Least Update: Abandoned royal homes: Prince William’s Windsor lodge, Prince Philip’s Greek family palace & more….

Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle are some of the most iconic royal residences, but they take a lot of time and money to maintain.

Sadly, not all royal homes have retained their former glory. After it was discovered that the Prince and Princess of Wales live directly next to an empty property, it’s left us wondering which other homes have gone to ruin over time. Take a walk back through history to discover abandoned royal homes that were once stunning…

Adelaide Lodge, England
The Prince and Princess of Wales live in Adelaide Cottage with their kids Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, nine and Prince Louis, five.

It sits next to an eerie and empty Adelaide Lodge, which is currently abandoned and inhabitable due to problems with it not being underpinned.

A photograph captured in 1899 by Sir Benjamin Stone, obtained by the Royal Collection Trust, shows the close proximity between Adelaide Cottage and Adelaide Lodge, with the properties even sharing the same driveway.

Kirby Hall, England
Kirby Hall was built in 1570 for Sir Christopher Hatton, Lord Chancellor to Queen Elizabeth I.

It has hosted many royals such as King James I and Queen Anne of Denmark, but it has been abandoned since the late 1800s following a fire.

Instead of being restored into a loving home, the manor house is maintained by English Heritage, which hosts paid tours.

Tatoi Palace, Greece
King George I purchased Tatoi Palace in 1872 as a summer home. As well as the main palace, the estate features 10,000 acres with stables and beehives, as well as the burial places of Prince Philip’s father Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark.

Following the abolition of the monarchy in 1974, the estate passed into the hands of the Greek state and remained frozen in time until a legal dispute over ownership was settled in 2002.

King Charles has reportedly invested £12.3 million to restore Tatoi Palace into a museum by 2025.

Reinhardsbrunn Castle, Germany
Prince Albert’s father Duke Ernest I of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha transformed Reinhardsbrunn Castle from an abbey into his summer residence in 1827 with the help of architect Gustav Eberhard.

It remained in Prince Albert’s family until the Second World War when the Soviet Red Army used it as a military hospital and the German Democratic Republic turned it into a hotel

After German reunification in 1990, it was bought and sold by various travel companies before it was acquired by Russian investors who planned to transform it into a luxury hotel in 2008.

These plans never materialised and by July 2018, the castle was legally repossessed by the State. It is predicted to require over £30 million worth of renovations to restore it to its former glory.

Mar-Mar Palace, Marbella
In 1982, King Fahd built a replica of The White House in Costa Del Sol, Marbella. The former Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia used the 200-acre estate as a summer property, which came complete with several luxury villas, swimming pools, a heliport, a private clinic and a mosque.

Urban explorer and YouTuber Jake said the handles and door knobs around the building were “24k gold”, which is not surprising considering the plot was estimated to be worth £300 million.

After the King’s death in 2005, long-standing structures like the marble stairs remain, but the majestic interiors have been covered in graffiti and debris.

Nottingham townhouse, England
Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Louise’s former Nottingham home has fallen to ruin.

Before she moved in in 1887, it had been MP Thomas Hutchinson’s home in 1646 and used as a judges’ house in 1833.

By 1922, the home had been converted to County Council offices and it housed the Nottinghamshire County Record Office from 1966 to 1992.

Finesse Collection, owners of the Lace Market Hotel, purchased the property in 2009 but their expansion plans fell through. In 2014, it was up for sale again.

Photos taken by urban explorer Kyle Urbex and shared with The Mirror show the interiors that once would have been opulent now feature peeling wallpaper, radiators hanging off the walls and a spiral staircase with flaking paint.