He made good use of his decades as heir to the throne, because he had built up a huge personal fortune…
Charles III (74) is already richer than Queen Elizabeth († 96) ever was. This does not mean the many castles and publicly visible riches that do not belong to him, but the personal fortune of the new king.
Clever, this Charles (here 2008): For decades he has invested and saved cleverly
According to the „Sunday Times Rich List“ the king has a personal fortune of 600 million pounds (almost 677 million euros). The late Queen’s fortune was estimated at £370m last year.
Interesting: Charles is not so rich because he is now king, but because he invested so well as heir to the throne and prince – and lived frugally!
After the divorce from Princess Diana († 36), which is said to have cost him 17 million pounds (19 million euros today), Charles decided to pay more attention to his finances.
1981: Charles and Diana as newly engaged. The 15-year divorce cost the prince £17m
The king’s former adviser tells the Sunday Times that Charles started putting aside parts of his income after his split from Diana.
“We’re not talking huge sums here – tens of millions, no more. Camilla has been said to have brought a lot of money into their relationship — but that’s really not true.”
Christmas 2022: Charles loves his camel-colored wool coat and wears it again and again
Another habit that has helped Charles over the decades to be wealthier than either the Beckhams or Elton John: he lives frugally and loves recycling. So it’s not uncommon to see him in the same coat over and over again. He has a few that he has worn for more than 40 years!
“I’m one of those people who hate throwing things away,” said King Charles 2020 in conversation with “Vogue”.
2018: Charles and the coat he keeps recycling
Royal cash register
When Elizabeth became queen in 1952, Charles was three years old. He lived as heir to the throne for 70 years – longer than anyone before him. Charles was able to use five of the seven decades to build his personal fortune.
A cash register crash:
▶︎ Main source of income Duchy of Cornwall: When Charles received the title of Prince of Wales in 1969, the then 20-year-old was automatically allowed to dispose of the Duchy of Cornwall.
In 1969, at the age of 20, Charles became Prince of Wales
The Duchy includes lands with a total size of more than 54,000 hectares. It generates between 18 and 22 million euros a year. Charles’ business-savvy behavior over the decades is largely responsible for the increasing development of profits.
Charles spent much of his time developing his duchy economically. According to the “Sunday Times”, he is said to have contributed to Cornwall’s annual profit increasing by 42.6 percent between 2011 and 2022 to even £25.4 million (28.6 million euros).
Charles is said to have received £212.7m (€240m) from the Duchy in the last ten years alone.
► Real Estate: Rental income from commercial properties in London, Milton Keynes and Cornwall has brought Charles £17.6million over the past decade.
► Herbs: While it is not exactly clear what the According to the Sunday Times, it is assumed that the majority of Queen’s huge portfolio of stock and bond investments passed to Charles after she left her son a private fortune. The value: an estimated 100 million pounds (almost 113 million euros).
No question, the king is a wealthy man. But not nearly as rich as you might think.
“A lot of people are confused about royal finances – they mistakenly believe that (the royal family, editor’s note) the crown estates and duchies belong personally,” says Royal author Robert Hardman in the “Sunday Times”.
And further: “To be honest, their financial arrangements are really not as complex as those of many royal families and rulers in other countries, which are often much more opaque. Our monarchy really isn’t as prosperous as many people would think. I certainly don’t think the king is a billionaire.”
Not yet! But Charles is on a royal road there…
