Why Camilla, Queen Consort, is keeping a private residence after King Charles III's ascension to the throne

• Buckingham Palace will likely be King Charles and Camilla, Queen Consort's permanent residence.
• But Camilla also owns a private home called Ray Mill House in Wiltshire, England.

Following Queen Elizabeth's death, her eldest son King Charles III ascended the throne.

The new king will take on all of his late mother's responsibilities, and he and his wife Camilla, Queen Consort, will also take over the Queen's residence at Buckingham Palace. According to the Mail on Sunday, the king plans to reduce the 52-room residence at the Palace to just one apartment for himself and Camilla.

While King Charles and Camilla will retain many other residences together, The Telegraph reported that the Queen Consort will also be keeping one private residence she owns on her own.

Camilla bought her private home, Ray Mill House in Wiltshire, England, after she divorced Andrew Parker Bowles in the mid-1990s, according to Express.

The outlet also notes the home is a 15-minute drive from Highgrove House, King Charles' residence in Gloucestershire.

An unnamed friend of Camilla told The Telegraph she will keep Ray Mill House because "it's an escape from royal life."

"If you consider that Highgrove is the most relaxed of the King's residences, even there you are always surrounded by a team of private staff including a chef, a butler, and police on every corner, so there is no true private time," the same friend told The Telegraph.

"The King has grown up with that all of his life, so it's not such a burden for him to exist in that observed world, but the Queen Consort has spent most of her life as a private citizen — so she understands the meaning of shutting your front door and having a place to yourself," the same friend added.

In addition to acting as a place of respite, Ray Mill House may also give the Queen Consort a sense of security, according to The Telegraph.

Because she owns Ray Mill House, Camilla could move into the home if the king died before her, and she will be able to bequeath the property to her own children, Laura Lopes and Tom Parker Bowles.

"Camilla's kept her home and place where she can spend time with her family away from all that," royal expert Marlene Koenig told Insider of the situation. "She has a family, she has two children and she has grandchildren — and they're not royal and never will be."

Camilla has already spent time at the estate alone in the wake of the Queen's death, according to Hello! Magazine.