For over 500 years, the Spencer family has owned the Althorp estate in Northamptonshire, a region in central England between Cambridge and Birmingham. Princess Diana spent several childhood holidays here, before moving in permanently at the age of 14 when her parents moved in. On this luxurious 5,463-hectare estate, the mother of Prince William and Prince Harry grew up alongside her brother, Charles Spencer, and her two older sisters, Lady Sarah, and Lady Jane Spencer. But the estate will go to her sons. Indeed, the heir to this residence is none other than William and Harry’s 31-year-old cousin Louis Spencer, Viscount Althorp.
Louis is Charles Spencer’s son and will one day own this childhood home. As Charles Spencer was the 9th earl of the family, he bequeathed the property to his only son. Although Louis had three older sisters, the system for passing on titles of nobility meant that the property went to the first son, not the first sibling. Charles Spencer shares Louis with his first wife, Victoria Lockwood.
Louis Spencer grew up in Cape Town, South Africa, and lives a life far from the limelight, despite his acting career. According to a source close to the Spencers who spoke to the Telegraph, Louis is “very discreet and gets by quietly.” The source added: “He’s a very talented actor and, I think, will be brilliant.” As his sister Kitty Spencer reveals to OK! he is already taking part in management meetings at the estate, which opens its doors to the public every summer (proceeds go to the Diana Spencer Association).
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Estate for rent
The Althorp estate has also been put up for rent. “Althorp offers unparalleled levels of service, privacy and luxury that rival the world’s finest estates, while retaining the welcoming, home-like atmosphere that makes Althorp so special,” says the listing on Elysian Estates, a high-end equivalent of Airbnb.
Key amenities at this magnificent estate include more than 26 bedrooms, in-house catering, function space for 250 and a marquee for 500. The house also includes priceless works of art by great artists such as Anthony van Dyck, Gainsborough and Sir Joshua Reynolds.
The house, a Grade I listed building of outstanding interest, has attracted many admirers and guests over the years, including royalty such as King Charles I. A future King Charles also met the Princess of Wales for the first time at the house in the 1970s. The site can be booked for weddings and is open to the public in summer. Even Madonna and Guy Ritchie were not insensitive to its charms, as they reportedly contacted Earl Spencer to enquire about the possibility of celebrating their nuptials there in 2000, before opting for Skibo Castle in Scotland.
The Althorp estate was not only the childhood home of the former wife of King Charles III, but also her final resting place. The princess was buried in the grounds of the residence at her brother’s request. Her grave is located on a small island nicknamed “The Oval,” in the center of an artificial lake on the estate. Charles Spencer regularly shares photos of this island, on which a temple has been erected in his name. A place that has endeared the princess’s brother to the estate even more. Princess Diana’s burial place is not accessible to guests wishing to rent the estate, nor to any member of the public.
