Kate and William's secret getaway to hidden cottage to make 'special memories'
The Balmoral Estate in Scotland plays a key part in the royal year as it is where the King and other members of his family can truly relax. While there, they can expect to enjoy activities like family picnics, barbeques, long walks, fly fishing and deer-stalking in the utmost privacy.
As well as the main castle there are many other smaller residences on the vast estate that serve as homes for the likes of the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three young children. The family of five even have their own house on the estate in Aberdeenshire, a three-bedroom cottage called Tam-Na-Ghar. Prince William has had access to residence ever since he was left it by The Queen Mother when she passed away in 2002. Before it became a regular base for the couple, the cottage was extensively used by Queen Victoria.
The couple would use the home during their days at university (Getty Images)According to HELLO!, William and Kate have used the cottage as a retreat since the days when they were both students at the University of St Andrews. It is even said they would enjoy romantic weekends away together at the private bolthole and that they spent some of the happiest days of their lives there. Speaking in 2019, a royal source told Vanity Fair that the couple stayed at the home with their three children. "The Queen has a lot of guests coming and to ease the pressure the [Waleses] are likely to stay at the cottage," they said.
During their first year of their studies in Scotland, both Prince William and Kate moved into St Salvator's Halls of Residence and quickly became friends. Their budding relationship prompted the pair to rent a home together with two other students for their second-year. The future Prince and Princess of Wales decided to live at 13A Hope Street near the university with two friends, Fergus Boyd and Olivia Bleasdale.
The young couple then moved to Balgove House at Strathtyrum for their third and fourth years at university. It was a sprawling private estate located just outside of St Andrews. The estate is owned by wealthy landowner Henry Cheape, a distant cousin of Prince William and a close friend of the Royal Family.
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The rural home was made safe for the young couple to live in as unmarked police cars patrolled the estate and the house itself was set behind a large wall and had bomb-proof doors and windows. The role Scotland has played in the best and worst times in his life was made clear by Prince William during an opening address at the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 2021. Referring to how he was in Scotland when he learnt of Diana, Princess of Wales death, he told the crowd: “Scotland is a source of some of my happiest memories but also my saddest.
“I was in Balmoral when I was told that my mother had died. Still in shock, I found sanctuary in the service at Crathie Kirk that very morning and in the dark days of grief that followed I found comfort and solace in the Scottish outdoors. As a result, the connection I feel to Scotland will forever run deep." Then, referring to the moment he met his future wife at university in Scotland, William said: “Alongside this painful memory is one of great joy because it was here in Scotland 20 years ago this year that I first met Catherine. Needless to say the town where you meet your future wife holds a very special place in your heart. George, Charlotte and Louis already know how dear Scotland is to both of us and they are starting to build their own happy memories here too.”
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