According to a Guardian investigation, the royals i.e., the late Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles of the United Kingdom made over £1 billion ($1.25 billion) from two land and property estates that have been the subject of a long-running argument over whether the general public should receive the profits generated by these properties.
The report detailed the full scope of income that the duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall, which have been in charge of enormous portfolios of real estate and land throughout England, are receiving from the royals. The duchies have been managing hotels, offices, farms, stores, medieval castles, and some of London’s most prestigious luxury properties as real estate empires.
The royal mother-son combination received more than £1.2 billion ($1.50 billion) in total revenue
Although the duchies have their own investment portfolios, neither capital gains nor company taxes are paid by them. The queen and her first-born son, who was given the title of the Duke of Cornwall, enjoyed a significant increase in their income from the duchies during her seven-decade reign, according to duchy records preserved in official and parliamentary archives.
The royal duchy earned £41.8 million ($52.17 million) in total last year. The royal mother-son combination received more than £1.2 billion ($1.50 billion) in total revenue from the two estates after accounting for inflation. The Duchy of Lancaster, which is comprised of rural land covering 18,481 hectares largely in the north and the Midlands of England, is automatically transferred to the person who succeeds the current king or queen. The estate is currently worth £652 million ($813.78 million).
The male heir to the king receives the estate’s revenues automatically
The Duchy of Cornwall is worth more than £1 billion ($1.25 billion) and spans 52,450 hectares, most of which are located in the southwest of England. In accordance with the 2013 legislation that included gender equality in the royal succession, the estate has not revised its policy. As a result, the male heir to the king receives the estate’s revenues automatically.
The Duchy of Cornwall was officially transferred to Prince William, the heir to the throne, when King Charles assumed the throne last year, making him a millionaire and one of England’s wealthiest landowners. He will probably receive a yearly salary of about £20 million ($24.96 million).