King Charles has added a £3 million gem to the royal family’s ever-expanding property stash, snapping up The Old Mill estate in Wiltshire right next to Queen Camilla’s beloved retreat. The Daily Mail spilled the tea on this regal buy, pegged as a savvy move to shield Camilla’s privacy from prying eyes.
Perched along the River Avon, the four-bedroom spread was on the brink of turning into a wedding venue—a prospect that had the King stepping in sharpish.
“It was ‘imperative’ for Charles to step in and ensure his wife’s privacy is being prioritised, given that the vacant building very nearly became a ‘short-term holiday rental and wedding venue,’” one of Camilla’s old pals told one outlet.
The New York Post notes Charles dipped into private funds for the purchase, keeping it off the public books.
The Old Mill looms over Camilla’s Wiltshire hideaway, a plush £850,000 bolthole she nabbed 30 years back after splitting from Andrew Parker-Bowles, as The Sun reports.
With its outdoor pool, terrace, stables, and cracking gardens, it was her go-to from 1996 to 2003, just a 15-minute jaunt from Charles’s Highgrove haunt.
“The new arrangement is a pragmatic solution, being both a sound financial investment and a way of maintaining Her Majesty’s privacy, protection and continued enjoyment of her much-loved home, without any public funds being used,” a royal source told the Mail, adding that Camilla’s “grateful and relieved” for the King’s quick thinking.
Though she’s seldom popped back since taking the queen gig, Camilla’s made the most of this rural escape—especially after Queen Elizabeth II’s passing in September 2022, holing up there for months.
“She has her horses, she walks her dogs and she loves spending time with her family,” a mate shared with the Mail.