lives but also in their royal duties.
The Prince and Princess of Wales have already taken some unconventional steps for how they conduct their affairs, but the couple had to give into pressure as they revealed a crucial detail about their living arrangement.
It was revealed in a report by The Times that the future King and Queen are paying £100,000 more than the previous tenants for their annual rent (around £300,000).
According to the official documents filed with the Land Registry, William and Kate have signed a 20-year lease on the property back in July. However, this is the first time the details have been made public, an unprecedented step for the royals.
One royal commentator believes that William and Kate would not have liked to reveal this particular detail about their home, but were forced into taking this step after ‘peppercorn rent’ of the many royals was exposed.
The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh also pay peppercorn rent. However, the most infuriating fact, which had triggered the tax-paying Britons, was that the disgraced ex-prince Andrew was also not paying any rent on Royal Lodge.
Meredith Constant pointed it that the reports put pressure on William especially as the profits from the Duchy of Lancaster and Duchy of Cornwall, which go straight into the pockets of the King and his heir respectively, were exposed in a documentary.
She claimed that after the reports, it sparked many changes in how the royals present their portfolios. It is all “designed” to make William look like a “more transparent ruler who listens and learns”.
2026-05-17 11:37:00
