King Charles is said to have stepped in to secure a neighbouring property to Queen Camilla’s cherished Wiltshire home for the eyewatering price of £3.75million, newly published documents have revealed. The monarch has reportedly used private funds to buy a house next door to Camilla’s long-time residence, Ray Mill House, in a move understood to be aimed at safeguarding her privacy.
Camilla purchased the property herself in the mid-1990s following her divorce from Andrew Parker Bowles, and it has remained one of her most treasured homes ever since. The rural retreat, where she spent several years living full-time, has long been associated with her family life and personal interests – particularly her love of gardening, which she has previously described as the “best therapy in the world”. However, concerns reportedly arose over potential changes to the neighbouring property, prompting the King to acquire the adjoining house.
The King established a new company to buy The Old Mill in Reybridge, Wiltshire. Land Registry files reveal that it was bought last March by Frisa Nominees Ltd. It was set up the previous month, with Buckingham Palace as its correspondence address, according to the Daily Mail. The directors of Frisa Nominees are two royal employees: James Chalmers, Keeper of the Privy Purse and Treasurer to the King, and Catherine James, of the Private Secretaries’ Office at Buckingham Palace.
By making the purchase, King Charles has effectively ensured that the quiet lane shared with Camilla’s home would not be disrupted by outside development or commercial use. When The Mail on Sunday disclosed last year that the King had bought The Old Mill, a source said he had used “private funds,” amid fears it would be sold and turned into a wedding venue.
Limited companies are often set up for property purchases to avoid taxes and for inheritance planning purposes. However, a palace source insisted that the new company is “standard practice as part of the administrative process for the property’s purchase and ongoing management,” the Mail added.
Elsewhere, ownership of Ray Mill House has recently been transferred into family hands, GB News reported last month. The property, bought for £850,000 in 1996, is now held in trust, with Land Registry documents indicating that the newly registered owners are her son-in-law, Harry Lopes, and financier Jake Irwin. They were thought to represent Camilla’s daughter, Laura Lopes, and her son, Tom Parker Bowles.
Moving property into a trust is a common way to organise inheritance in advance. It can make it easier to pass assets down to children and may help manage tax liabilities.
The Queen lived at the property for seven years after her divorce in 1995. Her daughter hosted her wedding reception at the property in 2006.
The Express has contacted Buckingham Palace for comment.
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