King Charles III is seen outside the RNLI station (Image: Getty)
The King has raked in ￡26.2 million from the profits of the monarch’s private Duchy of Lancaster property empire this year.
Profits from the reigning monarch’s hereditary estate are up nine per cent on the figure of ￡24 million in 2022, the last year of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign, giving a boost to King Charles’s spending power.
The Duchy, which owns 45,550 acres of land across England and Wales including one prime real estate in The Strand in central London, published its annual financial report this morning.
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In the year to March 31, 2023, the net value of its property holdings decreased by ￡11.6m from ￡652.8m in 2022 to ￡641.2m.
But the net surplus paid to the King’s Privy Purse increased by ￡2.2m to ￡26.2m.
Nathan Thompson, chief executive and clerk of the Duchy Council, said: “The diverse nature of the portfolio and our ability to take a longer term view with regard to investment and development decisions continues to provide the business with both strength and resilience."
“The overall value of our investment properties decreased by ￡11.6m in year, due to the deterioration in investment yields."
“The surplus has risen, largely as a function of revenue growth from our commercial property portfolio, which increased by 11 percent to ￡19.5m as a result of the continuing demand for industrial space as well as the letting of our newly refurbished building on The Strand."
“Agricultural and residential rents also increased by three percent over the course of the year, due to the sustainable refurbishment and restoration of many of our residential properties.”
The King, who received ￡86.3 million from the taxpayer in the Sovereign Grant tonight for his official work as head of state, is expected to use much of his income from the Duchy to finance his and Queen Camilla’s private lifestyle.
But the monarch also traditionally uses the Duchy income to support other members of the Royal Family, apart from the Prince of Wales and his branch of the Windsor clan who are financed by the heir to the throne’s hereditary Duchy of Cornwall income.
The Duchy of Lancaster was already switching to greener methods of working before the change of reign but has continued to burnish its environmental credentials under the leadership of Charles III.
Mr Thompson said: “Our ambition is to become one of the most respected let landed estates in the country and we believe that we can best achieve this by maintaining strong tenant relationships, continuing to restore assets and investing in further sustainability initiatives and environmental improvements."
“We have a detailed sustainability plan for the business which includes measures to improve biodiversity and soil management in our agricultural portfolio, reduce our operational greenhouse gas emissions, improve the energy efficiency of our properties and expand and improve the management of our woodlands. These will remain key areas of focus in the year ahead.”
The Duchy of Lancaster is a historic portfolio of land and assets held in trust for the reigning sovereign.
It provides the monarch with a source of income that is independent of Government and the public purse.
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