Since the summer of 2022, William, Kate, George, Charlotte and Louis have spent most of their time living in Adelaide Cottage in the Windsor Castle estate while the children attend school nearby. And today, the question of the estate’s security was in the spotlight as it emerged that last month thieves entered a farm building inside the perimeter and took two vehicles.
The Sun newspaper first reported the break-in, describing how “masked raiders” struck the estate “as the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children slept in their home nearby.” The publication said two men scaled a 6-foot fence and took a pick-up and quad bike from a barn. The report also said the break-in was at the Shaw Farm Gate to the estate, which is less than a mile from Adelaide Cottage.
Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace declined to comment today. The Palaces never comment on matters of royal security and neither do the Metropolitan Police, who provide royal security. However, senior royals have their own round-the-clock close protection.
Local police force Thames Valley Police gave a statement to media, including Sky News, about the estate break-in. “At around 11.45pm on Sunday 13 October, we received a report of burglary at a property on Crown Estate land near to the A308 in Windsor,” it read. “Offenders entered a farm building and made off with a black Isuzu pick-up and a red quad bike. They then made off towards the Old Windsor/Datchet area. No arrests have been made at this stage and an investigation is ongoing.”
This is not the first time intruders have successfully bypassed the perimeter of the Windsor Castle estate. A notable incident was on Christmas Day 2021 when a man was arrested after breaking into the grounds of Windsor Castle with a crossbow and declaring he was there to kill the Queen. He was later sentenced to nine years in jail and apologized to the royal family in a letter to the court.
