Records of the Historic Royal Palaces Agency

KX

1988-2012

Records of the Historic Royal Palaces Agency, responsible for maintaining five royal palaces in and around London.

Annual reports and corporate plans are in KX 1.

Historic Royal Palaces Agency: 'Next Steps' Initiative are in KX 6.

For series created for regularly archived websites, please see the separate Websites Division.

Public Record(s)

English

8 series

Open

From 1998 Historic Royal Palaces

Topics

Ancient Monuments and Historical Buildings

Records transferred from the Historic Royal Palaces Agency to the Historic Royal Palaces in 1998

The Historic Royal Palaces Agency was established in October 1989 as an Executive Agency of the Department of the Environment as part of the Government's 'Next Steps' Initiative. In 1992, the responsibility moved to the newly established Department of National Heritage (from 1997 the Department for Culture, Media and Sport).

The Agency was responsible for the care, preservation and presentation to the public of five unoccupied historic royal palaces: the Tower of London; Hampton Court Palace; the state apartments at Kensington Palace; the Banqueting House Whitehall; and Kew Palace with Queen Charlotte's Cottage. The palaces are owned by Her Majesty the Queen in right of the Crown.

On 1 April 1998 the Historic Royal Palaces Agency changed its status from a 'Next Steps' agency to a royal charter body with charitable status, called The Historic Royal Palaces (HRP). With the change of status a Board of Trustees was appointed to manage the palaces on behalf of the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. The Secretary of State is accountable to Parliament for HRP's policy and operations.

HRP manages: The Tower of London; Hampton Court Palace; parts of Kensington Palace; the Banqueting House Whitehall; and Kew Palace. Most of the contents of the royal palaces form part of the Royal Collection and are also owned by The Queen in right of Crown. The Director of the Royal Collection and the Keeper of the Privy Purse from the Royal Household sit as Trustees on the Board of Historic Royal Palaces. The Royal Armouries collections at the Tower of London are owned by the Royal Armouries, an independent National Museum