The Duchy of Cornwall actually owns Highgrove House in Gloucestershire. Technically it was bought on behalf of The Duke of Cornwall in 1980, and it has been his country home since then. It is near Tetbury, Gloucestershire
Highgrove had been the home of Maurice Macmillan, Conservative MP for Farnham and son of the former Prime Minister Harold Macmillan, for 14 years before the sale to the Duchy.
It emerged during a Parliamentary inquiry in 2005, that Highgrove House was purchased by the Duchy of Cornwall for the prince in 1980 at a cost of £865,000, and that he paid £336,000-a-year rental on it.
It was apparently chosen because of its easy access to London and other parts of Britain, including the western counties where the Duchy has most of its properties. Princess Anne, Charles' sister also has a property in the area.
Highgrove is a fairly conventional Cotswolds country house, built in stone with neo-classical facades. It was built between 1796 and 1798 for a local landowner (the Paul family of Stroud) , and was remodelled around 1800, when a solid parapet was added around the roof. After his purchase the Prince sought advice on improving the appearance of the facade, and the solid parapet was replaced by an open balustrade surmounted with urns. Ionic pilasters were erected on the front of the house.
It is a rectangular three-story building with nine bedrooms (6 of which are termed "principal"), four reception rooms, eight bathrooms and a nursery wing, so is not large by the standards of the gentry. There are stables, staff accommodation, parkland and a home farm of nearly 350 acres.
Charles and Princess Diana took up residence at Highgrove House soon after they were married in 1981. Highgrove later became home to Charles and Diana's sons, Princes William and Harry. Diana of course left Highgrove in the early 1990s following the breakdown of her marriage to Charles
The Prince of Wales hosts many meetings at Highgrove, and one of his most recent projects was the construction of a function suite in the grounds, built in Cotswold stone and featuring a stone roof, known as the Orchard Room.
Charles has taken a particular interest in the gardens, and believed to have spent £500,000 on them, taking advice on plants and design from famous garden expert Rosemary Verey of nearby Barnsley House before her death in the late 1990s. The private grounds are only occasionally open, and to organised groups of visitors, and there is a waiting list of up to five years.
Today it is the country home of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall, Clarence House in London being their official residence in the capital.
More information on the Duke of Cornwall 's own Highgrove page
Highgrove House is the country home of the Duchess of Cornwall