Today, Saturday 6 May, Charles III will be crowned the new Head of State of the United Kingdom. Economist Hermann Mattis has been studying the cost of home ownership for decades.
Today, the coronation ceremonies of King Charles III and Queen Camilla are undoubtedly held with great interest. Charles III ascended the throne at the age of 74, but his 75-year-old wife Camilla is perhaps the biggest winner in this story. After years of abuse and criticism, she can now call herself Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 countries of the so-called Commonwealth World. From now on, all critics may kneel before her. What is the cost of the general budget of kings and presidents released. In it he calculated what eleven kings and chiefs of the West cost the taxpayers.
Crown real estate
The British royal family is a special case, especially when it comes to finances. “The list or civil grants as we know them in Belgium, for example, no longer exist among the British,” Mattis says. “For the past 15 years or so, the British royal family’s financing system has operated on the dividends of the so-called “Crown Estate”. The collected estates cover 116,000 hectares of land and buildings, spread across England, Wales and Scotland. This includes not only the famous Windsor Castle, but also, for example, some parks and the most expensive shopping streets in London. All of these immovable and movable assets are not owned by the state or the royal family. The total value is estimated at 17.6 billion euros. About two-thirds of them are in the London area.
“In the 2021-2022 financial year, Crown generated €554 million,” says Matisse. The arrangement is for the king to receive 25 percent of the profits. The rest goes to the treasury. Crown Properties is supervised by a board of directors consisting mainly of the Ministry of Finance. The House of Commons, the section of the English Parliament that controls the government, also oversees the institution. For example, the annual report is discussed by members of parliament. But the king can decide what to do with his money and how to divide it among his family.
Other income
“The heir to the throne, the Prince of Wales, can enjoy the royalties of the Duchy of Cornwall,” Mattis says. It has an area of about 55,000 hectares – part farmland and part built-up land – most of which is in the southwest of England. Its value is estimated at more than 1.1 billion euros. In the 2021-22 financial year, he made a net profit of around 22.6 million euros. Because it relates to “generous lands”, it is free from corporate taxes. Since the 1990s, people have voluntarily paid personal income tax to the treasury. In addition, there is the Duchy of Lancaster, in the northwest of England. The total real estate is estimated at 735 million euros. In the 2021-22 financial year, this generated €27m. In Lancaster, the same tax rules apply as for property in Cornwall. Both areas are regulated and managed by the Ministry of Finance (HM Treasury). The annual reports are also handled by the House of Commons.
In addition, there are purely private assets, such as estates in Balmoral (Scotland) and Sandringham (east of England, near Norfolk), private collections – art, stamps, racehorses – and private investments. The total value of this is estimated at 790 million euros. Finally, there is also the so-called “Royal Collection”, which is a collection of art and jewelry. In fact, it is very much public property, but the king and his family are allowed to use it. The entire collection is in a separate trust, which derives its income from selling tickets to the public. The group is said to be worth around 339 million euros.
The British pay
Therefore, the British royal family has a lot of valuable properties. However, the cost of the coronation on May 6 must be paid for by the British budget. This bill is estimated at no less than 113 million euros,” Mattis says. Receipts and official travel also fall under the treasury, just like the security of members of the royal family. Incidentally, this security is very intense for responsible police areas (such as the Greater London Police), MI5 intelligence, and the military etc. There are no figures available on the cost of security.It is under state secret.“
