:Kensington Palace

File:Kensington.Palace.by.Kip.1724.jpgs, 1724]]

Kensington Palace was originally a two-storey Jacobean mansion built by Sir George Coppin in 1605 in the village of Kensington.{{Cite web |url=https://blog.hrp.org.uk/curators/what-was-here-before-kensington-palace/ |title=What was here before Kensington Palace? – HRP Blogs |date=31 January 2019 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190131020640/https://blog.hrp.org.uk/curators/what-was-here-before-kensington-palace/ |archive-date=31 January 2019 |access-date=31 January 2019 |url-status=live }}

Shortly after William and Mary assumed the throne as joint monarchs in 1689, they began searching for a residence better suited for the comfort of the asthmatic[https://www.gemhotels.com/blogs/10-facts-about-kensington-palace] William. Whitehall Palace was too near the River Thames, with its fog and floods, for William's fragile health.

In the summer of 1689, William and Mary bought the property, then known as Nottingham House, from the Secretary of State Daniel Finch, 2nd Earl of Nottingham, 7th Earl of Winchilsea, for £20,000.{{Cite web |url=http://www.hrp.org.uk/KensingtonPalace/building/origins |title="Origins," Kensington Palace official website, Retrieved 1 May 2013. |access-date=1 May 2013 |archive-date=21 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151121092000/http://www.hrp.org.uk/KensingtonPalace/building/origins |url-status=live }} They instructed Sir Christopher Wren, Surveyor of the King's Works, to begin an immediate expansion of the house. In order to save time and money, Wren kept the structure intact and added a three-storey pavilion at each of the four corners, providing more accommodation for the King and Queen and their attendants. The Queen's Apartments were in the north-west pavilion and the King's in the south-east.

Wren re-oriented the house to face west, building north and south wings to flank the approach, made into a proper cour d'honneur that was entered through an archway surmounted by a clock tower. The palace was surrounded by straight cut solitary lawns, and formal stately gardens, laid out with paths and flower beds at right angles, in the Dutch garden fashion.{{Cite web |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol5/pp138-152 |title='Kensington Palace', Old and New London: Volume 5 (1878), pp. 138–152 |access-date=13 November 2015 |archive-date=17 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117021206/http://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol5/pp138-152 |url-status=live }} The royal court took residence in the palace shortly before Christmas 1689. For the next seventy years, Kensington Palace was the favoured residence of British monarchs, although the official seat of the Court was and remains at St. James's Palace, which has not been the actual royal residence in London since the 17th century.

Additional improvements soon after included Queen Mary's extension of her apartments, by building the Queen's Gallery. After a fire in 1691, the King's Staircase was rebuilt in marble and a Guard Chamber was constructed, facing the foot of the stairs. William had constructed the South Front, to the design of Nicholas Hawksmoor, which included the Kings' Gallery where he hung many works from his picture collection. Mary II died of smallpox in the palace in 1694. In 1702, William suffered a fall from a horse at Hampton Court and was brought to Kensington Palace, where he died shortly afterwards from pneumonia.

File:Kensington Palace Orangery.jpg

After William III's death, the palace became the residence of Queen Anne. She had Christopher Wren complete the extensions that William and Mary had begun, resulting in the section known as the Queen's Apartments, with the Queen's Entrance, and the plainly decorated Wren designed staircase, that featured shallow steps so that Anne could walk down gracefully. These were primarily used by the Queen to give access between the private apartments and gardens.The London Encyclopaedia, ed. Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert, rev. ed. (London: Macmillan London, 1993; {{ISBN|0-333-57688-8}}), pp. 311, 438.

Queen Anne's most notable contribution to the palace were the gardens. She commissioned the Hawksmoor-designed Orangery, modified by John Vanbrugh, that was built for her in 1704.The London Encyclopaedia, ed. Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert, rev. ed. (London: Macmillan London, 1993; {{ISBN|0-333-57688-8}}), pp. 311, 438. The level of decoration of the interior, including carved detail by Grinling Gibbons, reflects its intended use, not just as a greenhouse, but as a place for entertaining. A magnificent {{convert|12|ha|acre|adj=on|abbr=off|0}} baroque parterre, with sections of clipped scrolling designs punctuated by trees formally clipped into cones, was laid out by Henry Wise, the royal gardener.

Kensington Palace was the setting of the final argument between Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough, and Queen Anne. The Duchess, who was known for being outspoken and manipulative, was jealous of the attention the Queen was giving to Abigail Masham, Baroness Masham. Along with the previous insensitive acts of the Duchess after the death of Anne's husband, Prince George of Denmark, who had died at Kensington Palace in October 1708, their friendship came to an abrupt end on 6 April 1710, with the two seeing each other for the last time after an argument in the Queen's Closet. Queen Anne died at Kensington Palace on 1 August 1714.{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/kensingtonpalace00hedl |url-access=registration |quote=Queen Anne died Kensington Palace. |title=Kensington Palace: The State Apartments |last=Hedley |first=Olwen |date=1976 |publisher=Pitkin Pictorials |edition=Illustrated |location=Northwestern University |isbn=9780853721727 |access-date=31 January 2019}}{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RP0hAQAAIAAJ&q=Queen+Anne+died+Kensington+Palace |title=Edward Wessex's crown and country: a personal guide to royal London |last1=Allen |first1=Caroline |last2=Wessex (Earl of) |first2=Edward |date=1999 |publisher=HarperCollinsIllustrated |isbn=978-0789304780 |edition=1 |location=London |access-date=31 January 2019 |archive-date=19 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240219041737/https://books.google.com/books?id=RP0hAQAAIAAJ&q=Queen+Anne+died+Kensington+Palace |url-status=live }}

File:Cupola Room, Kensington Palace.jpg

George I spent lavishly on new royal apartments, creating three new state rooms known as the Privy Chamber, the Cupola Room and the Withdrawing Room. He hired the unknown William Kent in 1722 to decorate the state rooms, which he did with elaborately painted trompe-l'œil ceilings and walls. The Cupola Room was Kent's first commission for the King. The octagonal coffering in the domed ceiling was painted in gold and blue, and terminated in a flat panel decorated with the Star of the Order of the Garter. The walls and woodwork were painted brown and gold to contrast with the white marble pilasters, doorways and niches which were surmounted with gilded statuary.

George I was pleased with his work, and between 1722, and 1727, Kent oversaw the decoration and picture hanging for all of the royal apartments at Kensington Palace. Kent's final commission was the King's Grand Staircase which he painted with 45 intriguing courtiers from the Georgian court, including the King's Turkish servants Mahomet and Mustapha, Peter 'the wild boy' as well as himself along with his mistress. King George I enlarged the palace with the addition of an apartment, built on the north-west side, to house his mistress, Melusine von der Schulenburg, Duchess of Kendal.

