You would think that a palace would have enough rooms for King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla to find private space. But it is not enough for the new monarch and his wife, who have been living in separate houses since their marriage in 2005.
It was announced on Wednesday that the 73-year-old king would take a day of personal reflection amid national mourning for his mother, Queen Elizabeth, who died on September 9 – at his nine-bedroom mansion, Highgrove, more than 100 miles away. from London.
Camilla would not accompany him, however. Instead, the 75-year-old went to Ray Mill House — the six-bedroom place she bought in 1996, after her divorce from her first husband, Andrew Parker Bowles.
“They are a very close couple, so this has nothing to do with any tension between them,” a royal insider told The Post of the King and Queen Consort. “Camilla does have her own room in Highgrove, but she rarely stays there. When they are in the countryside, she prefers to be at Ray Mill House, where she is not only close to her family, but also tends her stables. That’s how it’s always been with them.”
Royal commentator Joshua Rom told The Post: “The two have gone through an incredibly grueling schedule that would affect everyone, let alone those in their 70s. So it’s no wonder that if they had 24 hours off, they’d both go to the places where they can kick off their shoes and relax.”
While the couple’s main residence has long been at Clarence House, Camilla has been able to live a quieter second life in her “bolthole,” a significantly cozier home reportedly worth nearly $1 million. Here she keeps her beloved horses and often receives her son Tom and daughter Laura, as well as her five grandchildren.
“Amid all the splendor of royal life, Ray Mill is where she’s just the Camilla going to the grocery store and relaxing with her grandkids,” said Rom. “It’s where she can keep a part of herself.
The importance of Ray Mill House – which is a 20-minute drive from Highgrove – for Camilla became apparent earlier this year when Kate, the new Princess of Wales, took a picture of the Queen Consort there for Country Life magazine.
Camilla said in the accompanying story that she cherished her moments with Ray Mill because it meant she could do the school career for her youngest granddaughter Eliza Lopes, 14, whose mother, Laura, married in the house.
“One grandchild is at school near my house, so when I’m in Wiltshire and her parents are away I can pick her up and take her home,” Camilla said.
Even when Camilla and Charles live together, whether it’s in London where they will eventually move from Clarence House to Buckingham Palace, or at Highgrove House, or on Charles’ Birkhall Estate in Scotland, they have separate bedrooms, as is the traditional royal way. .
On the Queen’s yacht Britannia, only one room had a double bed – and that was reserved for honeymooners.
Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams said the fact that Charles and Camilla can take time off each other proves how good they are. “This is a couple who are ideal for each other. They are the same age and have the same sense of humor, the same attitude, the same friends, the same interests… and they both know that sometimes you need some space,” he told The Post.
The royal insider added: “It has been a very difficult time for everyone and I think the whole world can see how Camilla is strong for Charles and helping him be the king he wants to be. She’s always been such a support to him, but it’s not surprising that she would like to have some of her own space too.”