Can Prince William really replace Buckingham Palace with a forest lodge as the Monarch’s main royal residence?

Plans for the Prince and Princess of Wales to move their family to a previously little known home in Windsor Great Park have caught attention and raised a big question. William, Kate and their three children are moving to Forest Lodge and it’s reported that they plan to make this their ‘forever home’ even after the heir takes the throne. So can Prince William really replace Buckingham Palace with a forest lodge?

The lodge in question is several rungs up on a log cabin. In fact, it’s an 18th century mansion that’s now a Grade II listed building. It has eight bedrooms, six bathrooms and a tennis court. And while it may not be in the middle of a forest, it’s surrounded by gorgeous formal gardens with the acres of rolling woodland that is Windsor Great Park on its doortep.

However, reports that the Prince of Wales intends to stay put at Forest Lodge even after he becomes king have got everyone talking. Ask anyone, anywhere for the name of the home of the Royal Family and they’ll most likely say Buckingham Palace. Since George III acquired the property in the early part of his reign, it’s been the home of the Monarch. It’s the most famous regal residence in the world but it now appears that it might be put to one side for this elegant if rather lower key lodge.

So what would it mean if a future king William made Forest Lodge his home? On paper, very little. Buckingham Palace remains HQ – it’s the very visible sign of the Monarchy in the heart of the capital. It would still be the base for the important events that make up the royal year – State Visits, Trooping the Colour and major meetings would still happen there. As now, royal shows like the summer exhibition that’s now a regular part of the regal calendar would carry on.

In a way, it would be very similar to the pattern set by King Charles III. On his accession, one of the first things His Majesty did was arrive at Buckingham Palace and in a striking and deeply moving moment, he was seen to walk into the building with Queen Camilla at his side. The Monarch had changed but the Crown had not and it remained rooted at the palace. However, in reality, The King and Queen still live at Clarence House having felt a large scale move literally just down the road wasn’t the most sensible idea. Their bits and pieces, if that’s what royals call their everyday possessions, remain at Clarence House.

And we all know that the Royal Family has a rather tidy list of properties at its disposal. King Charles is currently at Balmoral where he will spend the last part of his summer holiday while plans are already under way, no doubt, at Sandringham House in Norfolk where he will gather his Royal Family at Christmas. Meanwhile, staff at Windsor Castle are preparing for the State Visit of Donald Trump which will be hosted there and which will see The King and Queen in residence for several days.

The reign of a king called William will follow the same pattern. Those great, famous homes have their place in the royal calendar but everyone needs a place to call home and Forest Lodge may well fill that gap for William and Kate when they are king and queen.

But it will also mark a change. Charles III was 74 when he became king having been heir to the throne for seven decades. There was an expectation that he wouldn’t change too much as his life was well settled. Implicit in that was the idea that it was William who would see a more noticeable shift when he took the Crown but that move was always perceived in the shape of the reign of his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. As a young Monarch, she had moved her family into Buckingham Palace and revived the traditions of the Royal Family by putting a fresh spin on established tradition. Until now, there has been an expectation that William would do the same thing. But would it have the same impact?

There is a wise streak in this move of the Prince and Princess of Wales. William, like his grandmother, appears to have an innate understanding of how the Monarchy is perceived at any one point in time. Right now, Buckingham Palace is undergoing a major refurbishment to maintain it for its crucial role in the day to day business of the Crown. For the next few years, it won’t host State Visits as it’s brought up to date. But that also means a transition. The Palace has become symbolic of the Monarchy and this marks a shift for it into a working building rather than a royal home with offices stuck on to it. It remains the heart of the institution and a sign of the Crown. But it also becomes something beyond the personal possession of the person who happens to wear the Crown at that moment.

However, whether this is a practical move in the long run remains to be seen. Forest Lodge has been chosen by William and Kate as a home where the need no live in staff. It’s not clear whether a Monarch and his consort can be so chilled in the long run. When they are in charge of running the big events, like State Visits, a team on hand will be handier than it is when their focus is giving their children an upbringing as normal as it possibly can be. Forest Lodge sounds like a lovely home to be with their three children which is an absolute priority given the year or so they have all gone through as the Princess of Wales was treated for cancer. Whether it can transform into a very unusual home for a king remains to be seen.