King Charles III has become one of the UK’s wealthiest individuals, surpassing his late mother, Queen Elizabeth, in personal wealth. According to the 2024 Sunday Times Rich List, the monarch’s personal wealth is estimated to be around $770 million, significantly higher than Queen Elizabeth’s $468 million before she passed away at age 96 in September 2022. Despite this wealth, King Charles is not the richest man in the UK, as he is overshadowed by Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster, whose family’s net worth stands at an impressive $12.8 billion.
What makes it even more ironic is that Hugh Grosvenor is the godfather of Prince George, the eldest child of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and reportedly the godfather of Prince Archie, the son of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. This is interesting considering the strained relationship between Prince Harry and his family. King Charles’ wealth is mostly tied up in assets like the Sandringham Estate and Balmoral Castle, which are estimated to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars. His financial success can be attributed to rebuilding his wealth following his 1996 divorce from Princess Diana by saving profits from the Duchy of Cornwall.
The Duchy of Cornwall is a massive estate worth around $1 billion that includes land, farms, houses, and commercial properties in London, Milton Keynes, and Cornwall. King Charles increased the duchy’s profits significantly during his time overseeing it, bringing in over $31 million annually by 2022. Between 2012 and 2022, he reportedly received over $268 million from the duchy. Following Queen Elizabeth’s death, Prince William inherited the estate from King Charles. The true wealth of the British royal family is hard to determine accurately due to factors like their art collection, personal jewelry, gifts, and taxpayer-funded expenditures.
Despite King Charles’ wealth, he still falls short of individuals like Hugh Grosvenor, the Duke of Westminster, who outshines him in terms of personal net worth. Grosvenor’s close relationship with both Prince William and Prince Harry has raised eyebrows, especially if he is indeed the godfather of Prince Archie. King Charles’ fortune is mostly tied up in valuable assets like the Sandringham Estate, which is estimated to be worth over $360 million. His financial stability can be attributed to his prudent financial decisions following his divorce from Princess Diana.
When comparing King Charles’ wealth to Queen Elizabeth’s, it is evident that his personal fortune has surpassed hers. However, the complexity of determining the true wealth of the British royal family makes it challenging to ascertain the full extent of their riches. Factors like the value of their art collection, personal jewelry, gifts received, and taxpayer-funded expenditures all contribute to their overall wealth. Despite this, it is clear that King Charles has managed to amass a considerable fortune through shrewd financial decisions and astute management of the assets under his control.
