King chooses sanctuary of Sandringham for isolation after cancer diagnosis
Upon receiving his first treatment for cancer, Britain’s King Charles III retreated to Sandringham House, a private estate where the monarch has long taken refuge while walking and shooting along the windswept North Sea coast of eastern England.
Sandringham — the private home of the past six British monarchs — sits amid parkland, gardens and working farms about 180km north of London.
It has been owned by the royal family since 1862, passing directly from one monarch to the next for more than 160 years.
This history has made Sandringham a special place for Charles and his family.
But the king has gone there for a very practical reason, former BBC royal reporter Michael Cole said.
“He needs isolation, and Sandringham of all his royal properties, with the possible exception of Balmoral, where the weather is not terribly good at this time of year, is isolated,” Cole said. “It’s only [160km] from London, but it is surrounded by its own grounds . . . He can be separate, because when you are having cancer treatment of any kind, infection must be avoided.”
Charles, who started visiting the estate as a child, first found sanctuary at Sandringham when he was a student at Cambridge University and later after his marriage to Princess Diana collapsed.
Now it is a place of shelter once again.
Queen Victoria bought Sandringham for her eldest son, Edward, in 1862, largely in hopes that becoming a country gentleman would keep the playboy prince out of trouble in the nightspots of London, Paris, Monte Carlo and Biarritz.
George V, the late Queen Elizabeth II’s grandfather, described the estate as “Dear old Sandringham, the place I love better than anywhere else in the world”.
George VI, the king’s grandfather, loved it as well. On the day he died, George reportedly spent the afternoon on the estate with his dogs and a gun.
Charles, who continues to hike and shoot at the age of 75, is said to revel in the chance to be outdoors and breathe the fresh air along the Norfolk coast.
“There is absolutely nothing between Sandringham and the North Pole,” Cole said.
Yesterday Queen Camilla said King Charles III was doing well, adding that he has been touched by the messages of support he’s received from the public.
Camilla travelled to Salisbury Cathedral to attend a concert celebrating the work of local charities. Among the first people she met were workers from Wiltshire Air Ambulance, who offered hope that the king was doing well.
“Well he’s doing extremely well under the circumstances,” Camilla said.
“He’s very touched by all the letters and the messages the public have been sending from everywhere — that’s very cheering.”