Latest news with #Althorp
Fox News
31-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Prince William, Prince Harry won't inherit Princess Diana's childhood home: expert
Prince William and Prince Harry won't be inheriting Princess Diana's childhood home. The ancestral home is Diana's final resting place. The property is owned by her brother, Earl Charles Spencer, who currently lives there. Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told Fox News Digital that the home was always expected to be passed down to the next Earl Spencer. That is Prince William and Prince Harry's cousin, Louis Spencer, Viscount Althorp. The Spencer family follows primogeniture, which dictates that titles and properties go to the eldest male. Louis has three older sisters: Lady Kitty, Lady Eliza, and Lady Amelia. "It would pass to the male heir even though Kitty Spencer is the current earl's eldest child," royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams explained. "No way would William and Harry get the property. Why on Earth would someone think they should?" Fox News Digital reached out to the Althorp estate for comment. Fitzwilliams' claims came shortly after Vanity Fair reported that Althorp would be going to Louis. The 31-year-old is the son of Charles, Ninth Earl Spencer, and British model Victoria Aitken. Royal expert Ian Pelham Turner told Fox News Digital that the inheritance rule goes back centuries. "Do I agree with this method still being used in the 21st century?... Any rules that affect women through historical degradation are abhorrent to me. However, the wealthy classes still adhere to outdated practices." "In terms of Harry and William becoming the heirs to the Althorp estate, legally, they have no rights," he noted. "But I think they will always be closely associated with the maintenance of the estate and Diana's resting place." Louis, who grew up in South Africa, is an actor who lives a quiet life outside the public eye. According to reports, he has already been taking a hands-on approach in management meetings at the estate, supporting his father. Charles previously told the Mail on Sunday that he would be "totally relaxed" about his eldest child, Kitty, inheriting Althorp. Still, "If I chose Kitty, it would be against all the tradition that goes with Althorp," he admitted. "It's just the way it is. I get the problems with it as a concept. I also get the strengths of it, having worked to date." In 2015, Kitty defended the tradition to Tatler magazine for a cover story. "In general, I'm totally pro-gender equality," the British model and aristocrat said at the time, as quoted by The Telegraph. "But I'm quite happy that that's [going to be] my brother's responsibility. I just think it's the correct way." "I like that the house stays within the same family with the same surname," she shared. "I wouldn't want it any other way for the Spencers. And I just know my brother is going to do an impeccable job." WATCH: PRINCESS DIANA'S HAIRDRESSER RECALLS THEIR LASTING FRIENDSHIP The property has been the home of the Spencer family since 1508. Diana's father inherited the title of Earl Spencer in 1975, and the family moved to the estate, People magazine reported. Diana, who died in 1997 at age 36, is buried on a small island in the middle of the home's Oval Lake, which is not accessible to the public. It allows William and Harry to visit their mother's burial place privately. "I think it's very important for them to be there with her," Charles, 61, told People. "It is, luckily, very tranquil here, and they can come and go as they wish whenever they want. And that's very lovely for me to know that." Visitors are allowed to pay their respects at a memorial that was built in her honor. Harry wrote about visiting Diana's resting place on the 25th anniversary of her death in his memoir "Spare." He described bringing his wife, Meghan Markle, for the first time. "At long last, I was bringing the girl of my dreams home to meet mum," he wrote, as quoted by People magazine. When Diana passed away, her two sons inherited many of her possessions and money. During Harry's interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021, the 40-year-old said that the money left to him by the late Princess of Wales helped him and Meghan move to California in 2020. "And without that, we would not have been able to do this," he said at the time. "So touching back on what my mother would think of this, I think she saw it coming. I certainly felt her presence throughout this whole process."
Telegraph
28-05-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Princess Diana's former home hit by ‘arson attack'
A farmhouse at Princess Diana's former home has been destroyed in an arson attack, the Earl Spencer has claimed. Firefighters were called in the early hours of Wednesday to Althorp House to find the building 'fully on fire'. Lord Spencer, the younger brother of Princess Diana, claimed that the fire had been started deliberately by vandals. In a post on X, he said: 'Stunned to learn that one of Althorp House's farmhouses – fortunately, unoccupied at the time – was apparently burnt down by vandals last night. 'So very sad that anyone would think this a fun thing to do.' Adey Greeno, the estate's long-standing head gamekeeper, added: 'The farmhouse that we lost to a deliberate act of vandalism last night has now had to be razed to the ground for safety reasons. 'So sad. The world we live in.' A spokesman from the fire service said: '[We were] called at around 1.30am this morning (May 28) to reports of a fire on Mill Lane in Kingsthorpe. 'Crews arrived to find an unoccupied two-story property fully on fire. 'At the height of the fire, four crews from across the service wearing breathing apparatus used hose-reel jets to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading further. 'This morning, one crew remains on the scene with a water bowser to continue dampening down any remaining hotspots.'
News.com.au
23-05-2025
- General
- News.com.au
Princess Diana's childhood home left to rot
King Charles has been slammed as 'disrespecting' Princess Diana's legacy as her childhood home falls into disrepair. Diana was born at Park House on the Royals' Norfolk estate in 1961 and lived at the mansion until she was 14. Photos obtained by the Mirror show the once grand property now appears to be abandoned, with overgrown grass, peeling window paint and stained bricks. The outlet reports a dilapidated shed with a caved-in roof and smashed windows, while the swimming pool is surrounded by a metal fence to keep trespassers out. Locals reacted furiously and accused Charles of 'disrespecting' Diana's legacy. Selina Raines, 38, who lives in the nearby village of Snettisham, told the Mirror: 'It's heartbreaking to learn how the house has been left. 'If locals were aware they would be shocked – but you can't see it [the house] from the road so very few know how it's been left, it's really sad.' An unnamed barmaid, who lives on the estate, said: 'It's disrespectful – the house should be restored to how it was. 'The Estate houses that are hidden from public view don't get what they need.' Diana lived at Park House, which her parents rented from the late Queen, until moving to the family's Northamptonshire stately home Althorp in 1975. The 16-bedroom residence was later donated to charity Leonard Cheshire and ran as a respite hotel for adults with disabilities for over 30 years. But in May 2021 the property was handed back to the estate after spiralling costs post-pandemic and has since remained empty. Several locals told the Mirror they would like to see the house returned to a charity to support the community. A retired occupational therapist, who worked with disabled residents at the house before it shuttered, said: 'It was marvellous – it's very sad [that it has been left to rot]. 'Everything was beautiful, all the equipment was new and they had waiting lists. 'I would like to see it returned to what it was like back then, but I don't think with the health service we've got at the moment that it's going to happen.' Park House is just 500 metres away from Charles' 150-bedroom Sandringham House. Over the years, Charles has funded several projects on the estate. Last June, the King was given the green light to open a 25-acre luxury glamping site, complete with 15 'safari tents' and a Motorhome Club campsite. One local said: 'King Charles has money to put into his caravan site but not to put into the house Diana grew up in.' 'And in November the green-fingered monarch installed 2,000 solar panels in a bid to improve the estate's climate footprint.' The Mirror approached Sandringham Estate and Buckingham Palace for comment.
