Queen's close confidant set to move into Windsor Castle as Kate and William say no to Her Majesty's beloved home

Windsor Castle is set to have a new resident as Terry Pendry has been installed as a military knight following his years of dedicated service to Her Majesty the Queen.

• Queen Elizabeth II spent much of her life, and most of lockdown at her favorite English residence, Windsor Castle.
• Following her death, Her Majesty's beloved former home, Windsor Castle, is set to have a new resident.
• In other royal news, Everything we know about Frogmore Cottage in Windsor: Who lives there now, who owns it and a glimpse inside.

It has been revealed that Queen Elizabeth's head groom, Terry Pendry, has been installed as a military knight at Windsor Castle. It was announced that as of Febraury 27, the Queen's close confidante has been bestowed with an incredible honor that now means he can spend the rest of his life with a paid home at Windsor Castle, the Queen's beloved former residence.

The Military Knights of Windsor were formed by King Edward III, but today the knights are predominately retired army officers who carry out duties at Windsor including the Order of the Garter ceremony and occasional parades.

While the position is a tremendous honor, it is unpaid. However, the military knights are awarded with a home in the Lower Ward of the castle, which they can inhabit for as long as they continue their duties. For Terry and for many other knights, this will typically be for the rest of their life.

Many may remember Terry as the Queen's confidante who advised her for decades about her ponies and horses. Some will also remember when Terry and the Queen's pony, Emma, helped pay tribute at the Queen's funeral in the most special way. The head groom and the fell pony stood silently watching on as the late monarch's coffin made its way to St George's Chapel in Windsor on the day of her funeral. 

As Terry and Emma watched the Queen's hearse drive past, Her Majesty's cypher reading E II R could be seen embroidered onto Emma's saddle, a final tribute to the late Queen. 

This news of Terry Pendry's new residence in the Castle comes just a few months after the suggestion that Prince William and Catherine have rejected moving to Windsor Castle anytime soon.

The royal couple and their three children moved to Windsor last year and now reside at Adelaide Cottage. It was suggested that Prince William and Kate Middleton chose ‘modest’ life for kids as they ‘don’t want’ to live in Windsor Castle.

“The Waleses' don’t want to move into Windsor Castle because they’re actually quite happy in Adelaide Cottage, which by comparison is modest accommodation,” she claimed. "Not by comparison to us, but by comparison to royal accommodation," said Camilla Tominey in a discussion about royal residences during an appearance on ITV’s This Morning a few days ago.

But why are the royal couple planning on staying in the smaller home for as long as possible? It was suggested that the Prince and Princess of Wales want to 'delay' Windsor Castle move to minimize 'disruption' to their family.

"They won’t be starting from scratch when it comes to decisions on what happens to all of the royal properties," a source told the Telegraph (opens in new tab), "because there have been lots of conversations about that over the years, but things can change when family dynamics are taken into account and they will want as little disruption to their children’s lives as possible right now." 

"They are very happy right now at Windsor and for the next decade or so everything will be pretty much dictated by what is right for the children," the insider added.

So it seems that while members of the Royal family are not yet looking to move into the Castle, it will be inhabited by those who were close to the Queen, and still have important jobs at the royal residence.