Following reports that Prince William and Princess Kate could be eyeing a possible move to Fort Belvedere on the Windsor Estate, just how was the Royal Family changed forever after an event that took place there? The couple currently lives at nearby Adelaide Cottage with their three children, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, seven, having relocated there from London in summer 2022.
Fort Belvedere, otherwise known by its nickname ‘The Fort’, has a fascinating history and was originally rumoured to be a possible home for the young Wales family when they first moved from Kensington Palace. Another possibility at the time was suggested to be Prince Andrew’s Royal Lodge home, which he continues to live in.
The Fort’s most famous, and scandalous, resident was King Edward VIII until his abdication less than a year into his reign in 1936.
Fort Belvedere was originally called ‘Shrubs Hill Tower’ and is a royal home that was built between 1750 and 1755 for Prince William Augustus and is located in Windsor Great Park. Completed in the architectural style of Gothic Revival, the home was fondly referred to as ‘The Fort’ by many members of the Royal Family.
The home was hugely expanded by King George IV who added an octagonal dining room, a three-storey annex and a large flag pole. The fort was later used by Queen Victoria as a tea house and allowed it to be open to the public in the 1860s.
While there was rarely a permanent resident for many years, in 1929 the fort found its most famous occupant and became the backdrop of one of the most famous moments in British history.
Prince Edward, Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII and The Duke of Windsor) moved into the home and renovated it at a total cost of £21,000 (£1.89 million today).
He added many bathrooms, a steam-room, showers, built-in cupboards and central heating. The prince also refurbished the extensive grounds and had a swimming pool, a tennis court and stables built at the home.
Fort Belvedere is also where his scandalous romance with Mrs Wallis Simpson flourished, as she moved in in 1936.
When Prince Edward succeeded his father, King George V, in January 1936, he was quickly faced with the reality that he couldn’t rule as the King and marry Wallis Simpson, as she was a twice-divorced American whose former husbands were both still alive.
The King announced that he would abdicate and his brother would rule as King George VI in his place, changing the course of history. He held several meetings with Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin during the crisis but eventually signed his written abdication notices at the fort.
Once Edward moved out, the home remained unoccupied until 1955, when Queen Elizabeth II’s cousin, Gerald Lascelles, moved in. The home was sold again in 1976 and then leased to Canadian billionaire Galen Weston, who lived there until he died in 2021.