The last reigning monarch to use Kensington Palace was George II, who did not undertake any major structural changes to the palace during his reign, and left the running of the palace to his wife Caroline of Ansbach. At the request of the Queen, Charles Bridgeman, successor to Henry Wise as royal gardener, swept away the outmoded parterres and redesigned Kensington Gardens in a form that is still recognisable today: his remaining features are the Serpentine, the basin called the Round Pond, and the Broad Walk. After the death of his wife, George II neglected many rooms and the palace fell into disrepair. King George II died at Kensington Palace on 25 October 1760.Nicholls, Frank (1761) [https://books.google.com/books?id=bYWNFD7xRXkC&pg=PA265 "Observations concerning the body of His Late Majesty"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230114123611/https://books.google.com/books?id=bYWNFD7xRXkC&pg=PA265 |date=14 January 2023 }}, Philos Trans Lond 52: 265–274.

File:Kensington_Palace%2C_London_01.JPG

With the accession of George III in 1760, Kensington Palace was only used for minor royalty.{{Cite web |title=The story of Kensington Palace |url=https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/history-and-stories/the-story-of-kensington-palace/ |access-date=2025-01-15 |website=Historic Royal Palaces |language=en}} The sixth son of George III, Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, was allocated apartments in the south-west corner of Kensington Palace in 1805 known as Apartment 1.{{Cite web |last=Aquino |first=Gabriel |date=2020-09-21 |title=All the royals who have lived in Kensington Palace's Apartment 1 |url=https://royalcentral.co.uk/features/insight/all-the-royals-who-have-lived-in-kensington-palaces-apartment-1-149651/ |access-date=2025-01-15 |website=Royal Central |language=en-GB}} He was interested in the arts and science and amassed a huge library that filled ten rooms and comprised over fifty thousand volumes.{{CN|date=May 2024}} He had a large number of clocks, and a variety of singing birds that were free to fly around his apartments. He was elected as president of the Royal Society and gave receptions in his apartments at Kensington Palace to men of science. The expense they incurred induced him to resign the presidency, as he preferred to employ the money in making additions to his library.{{CN|date=May 2024}}

The Duke of Sussex caused quite a scandal when he married twice in contravention of the Royal Marriages Act 1772, because it had not been approved by the King. His second wife, Cecilia Underwood, Duchess of Inverness, was never titled or recognised as the Duchess of Sussex. However, she was created Duchess of Inverness in her own right in 1840. The Duke died at Kensington Palace in 1843. As he had lived beyond his means and amassed substantial debts, his possessions, including the library, were sold after his death. The Duchess of Inverness continued to reside at Kensington Palace until her death in 1873.{{Cite news |title=THE LATE DUCHESS OF INVERNESS. |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1873/08/04/79041938.html?pageNumber=4 |access-date=2025-01-15 |work=The New York Times |language=en |issn=0362-4331}}

Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, the fourth son of King George III, was allocated two floors of rooms in the south-east corner of the palace, below the State Apartments, which he renovated for his use. The apartments were next to his near-blind sister Princess Sophia. His daughter, Alexandrina Victoria, was born on 24 May 1819, and her christening conducted in the Cupola Room the following month. The Duke of Kent and Strathearn died nine months after the birth of his daughter.{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/donotmigrate/3560626/Queen-Victoria-the-original-peoples-princess.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/donotmigrate/3560626/Queen-Victoria-the-original-peoples-princess.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Queen Victoria: the original people's princess |access-date=25 April 2014}}{{cbignore}}

She grew up in the confines of the palace in an unhappy and lonely childhood as a result of the Kensington System adopted by her mother, Victoria, Duchess of Kent, and the domineering Sir John Conroy, her mother's comptroller of the household. Princess Sophia fell under the sway of Conroy, who took advantage of her senility and blindness. She frequently served as his spy on the Kensington household, as well as on her two elder brothers. Conroy squandered most of her money until she died in 1848, at Kensington Palace.

File:Queen Victoria statue, Kensington Gardens 2024-06-05.jpg ]]

In 1837, Princess Alexandrina Victoria was awakened to be told that her uncle, King William IV, had died and that she was now queen. She took the regnal name of Victoria and held her first privy council in the Red Saloon at the palace. The Queen promptly moved to Buckingham Palace. She granted rooms in Kensington Palace to her family and retired retainers, who included the Duke and Duchess of Teck, parents of Queen Mary (great-grandmother of King Charles III), who was born at Kensington Palace on 26 May 1867. In 1873, Princess Louise (then Marchioness of Lorne, later Duchess of Argyll), resided in the apartment with her husband, the Marquess of Lorne (later the Duke of Argyll), departing after he was appointed Governor General of Canada for Rideau Hall.{{CN|date=May 2024}}

The couple returned after his tenure, and Louise used her art studio at the apartments to design and sculpt the Statue of Queen Victoria, Kensington Palace.{{CN|date=May 2024}} The apartment became her primary residence upon her widowhood in 1914 before her death in 1939.{{CN|date=May 2024}} In 1955, the apartment was given to the widowed Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, and her children until her death in 1969.{{CN|date=May 2024}} Louise's younger sister, Princess Beatrice, was given by Queen Victoria the apartments once occupied by the Queen and her mother below the State Apartments.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}}

During World War I, George V allowed a number of rooms in the palace to be used by those working for Irish POWs and Irish soldiers at the front, and decreed that its royal inhabitants adhere to the same rations as everyone else. The royal inhabitants now included Princess Helena, Duchess of Albany; Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone; and Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone. In 1921, upon widowhood, Victoria, Marchioness of Milford Haven, moved into a grace-and-favour apartment at Kensington Palace. During this period, her grandson, Prince Philip, lived with her at times as she was in charge of his education. As a result of the number of royal relatives residing there during the 1920s and 1930s, Edward VIII called the palace "the aunt heap."{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1385114/Margarets-home-to-be-opened-to-public.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1385114/Margarets-home-to-be-opened-to-public.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Margaret's home to be opened to public |last=Alderson |first=Andrew |date=17 February 2002 |work=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=4 June 2009 |location=London}}{{cbignore}}

File:Kensington Palace and Allotments Art.IWMART1127.jpg, by Henry Rushbury]]

Kensington Palace was severely damaged during the Blitz of 1940. It was hit by an incendiary bomb that exploded in the north side of Clock Court, damaging many of the surrounding buildings including the State Apartments, particularly the Queen's Apartments. The Headquarters of Personnel Section occupied Apartment 34, and as a result the garden was overrun with anti-aircraft guns, sandbags and trenches. Repairs to the palace were not completed for several years, but after the war, Prince Philip stayed with his grandmother, Victoria, Marchioness of Milford Haven in the lead-up to his 1947 marriage with Princess Elizabeth, later to become Queen Elizabeth II.

