Clarence House

Built to the designs of John Nash for Prince William Henry, Duke of Clarence, who lived there as King William IV from 1830 until 1837, Clarence House has been a royal residence for more than 170 years (the present Queen gave birth to princess Anne there), although during the 1940s it served as a base for the British Red Cross and The Order of St John of Jerusalem. Now the official residence of Charles and Camilla and the home of Princes William and Henry, the mansion was the place the Queen Mother called home from 1953 to 2002. During the summer months you can take a tour of the five ground-floor rooms used by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall for official entertaining. They remain largely unchanged from the Queen Mother’s day and contain a fine collection of twentieth-century art, including works by John Piper, Graham Sutherland, WS Sickert and Augustus John. Also on display are examples of Fabergé, English porcelain and silver, particularly pieces relating to the Bowes-Lyon family.