Inside Birkhall, Prince Charles and Camilla's Home on Queen Elizabeth's Balmoral Estate
It's well-known that Queen Elizabeth decamps at the end of every summer to Balmoral, her royal residence in Scotland. Less famous—but equally interesting—is Birkhall, a historic home on the same estate that currently belongs to Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall.
But recently, what with Charles and Camilla residing there amid the pandemic (and occasionally even offering peeks inside, as they release photos of themselves working from home), curiosity about Birkhall has been piqued. Here, all the details on the centuries-old residence.
It's been in the royal family for generations.
While the structure itself dates back to 1715, it first came into the royals' possession in 1852. Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, acquired Birkhall as a gift for his son, the future King Edward VII. (Albert also purchased the nearby Balmoral Castle and accompanying 50,000-acre estate that year, as a gift for Victoria.)
Later, George V would lend it to the Duke and Duchess of York (a.k.a. the soon-to-be King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother). They spent time with their young daughters, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, there before the Duke ascended the throne. For a time thereafter, Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh used it as their Scottish retreat; once Elizabeth was crowned Queen, they took up residence at Balmoral, and the Queen Mother began staying at Birkhall once again.
Charles inherited the home from the Queen Mother.
The Queen Mother was Birkhall's longtime resident; she apparently fondly called it the "little big house." After her death in 2002, it became the Prince of Wales's Scottish home.
Since then, it's held a special place in Charles's heart—and Camilla's, too, as it's where the newlyweds honeymooned in 2005.
Charles and Camilla have continued to enjoy it in the years since.
The garden, in particular, has captured Charles's heart. "It is," Prince Charles told Country Life, "such a special place, particularly because it was made by my grandmother. It is a childhood garden, and all I’ve done, really, is enhance it a bit."
The Prince of Wales even lets nature inside its doors. His son Prince William revealed that the heir to the throne is so taken with the local critters, he's welcomed them in. "He is completely infatuated by the red squirrels that live around the estate in Scotland—to the extent that he's given them names and is allowing them into the house," Will said.
Charles freely admits this. "They come into the house at Birkhall and we get them chasing each other round and round inside. If I sit quietly, they will do so around me," he says. "Sometimes, when I leave my jackets on a chair with nuts in the pockets, I see them with their tails sticking out, as they hunt for nuts—they are incredibly special creatures."
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