EXCLUSIVE: Inside King Charles' 'Cluckingham Palace' as he 'Uses Chickens as Healers'

King Charles is said to believe the chickens at his beloved Highgrove estate – affectionately housed in "Cluckingham Palace" – and the natural world around them can play a restorative role as he continues living with cancer, RadarOnline.com can reveal.

The monarch, 77, has spent decades transforming Highgrove, his Gloucestershire home since 1980, into a showcase for his philosophy of living in harmony with nature.

Now, as Charles continues his royal duties following his 2024 cancer diagnosis, the estate's rescue hens, orchards and gardens are said to have assumed an even more personal significance.

A royal source claimed to Radar: "The King has always believed strongly in the healing power of nature, but that belief has become more meaningful during his cancer journey. He genuinely feels that being among the gardens, the trees and his chickens has the power to help him heal.

"The hens might make people smile, but for him there is something deeply calming and restorative about caring for them."

During the warmer months, Highgrove's rescue hens are allowed out from their section of the gardens to wander through the orchards, where visitors can see them scratching and pecking around the estate.

Scott Simpson, retail director for The King's Foundation, which acts as custodian of Highgrove, said about the birds: "They're central to Highgrove life, and it's always lovely to see them happily roaming around, pecking away."

Simpson added that Charles' approach at Highgrove is "all about living with nature and nature's creatures."

The monarch's attachment to the estate was also explored in Finding Harmony: A King's Vision, the Amazon Prime documentary released in February, which showed Charles visiting the Highgrove chicken coop known as 'Cluckingham Palace' and collecting eggs.

Simpson said: "It's been known as that for as long as I've been there. I'm not sure how that name came up, but it's rather fitting – and it makes everyone chuckle."

Charles is said to make a point of tending to the birds whenever he is staying at Highgrove.

Simpson said: "It's something he will always do when in residence at Highgrove, going to collect the eggs himself."

The eggs are used by the royal household and are also sold on the estate.

Charles' flock has several breeds favored by the monarch, including Burford Browns, Marans and Welsummers, while the birds themselves have been rescued and rehomed.

Among them is Henrietta, adopted by Charles and Queen Camilla, 79, alongside 30 other hens in 2024 after becoming the one-millionth bird rehomed by the British Hen Welfare Trust.

Another source said the routine provides Charles with a rare opportunity to escape the pressures surrounding his health and public role.

The insider added: "There is no suggestion that the King sees nature as a replacement for medical treatment. But he believes wellbeing is about more than medicine alone. Highgrove gives him peace, and the chickens are part of that."

Highgrove has also remained a center of Charles' environmental work.

He recently welcomed Sir David Beckham to the estate as they worked on designs for a shared garden for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

Simpson, who also keeps rescue chickens, said: "They're the most marvelous animals. They're so friendly, and it's so calming to collect eggs. With rescued hens, there's something really lovely about giving them a second chance, and what better home than at Highgrove?"