The Duchy of Lancaster, a land and property estate that generates profits for King Charles III, has been secretly using funds from deceased individuals to upgrade its commercial property empire, according to internal documents seen by The Guardian. The estate has collected over £60m ($82m) in recent years from financial assets known as bona vacantia, which are owned by people who died without a will or known next of kin. The estate has claimed that the revenues are donated to charities after deducting costs, but the documents reveal that the funds are being used to finance property renovations owned by the king and rented out for profit.
The Duchy of Lancaster inherits the funds from individuals whose last known address was in an area that was historically ruled by a duke, which today includes parts of Lancashire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Cheshire, and Cumbria. The leaked documents show that the funds are being used to upgrade various properties, including townhouses, holiday lets, cottages, agricultural buildings, and even a former petrol station.
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The renovations include new roofs, double-glazed windows, boiler installations, and replacements of doors and lintels. The leaked documents also mention the renovation of an old farmhouse in Yorkshire and the conversion of a farm building into commercial offices. Insiders have described the use of bona vacantia funds as a “slush fund” and “free money” for the estate.
The diversion of these funds has proven to be financially advantageous for the king’s estate, as it makes rental properties more profitable. The Duchy of Lancaster generates significant profits for the royal family, with Charles receiving £26m from the estate in his first annual payout since inheriting it from his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
The Guardian has identified several people whose assets have been transferred to the king’s estate after they died in the north-west of England. Friends of these individuals have expressed shock and disgust at the practice, calling it unethical. Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the matter, while a spokesperson for the Duchy of Lancaster stated that the funds are used for the restoration and repair of qualifying buildings to protect them for future generations.