With the bombing damage and the deaths of Princess Louise and Princess Beatrice, the palace entered a period of neglect. During the 1950s, residents of the palace included the Master of the Horse, Henry Somerset, 10th Duke of Beaufort, who had married Lady Mary Cambridge - a niece of Queen Mary as the daughter of Adolphus Cambridge, 1st Marquess of Cambridge, Sir Alan Lascelles, Queen Elizabeth's private secretary and Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, who lived in the palace until her death in 1981.

In 1955, the widowed Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, moved into Apartment 1, with her children, which had been vacant since Princess Louise's death in 1939. It was at this time that the apartment was divided and Apartment 1A created. The stylish Duchess of Kent continued to live in the apartment until her death at Kensington Palace of a brain tumour in 1968.

Following their wedding on 6 May 1960, Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, sister of Queen Elizabeth II, and Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, moved into Apartment 10, while they set about transforming the much larger Apartment 1A to new designs.{{cite web |title=Why There's Always Royal Drama At Kensington Palace |url=https://graziadaily.co.uk/celebrity/news/kensington-palace-royal-family-politics/ |website=Grazia |date=9 May 2018 |access-date=8 June 2021 |archive-date=8 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608045535/https://graziadaily.co.uk/celebrity/news/kensington-palace-royal-family-politics/ |url-status=live }} In 1960, Kensington Palace was under the auspices of the Ministry of Works. The renovation had to be carried out under the strictest of budgets, with the eventual costs coming in at £85,000, approximately £1.5 million today. By 1962, the whole interior had been gutted. All the floors, except the attic floor, were removed to deal with rising damp.

The resulting modern apartment consisted of the main reception rooms, three principal bedrooms and dressing rooms, three principal bathrooms, the nursery accommodation, nine staff bedrooms, four staff bathrooms, two staff kitchens and two staff sitting rooms. Twenty ancillary rooms included a linen store, a luggage room, a drying room, a glass pantry and a photographic dark room for Lord Snowdon.

The house in 18th century style, had a modern colour palette, with the bold use of colours including Margaret's favourites, pink and kingfisher blue. The house was largely designed by Snowdon and Princess Margaret with the assistance of the theatre designer Carl Toms, one-time assistant to Oliver Messel, Lord Snowdon's uncle, and a close friend of the royal couple.{{citation needed|date=June 2020}} The royal couple moved into Apartment 1A on 4 March 1963, prior to the birth of their daughter, Lady Sarah, who was born at the palace the following year.

Prince and Princess Richard of Gloucester, later Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, moved into Apartment 1 after their marriage in 1972, the 21-room house previously occupied by Princess Marina, where they subsequently raised their three children. In 1994, after the Gloucesters had to give up their country home, Barnwell Manor, for financial reasons, they moved the Duke's aged mother Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, from Barnwell to Kensington Palace where she died in her sleep on 29 October 2004 at age 102. She holds the record as the oldest person in the history of the British royal family.{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3968675.stm |title=Queen's tribute to Princess Alice |date=30 October 2004 |access-date=27 December 2011 |work=BBC News |archive-date=12 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170812142727/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3968675.stm |url-status=live }}

The Queen gave the keys to the five-bedroom, five-reception grace-and-favour Apartment 10 to Prince and Princess Michael of Kent on the occasion of their marriage in 1978. Their children, Lord Frederick Windsor and Lady Gabriella Kingston, were raised at the residence. In 2008, there was controversy when it was claimed that the couple paid a rent of only £70 per week, though they fulfilled no official duties on behalf of the Queen. The British Monarchy Media Centre denied these reports and stated that, "The Queen is paying the rent for Prince and Princess Michael of Kent's apartment at a commercial rate of £120,000 annually from her own private funds... This rent payment by The Queen is in recognition of the Royal engagements and work for various charities which Prince and Princess Michael of Kent have undertaken at their own expense, and without any public funding."{{Cite web |url=http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/page3956.asp |title=Corrections to inaccurate media stories about the royal family |access-date=28 April 2014 |archive-date=3 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303174815/http://www.royal.gov.uk/output/page3956.asp |url-status=live }}

It was announced that from 2010, that Prince and Princess Michael would begin paying rent of £120,000 a year out of their own funds to continue living in the apartment.{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/theroyalfamily/3146789/Prince-and-Princess-Michael-of-Kent-to-pay-120000-rent-for-Kensington-Palace-flat.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110130064450/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/theroyalfamily/3146789/Prince-and-Princess-Michael-of-Kent-to-pay-120000-rent-for-Kensington-Palace-flat.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 January 2011 |title=Prince and Princess Michael of Kent to pay £120,000 rent for Kensington Palace flat |last=Cockcroft |first=Lucy |date=6 October 2008 |work=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=4 June 2009 |location=London}}{{Cite news |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/columnists/routledge/2002/06/14/comment-on-queen-s-grace-and-favour-apartments-115875-11950679/ |title=Comment on Queen's grace-and-favour apartments |last=Routledge |first=Paul |date=14 June 2002 |work=Daily Mirror |access-date=4 June 2009 |location=London |archive-date=17 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110917194558/http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/columnists/routledge/2002/06/14/comment-on-queen-s-grace-and-favour-apartments-115875-11950679/ |url-status=live }} In 1996, Prince Michael's older brother, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and his wife Katharine moved into Wren House on the Kensington Palace estate.

File:Flowers for Princess Diana's Funeral.jpg]]

In 1981, in the part of the palace that King George I had built for his mistress, the Duchess of Kendal, Apartments 8 and 9 were combined to create the London residence of the newly married Prince of Wales and his wife, Diana, Princess of Wales. It remained the official residence of the Princess after their divorce until her death. Her sons, Princes William and Harry, were raised in Kensington Palace and went to local nursery and pre-preparatory schools in Notting Hill, which is a short drive away. According to 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.{{Cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/daily/special/diana/readingroom/8191/4_25.html |title=Growing Up Royal |date=25 April 1988 |magazine=Time |access-date=4 June 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050331004503/http://www.time.com/time/daily/special/diana/readingroom/8191/4_25.html |archive-date=31 March 2005}}

