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Buckingham Palace has been associated with the British monarch for decades, but it's long been known that it wasn't the favourite residence of Queen Elizabeth.
The story goes that Winston Churchill convinced the late monarch to move from her family home with Prince Philip, Clarence House, to the palace following her accession in 1952. History is repeating itself, with Elizabeth's son King Charles set to leave behind Clarence House, where he has lived since 2003, in 2027.
This impending change got us thinking about why the unassuming London residence, which has been home to several royals, is so treasured.
Plain interiors at Clarence House
Unlike the pomp and circumstance of Buckingham Palace, which features 775 rooms, Clarence House has been described as "plain", and Queen Elizabeth reportedly even struggled to decorate the interiors when she moved in shortly after her wedding in 1947.
The Royal Collection Trust explained: "The interior of Clarence House was plain in comparison to [John] Nash’s designs for Buckingham Palace. Ornamental plasterwork was confined to the reception rooms on the first floor, which were hung with crimson damask."
This would mean that when the three-storey mansion was originally built in 1825, the entrance hall, gallery, Morning Room and Dining Room were remarkably modest.
When it became home to then-Princess Elizabeth, it underwent a small transformation, including upgrades to the electric wiring, heating and hot water systems and a "fresh new appearance" for the Victorian interiors.
However, much of those interiors were dictated by what the royals received as wedding presents.
"Post-war restrictions on building and materials meant that there was still an overall simplicity to the furnishings. Much of the furniture came in the form of wedding presents," the RCT noted, adding that the 20-seat dining table and chairs were the gift of the Royal Warrant Holders Association, and the four side tables were a present from Queen Mary.
Tweaking decorations
The Queen Mother, who moved in with her daughter Princess Margaret shortly before the Coronation, also put her stamp on the property. A Georgian marble chimneypiece and a plaster ceiling with her own crown were installed in the Morning Room, while works of art by John Piper and Augustus John and pieces from Fabergé decorated the interiors.
In memory of his late mother and grandmother, Charles reportedly kept much of the furnishings and artwork the same when he moved into the home following the Queen Mother's death in 2002.
"The arrangement of the rooms and the grouping of their contents remain recognisably as they were in Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother's time," the royal family's official website states, adding that even after Charles' renovations, he maintained "the familiar atmosphere of a much-loved family house."
Gardening passion
Queen Camilla previously confessed that Charles' passions lay outside the home, instead. The couple have a vegetable garden at their official London residence, Clarence House, and a Kitchen Garden at the Highgrove Estate, which allows them to grow their own produce.
"I love the vegetable garden, and summer in particular. I'm very proud of my white peaches. My husband is an excellent gardener, and we're quite competitive about our fruit and vegetables," Camilla told her son Tom Parker Bowles for Mail on Sunday's You Magazine.
