King Charles III will not live at Buckingham Palace after the completion of a 10-year, $487 million refurbishment program. The monarchy seeks to increase public access to the historic building that has been the center of royal life for almost 200 years.

Renovation and Public Access

Royal officials stressed that the king and Queen Camilla would continue to work out of the palace, which will remain “the ceremonial and operational center” of the monarchy. But for the rest of Charles’ reign, the king and queen will remain in nearby Clarence House.

The decision was announced Thursday during a briefing on royal finances at which Charles became the first British monarch to reveal the taxes he paid to the government. The king paid 12.9 million pounds ($16.1 million) in income and capital gains taxes in the 2024-25 financial year, up from 11.7 million pounds the previous year.

Transparency and Royal Finances

The royals are trying to respond to criticism after months of embarrassing headlines about the links between the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and the former Prince Andrew, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. The public’s focus on Mountbatten-Windsor has overshadowed the king’s efforts to modernize the monarchy and show that the 1,000-year-old institution can evolve.

Buckingham Palace needed renovation due to wear and tear over the years. In 2017, the royal household began a 10-year program to update obsolete plumbing, wiring, and heating and upgrade the building so it could continue to house the monarchy for another 50 years. The project is scheduled to be completed next year.

Original reporting: KCCI Des Moines — read the source article.