Several notable courtiers live or have lived at The Old Barracks building, on the southern end of the palace. Notable residents include: Paul Burrell, Princess Diana's butler; Sir Miles Hunt-Davies, Private Secretary to Prince Philip; Jane, Lady Fellowes, Diana's sister, and her husband Robert Fellowes, Baron Fellowes, Private Secretary to the Queen.{{CN|date=May 2024}} Diana's interview with Martin Bashir for the BBC's Panorama programme was recorded in Diana's sitting room at the palace.{{cite book|author=Tina Brown|title=The Diana Chronicles|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bKKXzseSgi0C&pg=PA350|year=2011|publisher=Arrow|isbn=978-0-09-956835-3|pages=350–|access-date=24 November 2020|archive-date=19 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240219041856/https://books.google.com/books?id=bKKXzseSgi0C&pg=PA350|url-status=live}} In February 1987, a thief wearing a ski mask hit police guards with a hammer while in the gardens but did not get inside the palace, where Prince Charles, Diana and other royals were sleeping.{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-02-12-mn-2860-story.html |title=Armed Intruder Captured in Garden at Palace as Charles and Diana Slept |last=Associated Press |date=12 February 1987 |website=Los Angeles Times |access-date=15 June 2023 |archive-date=19 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240219041704/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-02-12-mn-2860-story.html |url-status=live }}

Upon Diana's death on 31 August 1997, the gates at Kensington Palace became the focus of public mourning with over one million bouquets, reaching {{convert|5|ft}} deep in places, placed as tribute before them stretching out into Kensington Gardens.The Independent, 10 September 1997. The Princess's coffin spent its last night in London at the palace.{{CN|date=May 2024}} On the morning of 6 September 1997, a tenor bell signalled the departure of the funeral cortège carrying the coffin from the palace on a gun carriage to Westminster Abbey for the ceremony. Her residence was stripped bare and lay vacant for 10 years after her death. It was split back into two apartments, with Apartment 8 being used by four of Charles's charities and Apartment 9 becoming home to the Chief of the Defence Staff.{{CN|date=May 2024}}

File:Obamas with the Royals (26515297651).jpg and Prince Harry during a visit from President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama]]

Following their marriage in 2011, the then-Duke and Duchess of Cambridge used Nottingham Cottage as their London residence.{{cite web |title=New family-size house for Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in his childhood home |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/prince-william/8872150/New-family-size-house-for-William-and-Kate-in-his-childhood-home.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/prince-william/8872150/New-family-size-house-for-William-and-Kate-in-his-childhood-home.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |website=The Telegraph|date=6 November 2011 }}{{cbignore}} They then moved into the four-storey, 20-room Apartment 1A, the former residence of Princess Margaret, in 2013.{{CN|date=May 2024}} Renovations took 18 months at a cost of £4.5 million, including new heating, electrics and plastering, and the removal of asbestos that required nearly everything to be stripped out internally, as well as a new roof.{{Cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/25/world/europe/uk-royals-palace-upgrade/index.html?hpt=hp_t4 |title=Royal palace upgrade for William, Catherine and George costs $7.6 million |last=Foster |first=Max |date=26 June 2014 |work=CNN |access-date=26 June 2014 |archive-date=12 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412190830/https://www.cnn.com/2014/06/25/world/europe/uk-royals-palace-upgrade/index.html?hpt=hp_t4 |url-status=live }}

Kensington Palace became the Duke and Duchess's main residence in 2017, moving from their country home, Anmer Hall.{{cite magazine |title=Kate Middleton and Prince William Are Officially Moving to London This Fall |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2017/01/prince-william-kate-middleton-george-charlotte-moving-london |magazine=Vanity Fair |date=20 January 2017 |access-date=1 June 2021 |archive-date=24 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210924172925/https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2017/01/prince-william-kate-middleton-george-charlotte-moving-london |url-status=live }} The apartment covers four storeys, with three bedrooms, two nurseries and five reception rooms.{{cite web |title=23 pictures and videos that take you inside Kensington Palace: Kate Middleton and Prince William's palatial home in London |url=https://www.vogue.in/culture-and-living/content/kate-middleton-prince-william-home-inside-pictures-videos-kensington-palace |website=Vogue India |date=20 April 2021 |access-date=2 June 2021 |archive-date=2 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602213748/https://www.vogue.in/culture-and-living/content/kate-middleton-prince-william-home-inside-pictures-videos-kensington-palace |url-status=live }} In 2016, Diana's former residence, Apartment 8, was turned into office space for the couple's staff, official duties and charity work.{{cite web |title=Will and Kate Are Taking Over Diana's Former Apartment |url=https://www.housebeautiful.com/design-inspiration/celebrity-homes/news/g3587/william-kate-diana-kensington-palace-apartment/ |website=House Beautiful |date=27 June 2016 |access-date=1 June 2021 |archive-date=2 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602215412/https://www.housebeautiful.com/design-inspiration/celebrity-homes/news/g3587/william-kate-diana-kensington-palace-apartment/ |url-status=live }} The Duke and Duchess have hosted multiple engagements, receptions, and meetings at the palace.{{cite news |title=Royal Residences: Kensington Palace |url=https://www.royal.uk/royal-residences-kensington-palace |website=The Royal Family |date=23 November 2015 |access-date=1 June 2021 |last1=Oram |first1=Kirsty |archive-date=16 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220716203820/https://www.royal.uk/royal-residences-kensington-palace |url-status=live }}

On 28 March 2012, it was announced that Prince Harry had moved his residence from Clarence House to a one-bedroom apartment at Kensington Palace.{{Cite web |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/prince-harry-moves-into-kensington-palace/ |title=Prince Harry moves into Kensington Palace |date=28 March 2012 |website=CBS News |access-date=18 June 2013 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120328184249/https://www.cbsnews.com/8301-31749_162-57405780-10391698/prince-harry-moves-into-kensington-palace/ | archive-date = 28 March 2012 }} From 2013, he resided at Nottingham Cottage.{{cite magazine |title=Where Will Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Live After the Royal Wedding? |url=https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/a19818083/meghan-markle-prince-harry-live-after-wedding-nottingham-cottage/ |magazine=Harper's Bazaar |date=26 April 2018 |access-date=1 June 2021 |archive-date=2 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602221215/https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/a19818083/meghan-markle-prince-harry-live-after-wedding-nottingham-cottage/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/child-coming-it-s-suburbs-prince-harry-meghan-markle-n939631 |title=With child coming, it's off to the country for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle |date=24 November 2018 |publisher=NBC News |access-date=24 November 2018 |archive-date=24 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124220217/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/child-coming-it-s-suburbs-prince-harry-meghan-markle-n939631 |url-status=live }} The Duke and Duchess of Sussex continued to live at the property until the birth of their son in spring 2019.{{Cite web |url=https://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/news-and-diary/prince-henry-of-wales-meghan-markle-are-engaged-be-married |title=Prince Henry of Wales & Meghan Markle are engaged to be married |date=27 November 2017 |publisher=The Prince of Wales |access-date=27 November 2017 |archive-date=27 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171127112356/https://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/news-and-diary/prince-henry-of-wales-meghan-markle-are-engaged-be-married |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/prince-harry-and-meghan-are-moving-to-the-suburbs-frogmore-cottage-2018-11-24/ |title=Prince Harry and Meghan are moving to the suburbs |date=24 November 2018 |publisher=CBS News |access-date=24 November 2018 |archive-date=24 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181124135143/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/prince-harry-and-meghan-are-moving-to-the-suburbs-frogmore-cottage-2018-11-24/ |url-status=live }}

