As the heir to the throne, 42-year-old Prince William is entitled to the surplus profits from the Duchy of Cornwall estate, receiving the full amount for the 2023-24 financial year, his first complete year as the Duke of Cornwall.
The Duchy of Cornwall, one of Britain’s largest and oldest landed estates, was established in 1337 by Edward III to support his son and heir, Prince Edward, known as the Black Prince, and his successors. It spans 23 counties in England and Wales, including the Oval cricket ground and 67,000 acres of Dartmoor.
The income supports the official, charitable, and private lives of William, Kate, and their three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. Last year, William received about £6 million from the Duchy, as he became the Duke of Cornwall partway through the financial year following the late Queen’s death. Additionally, the Duchy retained a portion for day-to-day estate operations.
Alastair Martin, the Duchy of Cornwall’s secretary and keeper of records, also commented on the differences between William and his predecessor, King Charles, in managing the estate.
“Sustainability is a passion that they both share but there are some differences,” he said. “His Royal Highness the 24th duke would telephone me. His Royal Highness the 25th Duke, will WhatsApp me.”
He added: “The day after her Late Majesty died, I rang Prince William to say ‘Welcome to your Duchy, Sir’. I obviously knew him, I’d been working with him for the previous eight years or ten years, to really explain to him what his future was during the time he was heir to the throne.
“And he said, ‘I’m going to give you my mobile telephone number – if you want me, just get me, just message me’.
“And that’s how he works and he is very involved. There will be weekends when my WhatsApp messages will be in double figures and I will be very responsive. If something has gone well or badly, I will want to tell my boss and he’ll be straight back.”
