Prince William’s heartbreaking reason behind his family’s move to Windsor

Two years ago, Prince William and his wife Princess Kate decided to pack their bags and move their three children – Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis – to Windsor, after living in London for many years. It has been said that there were a few reasons behind the family deciding to move to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor Home Park, a four-bedroom property that was much more modest than their previous apartment in Kensington Palace.

Whilst a myriad of factors may well have come into play when it came to deciding the time was right to move the family out of London, one of Prince William’s motivations behind moving was actually pretty heartbreaking and had to do with his beloved grandmother, the late Queen Elizabeth.

The touching revelation was made by Robert Jobson – royal author and journalist – in his new book Catherine, Princess of Wales, which claimed that a big deciding factor behind the family moving to Windsor was the couple’s desire to spend as much time with the late Queen as they possibly could during the end of her life.

William “knew his time with his grandmother was precious and he is delighted they, as a couple, made that decision,” the royal expert wrote. “Catherine understood that for William, as a future king, it was important for him to be geographically closer to the late Queen in her final months, when he was required to support both her and his father. It made a real difference. They were in regular contact, seeing each other in person and speaking on the phone several times a week, bringing them even closer.”

Heartbreakingly, the Queen died not very long after the couple’s move, but that meant they also got some valuable time in their new home of Adelaide Cottage with the former monarch in her final months – and Jobson also claimed that William’s decision was also made in light of the death of Prince Philip, the late Queen’s husband. Philip died in April 2021, and this was reportedly also a factor when it came to prioritising their time with the late Queen, who had just lost her husband of 73 years. Whilst the couple have kept their Kensington Palace apartment – which they are reported to use as offices currently – they are now based full-time in Windsor, with their three children attending the nearby Lambrook School.