In April 2018, Princess Eugenie moved from St James's Palace into Ivy Cottage at Kensington Palace.{{Cite web |url=https://people.com/royals/princess-eugenie-jack-brooksbank-move-kensington-palace/ |title=Princess Eugenie and Her Fiancé Jack Brooksbank Just Moved Next Door to Harry and Meghan! |last=Perry |first=Simon |date=1 May 2018 |publisher=People |access-date=2 May 2018 |archive-date=18 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218083225/https://people.com/royals/princess-eugenie-jack-brooksbank-move-kensington-palace/ |url-status=live }} She lived there with her husband Jack Brooksbank until November 2020.{{cite web |last1=Perry |first1=Simon |title=Princess Eugenie Moves Into Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Frogmore Cottage Home |url=https://people.com/royals/princess-eugenie-moves-into-frogmore-cottage-meghan-markle-prince-harry-home/ |website=People |access-date=21 November 2020 |archive-date=20 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120234438/https://people.com/royals/princess-eugenie-moves-into-frogmore-cottage-meghan-markle-prince-harry-home/ |url-status=live }} In September 2019, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, previously residents of Apartment 1, moved to the Old Stables, a smaller home located within the palace's estate.{{CN|date=May 2024}} In summer 2022, The Prince and Princess of Wales moved their family residence to Adelaide Cottage near Windsor Castle. Kensington Palace remains their official London residence as well as the location of their household and offices.{{Cite web |url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a39914976/adelaide-cottage-prince-william-kate-middleton/ |title=All the Details on Adelaide Cottage, Prince William and Kate Middleton's Likely New Home |date=5 May 2022 |access-date=29 March 2023 |archive-date=29 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230329170325/https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a39914976/adelaide-cottage-prince-william-kate-middleton/ |url-status=live }}

Kensington Palace contains public and private apartments and residences within the building and its grounds. The palace houses a total of fifty residents. Apart from members of the royal family, it also hosts members of the military, courtiers, staff, and citizens who pay market rent.

The King's and Queen's State Apartments are state rooms and private apartments historically used by various monarchs and consorts. The King's State Apartments were used for diplomatic audiences and meetings, described as "opulent" and "surprisingly sparse".{{cite web |title=The King's State Apartments |url=https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/whats-on/the-kings-staircase/#gs.33hbg0 |website=Historic Royal Palaces |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605024906/https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/whats-on/the-kings-staircase/#gs.33hbg0 |url-status=live }} The Queen's State Apartments were a domestic residence typically used by consorts to live in and entertain. The state apartments were first opened to the public in 1899. The museum closed intermittently during the conflicts of the First and Second World Wars before reopening permanently in 1949.{{cite web |last1=Hunt |first1=Amy |title=Who lives at Kensington Palace and what is it like inside? |url=https://www.womanandhome.com/us/life/royal-news/which-royals-live-in-kensington-palace-72453/ |website=WomanAndHome |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=6 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210606174024/https://www.womanandhome.com/us/life/royal-news/which-royals-live-in-kensington-palace-72453/ |url-status=live }}

File:Galeria de Kensington.jpg

The entryway to the King's State Apartments is marked by the King's Staircase, decorated with a painting by William Kent depicting George I's royal court, completed in 1724.{{cite web |title=The King's Staircase |url=https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/whats-on/the-kings-staircase/#gs.33hbg0 |website=Historic Royal Palaces |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605024906/https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/whats-on/the-kings-staircase/#gs.33hbg0 |url-status=live }} The apartment possesses several reception rooms. The Presence Chamber features a limewood fireplace where the monarch received ministers. The Privy Chamber was one of Queen Caroline's favourite entertaining spaces. The Cupola Room has been described as the "most splendidly decorated room in the palace", also by Kent.

The King's Drawing Room, where courtiers would come "in search of power and patronage", features a copy of Venus and Cupid by Giorgio Vasari, which Caroline attempted to have removed to no avail. The King's Gallery, built for William III, is decorated with red accents and golden ornaments, used for exercise and displaying paintings. Featuring numerous works by Kent, it houses Charles I at the Hunt by Anthony van Dyck.{{cite web |title=The King's Gallery |url=https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/whats-on/the-king-s-gallery/#gs.33helw |website=Historic Royal Palaces |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605024901/https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/whats-on/the-king-s-gallery/#gs.33helw |url-status=live }}

The Queen's State Apartments consist of the rooms where Mary II and later royal consorts resided.{{cite web |title=The Queen's State Apartments |url=https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/whats-on/the-queen-s-state-apartments/#gs.33hikq |website=Historic Royal Palaces |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605024904/https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/whats-on/the-queen-s-state-apartments/#gs.33hikq |url-status=live }} The Queen's Staircase is "deliberately plainer" than its counterpart, accessible to the gardens. The Queen's Gallery, built in 1693, was previously filled with Turkish carpets and oriental artifacts, and was designed as a place for Mary to fulfil "simple pastimes such as walking, reading, and needlework." The Queen's Dining Room is where Mary and William would take their meals together in private, featuring 17th-century panelling. The Queen's Drawing Room features décor from China and Japan, and features William and Mary's intertwined monogram carved into the crown moulding. Mary's bedroom, where she entertained friends, is included in the apartments.

