A look inside Spain’s future Queen Princess Leonor new school [Pics]

This school is a private institution located in St. Donat’s, a gorgeous and impressive castle of the XII century, located in the south of Wales. Leonor will finally be a princess living in a castle.

Far from her home of Zarzuela Palace, which was built in XVII and has been Leonor’s home throughout her entire life, the Princess of Asturias will be relocating to this new palace for the next two years of her life. Located in a cliff in the Bristol Channel, this castle has existed since the iron age, making it into one of the oldest buildings in the country, similar to Windsor, where the Queen of England lives.

The school’s campus is made up of 50 hectares of forests and woods, with a campus that has access to the sea, and surrounds the historic castle. UWC Atlantic College also has a Tudor style garden with beasts and animals carved into heraldry that has been preserved despite years of exposure and corrosion.

The Vale of Glamorgan is a tourist spot, available to use as a luxury wedding venue and more, with the castle and location having sections like battlements, dungeons, and more, that can be used for these purposes. Unsurprisingly, this location has long been the inspiration for all sorts of stories, from pirates and ghosts, to celtics, witches and Hollywood productions. The castle was once owned by William Randolph Hearst, the American businessman who served as one of the inspirations behind the film “Citizen Kane.”

The castle is immaculately preserved, with everything about it -- its windows, walls and stone chimneys -- calling attention to the place’s 800-year history. It’s no easy feat to preserve the castle for housing students and carrying out the day-to-day activities of the college. Still, despite facing hurdles from the pandemic, the castle manages to stay in top shape since it allows the public to visit and stay at the place, funding its development and preservation.

In this image, we can see one of the school’s libraries, where students have access to books from all sorts of writers, epochs, and nationalities. Students also have access to comfortable tables and chairs where they can spend hours studying and working on teams.

This image shows how close St. Donat’s castle is located to the coast of the Bristol Channel.

The school’s campus has a main hall, several food halls, assembly rooms, classrooms, exterior pool and interior pool. The best part: it’s all located within the historic castle.

As we’ve mentioned above, this castle was owned by William Randolph Hearst. The editor, publicist, journalist, etc., fell in love with the castle in 1925 after spotting it in the magazine Country Life. He invested a lot of money in the castle’s rehabilitation and threw several parties that earned legendary status, having guests that ranged from Charlie Chaplin to future president John F. Kennedy. St. Donat was owned by Hearst until his death, in 1951.

When the weather allows it, the school places a big screen over one of the castle’s walls and projects movies, documentaries, and more, which can be enjoyed by students and guests. The castle also hosts musical events, theater productions, summer cookouts, and the Christmas Fayre, an annual party that celebrates the start of Christmas and that was designed especially for families. It has been hosted in the castle for the past 20 years.

Over the years, new additions and amenities have been introduced to the castle, including an indoor and an outdoor pool. The pools are equipped with dressing rooms and bathrooms and can be rented out to swim clubs and other organizations. A bit of trivia: this pool was once visited by Diana of Wales in 1985, where she attended and represented the organization responsible for putting together a swimming competition for people who were hard of hearing.

Princess Leonor and her classmates have access to vast open air spaces, where plenty of activities can be conducted in the outdoors. The cities of Bridgend and Cardiff -- capital of Wales -- are in close vicinity of the castle, accessible through buses, trains and airports.

The school allows their students to carry out many different sports and disciplines. “These are some of our students who have selected Tai Chi as one of their extra-curricular activities. Tai Chi is a great way to practice a new activity and to reap many health and wellness benefits,” says the school’s Facebook post. As you can see from the photo, the school has adopted face masks and other measures that limit the spread of COVID-19.

For the next two years, Princess Leonor will live inside these walls. Once she’s out, she’ll be facing a new stage in her life, with her sights set in her future career at some University.