Prince William and Princess Kate still use Apartment 1A inside Kensington Palace as their London base for work and pleasure purposes, but did you know that there are a whole host of other royals who also live within the palace grounds? This royal residence has also previously been home to some significant royal family members, including Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Discover the inhabitants, past and present…
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The palace is located in London
Is Kensington Palace a private residence?
The palace is classed as a working royal residence. It is home to members of the royal family who reside in the private quarters, but some of the palace is open to members of the public for viewing. The King’s state apartments are available for touring, and they were first opened to visitors by Queen Victoria in 1898.
Current residents
Prince William still retains a base inside the palace
The Prince and Princess of Wales
The Prince and Princess of Wales are currently planning a move from Adelaide Cottage to Forest Lodge in Windsor, but as well as their rural base, they retain use of Apartment 1A inside Kensington Palace to use with their three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. Despite being called an apartment, the 20-room, four-storey property is rather large and impressive and has been a home for the family since 2017.
It previously belonged to Princess Margaret, and it boasts five reception rooms, three main bedrooms, dressing rooms, a night and day nursery, and staff quarters. Features inside include underfloor heating, encrypted Wi-Fi, a TV projector and a panic room.
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Eugenie and Jack use a cottage on site
Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank
Princess Eugenie and husband Jack Brooksbank, along with their two sons, August and Ernest, split their time between the UK and Portugal.
The humble Ivy Cottage within palace walls is where they call home. The chocolate-box cottage is picture-perfect from the outside with a white picket fence, climbing roses and white Georgian windows.
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The couple have lived there for years
The Prince and Princess Michael of Kent
Prince Michael and Princess Michael live in Apartment 10 at Kensington Palace, a five-bedroom, five-reception room apartment. The couple have lived in the palace since the seventies and were once neighbours with Princess Diana, who lived next door at combined Apartment 8 and 9.
The Kents, who retired from public duties in 2022, came under fire in the 2000s when it was revealed that they did not pay rent. Her Late Majesty had been paying her cousin’s £120,000 rent, while he and his wife only took care of the weekly utility bill. Members of parliament demanded that they start paying their £10,000-a-month market-rate rent in 2002.
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The Duke of Kent lives alone since his wife’s death
The Duke of Kent
Living next door to Princess Eugenie and Jack is the late Queen’ Elizabeth II’s cousin, the Duke of Kent. His wife, Katherine, sadly passed away in September 2025, and now he lives there alone. Their modest two-storey cottage, which once housed palace staff, overlooks a walled garden and is slightly detached from the palace. It was named after Sir Christopher Wren, the palace’s chief restorer.
The Duke and Duchess are empty nesters now
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester currently live in the Old Stables at Kensington Palace after downsizing from Apartment 1. The couple moved to the residence after a refurbishment to modernise the living space and downsized after their children left home. The Old Stables was famously home to Tommy Lascelles, who fans of The Crown might recognise from the early season of the show.
Former residents
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The late Princess Diana raised her sons there
Princess Diana
Princess Diana raised her sons Prince William and Prince Harry inside the palace and they attended nursery and junior school nearby, before going to Eton College.
According to biographer Andrew Morton, the palace was a “children’s paradise” with its long passageways, a helicopter pad and many outdoor gardens, including one on the roof where the family spent many hours.
The late princess even lived in Apartments 8 and 9 after her divorce from the then-Prince Charles.
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The Sussexes lived in a humble cottage on site
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle first moved in together, they lived at Nottingham Cottage. Unlike some of the grander rooms at Kensington Palace, the cottage, also known as Nott Cott, boasts only two bedrooms, a bathroom and a kitchen.
Speaking about the home in his Netflix docu-series, Harry & Meghan, Harry joked: “As far as people were concerned, we were living in a palace. We were. In a cottage.” Meghan said: “It was just a chapter in our lives where I don’t think anyone could believe what it was actually like behind the scenes.”
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Princess Margaret was famed for parties at the palace
Princess Margaret
The late Princess Margaret called the Palace home, and she lived there with her husband, Antony Armstrong-Jones, where they raised their two children: David Armstrong-Jones and Lady Sarah Chatto. The couple were known for hosting lavish parties with celebrities of the day during their time there.
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