Apartment 1 is a royal residence located in the southwest wing of the palace.{{cite web |title=Is This Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's New Home? What We Know About the Mysterious 21-Room Apartment 1 |url=https://money.com/harry-meghan-kensington-palace-home/ |website=Money |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605031059/https://money.com/harry-meghan-kensington-palace-home/ |url-status=live }} During its vacancy from 1939 and 1955, it was divided into two, with a separate Apartment 1 and Apartment 1A within the space.{{cite web |title=Just FYI, there's a 21-room apartment sitting vacant in Kensington Palace |url=https://honey.nine.com.au/royals/kensington-palace-apartment-1-vacant/0319171f-5d3f-48b2-9f73-02047d7c63b5 |website=Honey |date=22 September 2020 |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605031059/https://honey.nine.com.au/royals/kensington-palace-apartment-1-vacant/0319171f-5d3f-48b2-9f73-02047d7c63b5 |url-status=live }} The apartment has 21 rooms and a walled garden, as well as adjoining doors to Apartment 1A.{{CN|date=May 2024}} It has been described as a “lovely big apartment”; Apartment 1 is the second-biggest residence in the palace.{{cite news |title=Her Royal Housemates: Who's who in Eugenie's Kensington Palace crew? |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/kensington-palace-crew/?li_source=LI&li_medium=li-recommendation-widget |website=The Telegraph |date=4 May 2018 |access-date=8 June 2021 |last1=Bell |first1=Matthew |archive-date=8 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608045536/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/kensington-palace-crew/?li_source=LI&li_medium=li-recommendation-widget |url-status=live }} Previous interior rooms have included the "sizable" library of Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, and the sculpting studio of Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll.{{CN|date=May 2024}}

Apartment 1A is a royal residence, covering four storeys, with twenty rooms total.{{cite web |last1=Proudfoot |first1=Jenny |title=The truth about the Cambridges' Kensington Palace 'apartment' has finally been revealed |url=https://www.marieclaire.co.uk/news/kensington-palace-apartment-1a-709005 |website=Marie Claire UK |date=26 August 2021 |access-date=11 February 2022 |archive-date=11 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211043944/https://www.marieclaire.co.uk/news/kensington-palace-apartment-1a-709005 |url-status=live }} It has five reception rooms, each with fireplaces, as well as three bedrooms, dressing rooms and two nurseries. The upper level has nine staff bedrooms, while the basement holds a luggage room, gym, and laundry quarters.{{cite web |last1=Finn |first1=Natalie |title=Inside Kate Middleton and Prince William's Massive Kensington Palace "Apartment": All the Details on Their Royal Abode! |url=https://www.eonline.com/news/469096/inside-kate-middleton-and-prince-william-s-massive-kensington-palace-apartment-all-the-details-on-their-royal-abode |website=E! Online |date=11 October 2013 |access-date=11 February 2022 |archive-date=11 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211043945/https://www.eonline.com/news/469096/inside-kate-middleton-and-prince-william-s-massive-kensington-palace-apartment-all-the-details-on-their-royal-abode |url-status=live }} There are three kitchens, one for family use and two for the staff.{{CN|date=May 2024}} The residence overlooks a large, walled-in garden, hidden from public view in the palace's museum wing by frosted windows.{{cite web |last1=Roberts |first1=Kayleigh |title=Prince William and Kate Middleton Have "Secret Windows" to Protect Their Privacy at Kensington Palace |url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a38652065/prince-william-kate-middleton-secret-windows-protect-privacy-kensington-palace/ |website=Cosmopolitan |date=2 January 2022 |access-date=11 February 2022 |archive-date=11 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211043956/https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a38652065/prince-william-kate-middleton-secret-windows-protect-privacy-kensington-palace/ |url-status=live }}

The entrance hall has intricate crown moulding and black-and-white tiling. The apartment features art and furnishings from the Royal Collection.{{cite web |last1=Taylor |first1=Elise |title=Inside Kensington Palace Apartment 1A, Prince William and Kate Middleton's London Home |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/inside-kensington-palace-apartment-1a-prince-william-and-kate-middletons-london-home |website=Vogue Paris |date=19 September 2018 |access-date=11 February 2022 |archive-date=9 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220109113752/https://www.vogue.com/article/inside-kensington-palace-apartment-1a-prince-william-and-kate-middletons-london-home |url-status=live }} The Duchess of Cambridge decorated the space with furniture from IKEA, with the interior featuring "warm beiges and floral pillows", gold trim upholstery, and detailed carpeting.{{cite web |last1=Leach |first1=Maddison |title=Inside Kate and William's luxurious London 'apartment' |url=https://honey.nine.com.au/royals/kate-middleton-prince-william-kensington-palace-apartment/b337b56f-565e-4c75-a794-75ae4b2cac81 |website=Honey9 |date=27 August 2020 |access-date=11 February 2022 |archive-date=11 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220211043946/https://honey.nine.com.au/royals/kate-middleton-prince-william-kensington-palace-apartment/b337b56f-565e-4c75-a794-75ae4b2cac81 |url-status=live }}

Apartments 8 & 9 are two conjoined chambers situated on the northern-most section of the main palatial building.{{cite web |title=Kensington Palace |url=https://scenetherapy.com/kensington-palace/ |website=Scene Therapy |date=30 July 2019 |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=26 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126193142/https://scenetherapy.com/kensington-palace/ |url-status=live }} The apartment covers three storeys. During its use as a residence, the two-room nursery covered the entirety of the top floor. Other spaces included two reception rooms: a drawing room doubling as Diana's office, a sitting room with a television, and a formal dining room.{{cite web |last1=Goldstone |first1=Penny |title=See inside Princess Diana's private home at Kensington Palace |url=https://www.marieclaire.co.uk/life/homes-and-interiors/inside-princess-dianas-private-home-at-kensington-palace-696642 |website=Marie Claire UK |date=4 May 2020 |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605032206/https://www.marieclaire.co.uk/life/homes-and-interiors/inside-princess-dianas-private-home-at-kensington-palace-696642 |url-status=live }} In 1981, the apartments were combined to create a family home for Charles, Prince of Wales, and Diana, Princess of Wales.{{cite web |title=The History Of Kensington Palace, London, In 1 Minute |url=https://theculturetrip.com/europe/united-kingdom/england/london/articles/the-history-of-kensington-palace-in-1-minute/ |website=Culture Trip |date=7 April 2016 |access-date=5 June 2021 |archive-date=5 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210605034953/https://theculturetrip.com/europe/united-kingdom/england/london/articles/the-history-of-kensington-palace-in-1-minute/ |url-status=live }}

The residence had a helicopter pad, and many outdoor gardens, including one on the roof and a greenhouse where the family spent many hours. Diana decorated the residence in "bold patterns and lush fabrics", as well as floral wallpaper and a mix of modern and antique furniture, upholstered with golden lacquer.{{CN|date=May 2024}} From 1997, the apartments have been used as office space for various groups, charities, and staff.

Apartment 10 is a residence situated in the north-east section of the palace, in the public gardens. The three-storey apartment holds five bedrooms and five reception rooms.{{cite web |title=The royal commune: Who lives at Kensington Palace with Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank? |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/homesandproperty/property-news/who-lives-at-kensington-palace-with-princess-eugenie-and-jack-brooksbank-a124786.html |website=Standard |date=17 October 2018 |access-date=8 June 2021 |archive-date=8 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608045534/https://www.standard.co.uk/homesandproperty/property-news/who-lives-at-kensington-palace-with-princess-eugenie-and-jack-brooksbank-a124786.html |url-status=live }} Former tenant Princess Margaret described it as "the doll's house".

