Royal Households of the United Kingdom

The Royal Households of the United Kingdom are the collective departments that support members of the British royal family. The Royal Household (singular) supports the Sovereign. Other members of the royal family who undertake public duties have separate households; they vary considerably in size, from the medium-sized household that supports the Prince and Princess of Wales to those supporting junior working royals (with just a handful of members).

In addition to the royal officials and support staff, the sovereign's own household incorporates representatives of other estates of the realm, including the government, the military, and the church. Government whips, defence chiefs, clergy, scientists, musicians, poets, and artists hold honorary positions within the Royal Household. In this way, the Royal Household may be seen as having a symbolic, as well as a practical, function: exemplifying the monarchy's close relationship with other parts of the constitution and of national life.

The offices of the Royal Household are some of the oldest administrative entities in the UK, from which over time the other principal offices of State emerged: for example, HM Treasury was, in its pre-conquest origins, a strong-box kept for safety in the king's bedchamber, where it was overseen by one of the chamberlains (whose role would later evolve into the office of Lord High Treasurer). Parts of the Royal Household continued to play a central role in the government of the country up until the 1530s, and the four Great Officers of the Household routinely had a seat in the Cabinet until the mid-18th century.