A TEAM of 200 people are digging up the lawns at three royal palaces this weekend in the first archeological dig allowed by the Queen.

The grounds of Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and Holyroodhouse are being excavated for four days over the bank holiday weekend following discussions between the producers of the Channel 4 show Time Team and the royal household.

The ground below the palaces has long been eyed by archeologists eager to dig into Britain’s royal past, but until now they have been prevented from carrying out explorations.

By yesterday evening the finds had been few but the programme’s organisers hope to unearth the remains of a parliamentarian fort in the grounds of Buckingham Palace and a hall which was built by Edward III at Windsor to house a round table for the Knights of the Garter.

Tony Robinson, the Time Team presenter, said: “This is practically the first time that archeologists have been able to excavate properly at the palaces — before now they have only been on hand during building work to record finds, but not choosing where to dig.”

Robinson, still best remembered for his role as Baldrick, the malodorous factotum in Blackadder, the 1980s television series, discussed the project with the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales at a recent garden party. He said that Prince Charles had been particularly interested in the technical aspects of the dig.

The team, which deployed across the grounds of the three palaces on Friday, was equipped with the latest technology, including ground-penetrating radar, aerial photographs and mechanical diggers.

At Windsor, no trace of the “round table building” — believed to have been 200ft in diameter and built for 300 knights — has been found, but yesterday Time Team’s experts were enthusiastically digging up a ceremonial lawn after pinning their hopes on the Upper Ward area of the castle.

Also at Windsor, diggers hope to find the Great Hall, thought to have been a luxurious official residence built by Henry II in the 12th century.

Experts believe that the remains of the hall lie next to St George’s chapel, where Charles married the Duchess of Cornwall last year. Yesterday a Channel 4 spokesman said that the team had discovered what they believe are the foundations of the Great Hall.

At Buckingham Palace, excavators hope to find the location and layout of Buckingham House, which was on the site of the present palace and was incorporated into it during the late 18th century.

Other goals of the Buckingham Palace contingent include finding a 300-year-old canal — its silt lining may yield historic objects — and defences erected by parliamentarian forces during the civil war. So far, said Channel 4, the diggers have found pieces of clay pipes and a small rivet used to fasten armour or clothing.

However, the Time Team fears that hundreds of years of near-continuous gardening at the palace may have destroyed many important historical artefacts.

At Holyroodhouse the archeologists hope to find the tennis court of Mary Queen of Scots, along with other parts of the original palace, which was built by her grandfather, James IV of Scotland.

Holyroodhouse gardeners have uprooted prized plants from herbaceous borders to facilitate the dig.

They looked on as the archeologists, searching for the remains of a 12th-century abbey, prepared to dig trenches in the beautifully manicured main lawn.

Excavations at Holyroodhouse have yielded a metal seal for making impressions on wax which bears four designs — a crown, a heart, a barrel and a bird — and is thought to be more than 200 years old. The seal, which is thought to have belonged to an ordinary citizen because the designs are not heraldic, was found in a low earth mound, the original purpose of which is unknown.

Earlier, Robinson said that the Queen had personally requested that the mound be investigated.

“The Queen has always been fascinated to know what that little mound was and no one has ever dug it.” he said.

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