{{Main|Wren House}}

Named for architect Christopher Wren, Wren House residence is near a cluster of cottages on the grounds of the palace, located north of the main building.{{cite web |title=The Detailed Map You've Always Wanted to See of Where All the Royals Live at Kensington Palace |url=https://people.com/royals/map-where-royals-live-kensington-palace/ |website=People |access-date=8 June 2021 |archive-date=8 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608050421/https://people.com/royals/map-where-royals-live-kensington-palace/ |url-status=live }} It has five bedrooms and five reception rooms. The cottage covers two storeys, and has been noted as one of the more modest residences within the palace.{{cite web |title=Inside Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's multigenerational palace |url=https://www.loveproperty.com/gallerylist/73500/inside-prince-harry-and-meghan-markles-multigenerational-palace |website=Love Property |access-date=8 June 2021 |archive-date=8 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608051102/https://www.loveproperty.com/gallerylist/73500/inside-prince-harry-and-meghan-markles-multigenerational-palace |url-status=live }} Wren House is said to have the "best view" of the palace's walled gardens.{{cite web |title=All the Royals That Live at Kensington Palace With Prince Harry and Meghan Markle |url=https://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-tips/celebrity-travel/every-royal-that-lives-at-kensington-palace |website=Travel and Leisure |access-date=8 June 2021 |archive-date=8 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608051102/https://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-tips/celebrity-travel/every-royal-that-lives-at-kensington-palace |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Nottingham Cottage}}

Nottingham Cottage is a residence near a cluster of cottages on the grounds of the palace, located north of the main building.{{cite book|author=Paul Burrell|author-link=Paul Burrell|title=The Way We Were: Remembering Diana|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_TeCEIYjp1gC|year=2007|publisher=HarperCollins|isbn=978-0-00-725263-3|access-date=11 February 2022|archive-date=19 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240219041738/https://books.google.com/books?id=_TeCEIYjp1gC|url-status=live}} Described as a "cosy property", it contains two bedrooms, two reception rooms, and a small garden.{{cite news |title=Nottingham Cottage: The Kensington home where Meghan and Harry live as a married couple |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/05/20/nottingham-cottage-kensington-home-meghan-harry-will-live-married/ |website=The Telegraph |date=20 May 2018 |access-date=2 June 2021 |last1=Ward |first1=Victoria |archive-date=5 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705111706/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/05/20/nottingham-cottage-kensington-home-meghan-harry-will-live-married/ |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Ivy Cottage}}

Ivy Cottage is a residence near a cluster of cottages on the grounds of the palace, located north of the main building.{{CN|date=May 2024}} The cottage holds three bedrooms.{{cite news |title=Ivy Cottage at Kensington Palace: Inside the royal home where Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank live |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2018/10/12/ivy-cottage-kensington-palace-inside-royal-home-princess-eugenie/ |website=The Telegraph |date=12 October 2018 |access-date=8 June 2021 |last1=Spocchia |first1=Gino |archive-date=8 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210608052824/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2018/10/12/ivy-cottage-kensington-palace-inside-royal-home-princess-eugenie/ |url-status=live }} While in residence, Princess Eugenie was reported to have renovated the residence and "brightened the cottage up with lots of pops of colour" and various art pieces.{{cite web |title=All you need to know about Ivy Cottage, Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank's London home |url=https://www.womanandhome.com/us/life/royal-news/ivy-cottage-kensington-palace-princess-eugenie-298609/ |website=WomanAndHome |date=21 December 2020 |access-date=8 July 2021 |archive-date=9 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709184959/https://www.womanandhome.com/us/life/royal-news/ivy-cottage-kensington-palace-princess-eugenie-298609/ |url-status=live }}

The Old Stables is a residence near a cluster of cottages on the grounds of the palace, located north of the main building. During Sir Alan Lascelles' occupation, it was described as "lavishly decorated".{{cite magazine |last1=Vanderhoof |first1=Erin |title=A First Look at a Kensington Palace Cottage With a Storied History |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2020/05/kensington-palace-cottage-storied-history-old-stables |magazine=Vanity Fair |date=5 May 2020 |access-date=11 February 2022 |archive-date=29 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211129031428/https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2020/05/kensington-palace-cottage-storied-history-old-stables |url-status=live }} During the residence of Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester and Birgitte, Duchess of Gloucester, the house was decorated with "old wooden furniture" and "bright turquoise walls".{{cite web |last1=Dickson |first1=Emily |title=The Queen's Cousin, Prince Richard, Offered a Rare Glimpse Inside Kensington Palace |url=https://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity/a32374122/queen-elizabeth-cousin-prince-richard-inside-kensington-palace/ |website=Marie Claire |date=5 May 2020 |access-date=8 July 2021 |archive-date=9 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709184655/https://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity/a32374122/queen-elizabeth-cousin-prince-richard-inside-kensington-palace/ |url-status=live }}

The King's Kitchen Cottages and Upper Lodge make up staff residences.

The Kensington Palace Chapel was built in the 1830s, used for private family services and occasions. Described as the "heart" of the palace, it was converted into residential space before being restored as a chapel by a conservation company in 2002.{{cite web |last1=Aiello |first1=McKenna |title=An Inside Look at the Chapel Where Meghan Markle Will Be Baptized |url=https://www.eonline.com/news/919155/an-inside-look-at-the-chapel-where-meghan-markle-will-be-baptized |website=E! Online |date=7 March 2018 |access-date=8 July 2021 |archive-date=9 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709190913/https://www.eonline.com/news/919155/an-inside-look-at-the-chapel-where-meghan-markle-will-be-baptized |url-status=live }} The space is approximately 9 meters long, including a "variety of antique features" and oak wall panelling. Renaissance era art pieces from the Royal Collection adorn the room, alongside a 19th-century brass hung chandelier. Family events that have taken place at the chapel include the 2004 wedding of Lady Davina Windsor, and the 2015 christening of Isabella Windsor, daughter of Lord Frederick Windsor and Lady Frederick Windsor.{{cite news | title = British royal marries Maori builder | url = http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/08/01/1091298579338.html | publisher = The Sydney Morning Herald Online | accessdate = 28 September 2009 | date = 2 August 2004 | archive-date = 23 December 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161223192842/http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/08/01/1091298579338.html | url-status = live }}

File:Fife Tiara.jpg from her groom Alexander Duff, 1st Duke of Fife in 1887, is one of many historic objects on public display at the palace.]]

