LONDON—Prince Charles has abandoned his role as patron of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings after the group disagreed with a piece he had written for The Old House Handbook expressing his view that Britain’s old houses should always be restored to reflect their original style. The society, somewhat ironically, feels that buildings should be modified to reflect the most current designs in architecture.

The disruption actually took place months ago but was not made public until today. After Charles declined to edit his piece, which would have served as the book’s foreword, it was replaced by one written by the secretary of the society, Philip Venning. A short time later, when Charles’s position with the association was up for renewal, he decided to opt out.

Read more at the Independent.