Charlie Fenton’s Reviews > The Story of Kensington Palace > Status Update

‘In 1989 the Historic Royal Palaces Agency (HRPA) was formed in response to a government inquiry into a devastating fire at Hampton Court Palace three years earlier. This called for a more streamlined and effective management system for Hampton Court, the public side of Kensington Palace, the Tower of London, Kew Palace and the Banqueting House at Whitehall.’

‘The State Apartments had been open to the public for two years by the time Princess Beatrice took up residence. Prince Albert had once expressed anxiety that his ‘poor children would be turned into the streets’ if the palace became too much of a visitor attraction, but his fears proved unfounded. By the dawn of the twentieth century, the State Apartments and private royal residences coexisted harmoniously’

‘Kent’s most ambitious project at Kensington was the King’s Gallery, which he began in 1725. He replaced most of Wren’s interior with his own design, which included painting the woodwork in white and gold, with red damask covering the walls. This made the gallery one of the first examples in England of the white, gold and red formula that would remain fashionable for the rest of the eighteenth century.’

‘By the time of her accession, Anne had been pregnant no fewer than seventeen times. Only five children had been born alive, all of whom had died in infancy or childhood. Anne’s son William, Duke of Gloucester, had been her greatest hope, and had been greatly adored by his uncle and aunt, William and Mary, who were themselves childless.’

‘Above all, it had to be executed quickly and economically. Wren’s response was typically pragmatic. Rather than demolishing the existing house, he used it as the centrepiece of the new palace, adding a rectangular block or ‘pavilion’ at each corner. This decision would affect the subsequent history and configuration of the palace to the present day.’