By the end of the 19th century, the State Rooms were severely neglected. The brickwork was decaying and the woodwork was infested with dry rot. Calls were made for the palace to be demolished, but Queen Victoria declared that "while she lived, the palace in which she was born should not be destroyed". In 1897, Parliament was persuaded to pay for the restoration which was completed two years later. The State Rooms were opened to the public on the Queen's birthday, 24 May 1899. This began the palace's dual role as a private home to royalty and a public museum.{{Cite web |url=http://www.hrp.org.uk/KensingtonPalace/building/stateapartments |title="Queen Victoria," Kensington Palace official website, Retrieved 27 April 2014. |access-date=28 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140322114230/http://www.hrp.org.uk/KensingtonPalace/building/stateapartments |archive-date=22 March 2014 |url-status=dead }}

Queen Mary was instrumental in opening the State Apartments as a temporary location for the London Museum, now known as the Museum of London, from 1911 to 1914. The State Apartments were filled with showcases, some containing hundreds of objects including 18th-century costumes and dresses worn by Queen Victoria, Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary. The museum returned from 1950 to 1976 before it moved to its next home on London Wall.{{Cite news |url=http://golondon.about.com/od/thingstodoinlondon/ss/Royal-London_4.htm |title=Kensington Palace |last=Porter |first=Laura |access-date=27 April 2014 |archive-date=6 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150406075413/http://golondon.about.com/od/thingstodoinlondon/ss/Royal-London_4.htm |url-status=dead }}

In 1989 care for the Kensington Palace State Rooms was contracted out to Historic Royal Palaces Agency, a non-departmental public body, on behalf of the Department of the Environment. Historic Royal Palaces Agency became an independent charity in 1998 called Historic Royal Palaces (HRP), which is dependent on charitable giving for management of the site. Under HRP the Kensington Palace State Rooms underwent a two-year, £12 million renovation, underwritten with contributions from the Heritage Lottery Fund as well as other public and private donations. New uniforms for staff were designed by Stuart Stockdale at Jaeger.{{Cite web |url=http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG9138146/Kensington-Palace-unveils-new-Jaeger-staff-uniforms.html |title=Kensington Palace unveils new Jaeger staff uniforms – Telegraph |website=fashion.telegraph.co.uk |access-date=2018-07-04 |archive-date=4 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704123940/http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG9138146/Kensington-Palace-unveils-new-Jaeger-staff-uniforms.html |url-status=live }}

The re-opening of the palace occurred in time for the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 2012. Visitors now can choose four different routes throughout the palace that offer exhibits incorporating cutting-edge digital presentations, interactive experiences, and audio sequences that bring to life the gatherings of gowns, antique furniture, and other memorabilia of notable residents of the palace. These include William and Mary in the Queen's State Apartments, the court of George I and II in the King's State Apartments, and the life of Queen Victoria in the rooms most associated with her.{{Cite news |url=http://www.architecturaldigest.com/decor/2012-06/kensington-palace-renovation-article |title=Kensington Palace's New Look |last=Owens |first=Mitchell |date=June 2012 |work=Architectural Digest |access-date=27 April 2014 |archive-date=29 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140429080512/http://www.architecturaldigest.com/decor/2012-06/kensington-palace-renovation-article |url-status=live }}

The fourth exhibit displays selections of Queen Elizabeth's wardrobe in the 1950s, Princess Margaret from the 1960 and 70s and Diana, Princess of Wales, in the 1980s during their fashion heyday. The grounds of the palace were renovated with enhancements including eliminating railings, fences, and shrubs that had undermined royal gardener Charles Bridgeman's original landscaping. Two new public gardens to the south and east of the palace were installed that connect the property to Kensington Gardens.

The nearest tube stations are Queensway, Bayswater, High Street Kensington, or (slightly farther) Gloucester Road.

In October 2011, Disney, in cooperation with Historic Royal Palaces, hosted "Rapunzel's Royal Celebration" at Kensington Palace, a special event in which Rapunzel (Tangled) was inducted as the tenth official Disney Princess and crowned. All nine existing Princesses attended – title characters Snow White, Cinderella, Pocahontas, and Mulan, as well as Aurora (Sleeping Beauty), Ariel (The Little Mermaid), Belle (Beauty and the Beast), Jasmine (Aladdin), and Tiana (The Princess and the Frog). Each of them arrived by carriage in a procession that passed through Hyde Park. Other Disney characters who attended were the Fairy Godmother and Flynn Rider, who crowned Rapunzel. An estimated 10,000 people watched the procession, and over 100 girls from 25 countries attended the ceremony inside the palace.{{cite web |title=Rapunzel's Royal Celebration |url=https://video.disney.com/watch/rapunzel-s-royal-celebration-4c0337cefc2bed6d6ffe8d50 |website=Video.Disney.com |publisher=The Walt Disney Company |access-date=27 September 2022 |date=2 October 2011 |archive-date=27 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220927043430/https://video.disney.com/watch/rapunzel-s-royal-celebration-4c0337cefc2bed6d6ffe8d50 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Britten |first1=Adam |title=Rapunzel officially crowned 10th Disney Princess |url=https://thedisneyblog.com/2011/10/02/rapunzel-officially-crowned-10th-disney-princess/ |website=The Disney Blog |access-date=26 September 2022 |date=2 October 2011 |archive-date=26 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926050143/https://thedisneyblog.com/2011/10/02/rapunzel-officially-crowned-10th-disney-princess/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Brigante |first1=Ricky |title=Rapunzel Becomes 10th Disney Princess With Procession And Coronation Ceremony In London Palace |url=https://insidethemagic.net/2011/10/rapunzel-becomes-10th-disney-princess-with-procession-and-coronation-ceremony-in-london-palace/ |website=Inside The Magic |access-date=26 September 2022 |date=3 October 2011 |archive-date=26 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926050143/https://insidethemagic.net/2011/10/rapunzel-becomes-10th-disney-princess-with-procession-and-coronation-ceremony-in-london-palace/ |url-status=live }} It was the second Disney Princess induction/coronation to take place outside the Disney Parks and Resorts, and the first to take place outside the United States.

{{Portal|United Kingdom|England|London|Architecture|History|Monarchy}}

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{{Reflist}}

{{Refbegin}}

• {{Cite book |title=Kensington Palace: The Official Illustrated History |last=Impey |first=Edward |publisher=Merrell Publishers in association with Historic Royal Palaces |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-85894-205-6 |location=London |oclc=51569080}}

{{Refend}}

{{Commons category}}

• [http://www.hrp.org.uk/KensingtonPalace/ Official website]
• [http://www.hrp.org.uk/KensingtonPalace/stories/buildinghistory/bibliography Bibliography recommended by Historic Royal Palaces]

{{Royal palaces in the United Kingdom}}

{{London landmarks}}

{{London museums and galleries}}

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