For the second time in the past two years, Prince William has attended a Council with Prince Charles for the Duchy of Cornwall. On Monday, William joined his Father at Clarence House for the twice yearly meeting. “The Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall, accompanied by The Duke of Cambridge, this afternoon chaired a Meeting of The Prince’s Council at Clarence House,” as noted in the Court Circular.
“The Duke of Cambridge has reportedly enrolled in a land economy course at the University of Cambridge after quitting the military earlier this year. William is believed to be learning farming to prepare himself to take over his father’s $1.2 billion Duchy of Cornwall estate,” The Australian Women’s Weekly reported.
As reported by Royal Central in October, In 2011, The Duke attended a meeting with the Prince’s Council, the group that runs the Duchy. “The Council normally meets twice a year and this has been the first occasion the Duke of Cambridge has been present at one,” Tim Walker said in The Telegraph. Further indication that the Duke of Cambridge is ‘learning the ropes.’
In 2009 The Duke of Cambridge attended an event at Highgrove, The Prince of Wales’ country estate which is part of the Duchy. The 2009 event was “organized to introduce the second in line to the throne to some of the farmers, tenants and shopkeepers,” according to the Daily Mail. The event was viewed as a stepping stone for the Duke of Cambridge to learning the intricacies of the Duchy.
In 1337 The Duchy of Cornwall was founded Edward III for his oldest son, Prince Edward. It has been operated ever since to provide an income for the heir to the throne.
Unfortunately, the Duchy is currently only handed down to a male heir. Although changes have been made in the laws of succession, to date this has not been changed. If no male heir exists, The Duchy reverts to the monarch which then reduces the amount of the Civil List funding by what is earned from the Duchy’s Income.
Currently, the estate consists of approximately 54,521 hectares of land in 23 counties, mostly in the South West. It is made up of agricultural, residential and commercial land assets, including London’s Oval cricket ground.
photo credit: Jason Simpson via photopin
