Free
Historic house
#58
Kew Palace
Britain's smallest royal palace: a 1630s Dutch-style brick house later adopted by the Georgian court. Rooms and interpretation focus on George III, Queen Charlotte and their family, with access to the remarkably preserved Royal Kitchens—an 18th-century culinary time capsule—set a short walk from the house within Kew Gardens.
Opening Hours
Sunday: 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Monday: 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Tuesday: 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Wednesday: 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Thursday: 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Friday: 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM
Saturday: 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM
What's not to miss inside?
Georgian Family Rooms
Recreates the intimate domestic sphere of George III and Queen Charlotte at Kew.Spot personal objects that reveal scientific hobbies and music-making among the princesses.
📍 Main house, upper floors
The Royal Kitchens (1770s)
Complete ranges, preparation rooms and equipment survive, showing large-scale royal provisioning.Trace a single menu from kitchen to table via scullery, pastry and boiling rooms.
📍 Separate building near the palace
The Dutch House Fabric
Flemish-bond brickwork and compact plan reflect 17th-century mercantile taste later adapted for royalty.Compare the palace's modest scale to grander Georgian residences and ask why Kew appealed.
📍 Exterior & stair halls
Queen Charlotte's Story
Documents her life at Kew and final illness—she died here in 1818—through letters and portraits.Read a diary extract, then find the room it describes.
📍 Interpretation rooms
Inspire your Friends
- Built c.1631 as the 'Dutch House' for merchant Samuel Fortrey, the building only became a royal residence in the 18th century.
- Kew Palace is the smallest of Britain's royal palaces—its intimacy suited George III's family life and periods of seclusion.
- The Royal Kitchens at Kew survive with fittings from the 1770s, making them among the best-preserved 18th-century royal kitchens in Britain.
- Queen Charlotte died at Kew in 1818; mourning rituals recorded at the house illustrate Georgian court ceremony in a modest setting.
