"Balmoral has been a residence of the British royal family since 1852, when the estate and its original castle were purchased from the Farquharson family by Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, husband of Queen Victoria. Soon after, the house was found to be too small and the present Balmoral Castle was commissioned. The architect was William Smith of Aberdeen, and his plans were modified by Prince Albert. Balmoral remains the private property of the King and is not part of the Crown Estate. The new castle was completed in 1856 and the old castle demolished soon after.
The castle, an example of Scottish baronial architecture, is listed by Historic Environment Scotland as a Category A listed building.
The Balmoral estate has been expanded by successive members of the royal family and now covers an area of approximately 20,000 hectares, or 200 km2. This is a working estate, including grouse moors, woodland and farmland, as well as herds of deer, Highland cattle and ponies.
Queen Elizabeth II died peacefully there on September 8, 2022, ending her reign of 70 years, 7 months and 2 days.
Origins
This property was originally a possession of the Scottish King Robert II who had a hunting lodge there. Subsequently Sir William Drummond built a manor house there in 1390. After him, it was sold in the 15th century to Alexander Gordon, 1st Earl of Huntly and it remained in this family until the Farquharson clan of Inverey made it the acquisition in 1662.
The family was given the title of "Earl of Balmoral", and remained owners of the estate until its sale in 1798 to James Duff, 2nd Earl of Fife. Part of the coronation ceremonies of King George IV took place there in 1822.
Royal Residence
Its history as a royal residence dates from 1848, when the house was leased to Queen Victoria and Prince Consort Albert by the diplomat Robert Gordon, who had obtained a long-term grant of the castle from 1830 and who died in 1897. couple appreciated these places so much that they paid more than 30,000 pounds to acquire the property. Prince Albert immediately began to draw up plans, intended to enlarge this castle which dated from the 15th century, in order to make it a new, more spacious construction in neo-Gothic style in local gray sandstone, better suited to a royal family. A mixture of Germanic schloss and Scottish clan chief's fortress, it is decorated with carpets, hangings and lambrequins in green, yellow and blue tartan, and chintz sofas.
A recent discovery has shown that funding for the Balmoral developments came mainly from one John Camden Neild, an eccentric poet, prison reformer and jeweler, who left the Queen £500,000 in his will, which was an aid considerable (corresponding to £46 million in 2005) for the realization of the royal couple's architectural projects.
Work took place between 1853 and 1856, under the direction of architect William Smith of Aberdeen, although his designs were amended by Prince Albert.
In 1856 the building was completed, it was a complete and functioning property, with 100 to 150 buildings surrounding the castle itself. This, excluding land and property, is at the start of the 21st century valued at around 160 million pounds, remaining the private property of the British royal family.
Balmoral is still used today as a private royal residence, particularly each year for the summer stay of Queen Elizabeth II. She died there on September 8, 2022, barely two days after welcoming Liz Truss to appoint her Prime Minister.
The property occupies more than 200 km2 (20,000 ha) of land. The royal family employs around 50 people there full-time and 50 to 100 part-time to maintain the estate, care for the animals, etc. Part-time staff are mainly used during the Queen's annual visit."