Though Meghan Markle claims she will never live in the United States as long as Donald Trump is president, this medieval-cum-French-chateau castle couldn’t be a more perfect home for ex-Royals. Though the Oregon couple who took seven years to build it ended up going their separate ways and using it as an Airbnb at $2,000 a night, the Sussexes could do the same as a first step to their financial independence from the Crown, while waiting for American politics to come around to their way of thinking. Fairytale Blackberry Castle has been waiting for its real prince to finally come along and is priced at $3.9 million.

In addition to the castle’s exterior with its copper-turret roofs spectacular enough to be a landmark for commercial pilots, the visual impact of the interior is unique for its architectural-designed details and clever use of space. For example, where turrets have generally been wasted space in castles and the great chateaus of France that are being restored, in the case of Blackberry Castle a turret has been turned into a multi-story library with a massive-working clock on its ceiling. The gym with climbing wall appears to be a rather whimsical dungeon and the workout equipment - possibly instruments of torture? Sited on 6.4 acres and measuring in at 13,000 square feet, the five-bedroom, six-bath home was completed in 2008. Although the home has every conceivable luxury for the 21st century such as wine cellar, gym, chef’s kitchen with a $50,000 custom range from Italy, home theater, four fireplaces, an atrium bar and entertainment space styled like a European village and more, it’s not about the rooms it has, but more about how they are presented. Like stepping into a Grimm’s fairytale, one expects Rapunzel to release her golden locks from the top of a turret at any moment. Making artful use of brick, imported wood, stone and fixtures to create barrel roofs, castle-sized doors with heavy hardware, an atrium floor with massive slices of tree trunks, suspended-circular stairway with a Michaelangelo-style painting on the ceiling above, it was clearly a labor of love for its creators.

Grounds include a 700-plant vineyard producing pinot noir and chardonnay. Outside, underneath the vineyard hill is an underground wine cellar and tasting room built in a reinforced shipping container where 400 bottles can be stored at a constant 59 degrees. The grounds, with their valley views overlooking the treetops, also contain a tennis court with lighting and an in-ground trampoline. A 1,900-square-foot detached home is an ideal place for relatives such as Prince Charles or Queen Elizabeth.

Since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s last day as functioning senior royals comes on March 31st and Portland seems like the perfect place to shed the glare of many paparazzi as they wish to do, Blackberry Castle is a fitting environment for Harry, who is still a prince and sixth in line for the throne of England. It is also a reasonable commute for Meghan to the film centers of Hollywood and Canada. Priced at a very reasonable $3.9 million for their pocketbooks, the listing agent is Daniel Lowe of Luxe Christie’s International Real Estate, Lake Oswego, Oregon.

Link to story: https://www.toptenrealestatedeals.com/weekly-ten-best-home-deals
Interior Photo Credit: STEVE HANING
Exterior Photo Credit: KYLE MCCALLUM