Prince William reportedly harbors deep reservations about ever relocating to Highgrove House, his father’s cherished Gloucestershire estate, due in large part to the emotional legacy left behind by his late mother, Princess Diana.
These insights were shared by Jack Stooks, a former gardener for King Charles III, during a recent interview with OK! Magazine. Stooks opened up about the subtle dynamics surrounding royal residences, particularly why William and his wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales, have no intention of making Highgrove their permanent home.
“Before [Charles] became king, I think the idea was that they needed to make sure that the garden [at Highgrove] was protected,” Stooks explained. “So I think he thought that William probably wouldn’t move into Highgrove… so the idea was, ‘Let’s protect it somehow.’ So the Prince’s Foundation now rents the garden from the Duchy of Cornwall.”
According to Stooks, this arrangement has created an unusual property loop within the royal family. “The King rents his house from William, and William rents two of his houses from The King, so yeah, it’s quite odd, isn’t it?” he added. The emotional weight of Highgrove’s history may play a bigger role than logistics.
“Highgrove was very much his mom and dad’s home [where they] were brought up, so it’s like a family home that mom and dad lived in,” Stooks noted. That legacy — particularly Diana’s memory — appears to be a deciding factor in William’s reluctance.
For William, moving to Highgrove might feel like “having to step into Diana’s shoes,” a sentiment complicated further by the constant public comparisons between Kate and his late mother.
“She’s so often compared to Diana in the press, which I think is unfair because… they’re very separate people,” Stooks said, expressing concern about the unrealistic expectations placed on the Princess of Wales.
Currently, the Prince and Princess of Wales reside at Adelaide Cottage in Windsor. The couple also frequently spends time at Anmer Hall, their countryside retreat in Norfolk. Their choice of residence reflects a desire to maintain a balance between royal duty and family life, while keeping some emotional distance from the shadows of the past.
With Diana’s memory still looming large in both public perception and private sentiment, it seems unlikely Highgrove will ever be more than a symbol of history for the future king.