Harry and Meghan's Homes: "Our Little Cottage" & A Country Retreat

With the royals' annual summer break upon us, I thought it a good time to visit a topic several of you mentioned in the comments recently: Harry and Meghan's homes. Where do they live? Is there any truth to the many rumours concerning their country home? What are the long term plans for their residences? 

For the time being, the couple's London home is Nottingham Cottage, affectionately known as "Nott Cott" in the grounds of Kensington Palace. The cosy property boasts two bedrooms, two reception rooms and a small private garden. It was the starter home for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in the early years of their marriage. Once they moved out, Harry decided to live there and is said to be incredibly fond of it. Apparently, he put his own stamp on the place by installing a hammock in the yard.

In a bid to get to know each other privately without media pressures, Nott Cott became the secluded love nest the couple needed to spend valuable time together and plan the future away from the public eye. When the time was right to propose, the cottage was just the place to do it.

Harry shared the following during the engagement interview:

'We had to sort of reverse the whole process and cozy nights in, in front of the television, cooking dinner with just the two of us by ourselves in our little cottage rather going out for dinner and being seen in public. So we, we reversed the whole process which is, it's provided different opportunities. And has made us a hell of a lot closer in a short space of time. That's without question. So you know if anybody else... maybe slow down to date, spend more time at home. But no, it's it's for us it's it's an opportunity to really get to know each other without other people, you know, looking, trying to take photos on the phones and that kind of stuff. That comes comes comes with it comes with the job comes the role.'

The cottage is 1,324 square feet in size.It stands near two other grace-and-favour houses; Kent Cottage and Wren Cottage. Nottingham Cottage was designed by Christopher Wren. Its name derives from Nottingham House, the residence of the Earl of Nottingham from which Kensington Palace was expanded by William III and Mary II. The house has been occupied by several people who have formerly been employees of the Royal Family. From her retirement in 1948, the house was given for life to Marion Crawford, the former governess of Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. In gratitude for Crawford's service, Queen Mary, the princesses' grandmother, decorated the house with Victorian furniture and prints of flowers for her. Crawford described the house as a dream "of seasoned red brick...with roses round the door". Crawford left the cottage in 1950 in the aftermath of her selling stories about the Royal family to newspapers.

More from The Telegraph:

'Nottingham Cottage is one of the smallest properties within the grounds of Kensington Palace and was formerly the home of the Duke of Edinburgh’s private secretary, Brigadier Sir Miles Hunt-Davis, and his wife Gay. Princess Diana's sister Lady Jane Fellowes and her husband Sir Robert Fellowes also lived there.

Photographs of her former home in Toronto suggest that she favours a minimalistic, monochrome colour scheme with plenty of soft furnishings, coffee table books and floral arrangements. The American actress decorated it to "look like a California bungalow", and you can see how it looked while she lived in it on pictures she posted to Instagram. She wrote on her blog The Tig that the sunny decor helped her to stave off “seven Canadian winters.” 

She has probably put her own mark on what had been, for four years, a bachelor pad. The Duchess of Cambridge is said to have redecorated it to her own taste when she first moved in.'

We've seen an abundance of rumours circulating about the possibility the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester will move out of of their apartment to smaller lodgings and the Sussexes will take up residence in their stately 21 room apartment. It is located so close to William and Kate's Apartment 1A, they are linked by adjoining doors.

There's also been mounting speculation Harry and Meghan will make Clarence House their permanent London home when Charles becomes King. At this point neither report has been confirmed, with Kensington Palace telling the media the couple plan to stay at Nott Cott "for the foreseeable future".

All the senior royals have a country residence where they can escape the hustle and bustle of London and ensconce themselves in the countryside indulging their love of the outdoors. For the Queen it's Balmoral, located in the stunning Scottish highlands. Charles has his beloved Gloucestershire residence Highgrove and for the Cambridges, it's their rural Norfolk retreat Anmer Hall. It's been said for years, Harry has been considering options for his own scenic hideaway. Now, with Meghan by his side, it seems the couple have chosen Oxfordshire for the time being at least.

Several reliable reporters understand the couple signed a lease on a property in the Cotswolds at the beginning of the year. It is thought the bolthole is located in the Great Tew estate.

Located just over an an hour from London, the Estate encapsulates much of what might be considered the archetypal English Country Estate. Spring lambs playing in rolling grassland, oak woods with a carpet of bluebells and thatch cottages.

Reporter Omid Scobie said Meghan adores it there. "She's really fallen for the countryside".

The quaint, sleepy village of Great Tew has a village shop which is also a café and a parish church. Whilst the village is often described as one of the prettiest in England, Great Tew remains cloaked in its long history, from its Roman origins, through the Civil War to its ownership by one of the pre-eminent industrial revolution families.

The Sun reported the couple spent their last weekend before the wedding in Oxfordshire:

'They like to escape to the country for the weekend and the cottage is just perfect for them.” The friend added: “It’s very private, has a vast open-plan kitchen and dining area for Meghan to cook in and lots of large windows for the stunning views.”

Renovations have just been completed at the home which has also been made fully secure. A source told The Sun: “Blacked-out Land Rovers have been seen driving up to the property and a lot of security work has been done.'

The village is home to the Beckhams' estate as well as exclusive members' club Soho Farmhouse, where Meghan is said to have had her hen party. The club is set in 100 acres of countryside. Soho House consultant Markus Anderson is one of Meghan's closest friends.

Once the lease is up on the property, the couple are expected to move into their permanent country home. There's been speculation they will build a secluded mansion in the Cotswolds. However, it is most likely the Queen will offer Harry and Meghan a property. Most recently, it has been suggested, Her Majesty invited the couple to view Adelaide Cottage, nestled in the heart of the Home Park in Windsor. Adelaide Cottage was originally built for Queen Adelaide, the wife of King William IV, in 1831, using building materials from the Royal Lodge. In more recent times, it served as the former residence of Peter Townsend, the famous lover of the Queen’s late sister Princess Margaret. At this point, it remains just another rumour. I expect we'll see an exclusive from a seasoned royal reporter on the couple's definite plans over the next year or so. Below, a painting of the cottage from 1839.

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We have a couple of other brief updates to share today. For those fond of Meghan's GOAT Flavia dress, the brand has released the dress in nude with frayed trims - identical to the bespoke piece the Duchess wore. It's available in UK sizes 8-18 on the website.

On Saturday, the wedding of one of Prince Harry's closest friends Charlie van Straubenzee and Daisy Jenks will take place in Surrey. It has been reported Harry will be Best Man. There's a very strong possibility we'll see Meghan there :)