Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s renovation costs for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s new family home with Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor were met through the Sovereign Grant. However, Meghan and Harry faced criticism when they made the decision to hold Archie’s christening privately shortly after their public expenses were revealed. Nevertheless, Princess Anne has set a precedent for working as a senior royal and establishing private finances.

Her residence, Gatcombe Park, is privately owned and the Princess Royal runs the estate as a working farm, and as a venue for equestrian eventing. 

This means that she does not receive income form the Sovereign Grant for its upkeep, unlike other royal residences.

Although the princess has attracted criticism in the past for her stated desire to live as a private citizen, nevertheless her decision to finance her estate privately has meant she has been able to enjoy more freedom in her private life.

Her children, Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips, are not working royals and do not have any royal titles, either.

A royal expert even claimed that Harry “wants to be more like Zara and Mike Tindall” and have the freedoms they enjoy.

Anne’s children meet their own expenses from their careers – Peter owns a sports management company, and Zara is a professional sportswoman. 

Prince Andrew’s children Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie are not working royals either, and were taken off the Sovereign Grant list when they graduated university in 2011 and 2012 respectively. 

However, unlike Anne, Andrew was reportedly unhappy with the decision.

Writing in Vanity Fair in 2011, renowned American author and journalist Edward Klein spoke to royal expert Robert Jobson.

Mr Jobson said: “Andrew has made a tremendous effort to keep Beatrice and Eugenie close to the Queen in order to assure their future as fully paid-up members of the Firm, as the Royal Family is called. 

“But if Charles has his way, the girls will be thrown off the royal payroll and have to fend for themselves.”

Added to this, Andrew’s  written request to the Queen in 2016 that the princesses should be reinstated to the Sovereign Grant was turned down by Her Majesty.

DON’T MISS
Prince Harry’s heartbreaking Meghan Markle dilemma revealed
How Meghan and Harry’s Frogmore renovation was double projected cost
How Queen made ‘stinging’ remark about Kate’s Mustique holidays

At the time, a royal source said: “Andrew has always wanted his daughters to be full-time royals, he sees it as a slight on him and them if they are not.

“But Charles calls the shots and he wants the Royal Family giving value for money.”

In addition to their careers, Beatrice and Eugenie were provided with a trust fund in the terms of their mother Sarah Ferguson’s divorce form Prince Andrew in 1996 – although in 2010, Fergie claimed to be living off her daughters’ trust fund too.

Beatrice and Eugenie do live in royal residences, and although the Queen does charge rent for non-working royals, Andrew foots his daughters’ bill.

The Princesses lived together at St James’s Palace until Eugenie moved to Ivy Cottage at Kensington Palace with Jack Brooksbank.

The Queen’s youngest son Prince Edward, and his wife Sophie, Countess of Wessex, do not receive any Sovereign Grant money.

The royal pair previously had careers of their own, however they were forced to step down from their roles in 2002 after a series of gaffes.

They received a one-off payment from the Queen of £250,000 at the time, in addition to the tax-free £141,00 they still received from the monarch yearly during their careers.

Since then their expenses have been met from the Queen’s private income, not any public money. 

Added to this, their royal residence Bagshot Park is owned by the Crown, and its £250,000 a year running costs are met by the Queen.

The Queen’s private income is money from her personal investment portfolio and inherited private estates, including Balmoral Castle and the Sandringham Estate.

According to the Sunday Times Rich List 2014, the Queen is worth £330million, however this is an estimate as Her Majesty is not required to make this figure public.

The Queen also uses money from the Privy Purse – which is the income generated from he Duchy of Lancaster – to meet private and official expenses of members of the Royal Family such as Prince Edward.

Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, have also handed down titles to their children Louise and James.

However, unlike Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie,  Louise and James have the titles due to them as children of an Earl, rather than a royal prince.

They are known as James Viscount Severn, and  Lady Louise Windsor.

Harry, unlike his uncle, did not pass down any of his titles to his new son Archie – who was widely expected to be given the title Earl of Dumbarton before his brith.

Little Archie will be entitled to be styled Prince Archie when Prince Charles comes to the throne, as he will be the grandson of the reigning monarch. 

Prince Charles, as the Prince of Wales, uses the revenue from the Duchy of Cornwall to finance his royal household as well as the official offices of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Since Prince Harry and Meghan split from the royal household at Kensington Palace, their official offices are now at Buckingham Palace, under the Queen. 

The Prince of Wales’ residence Clarence House is still kept with funds from the Sovereign Grant, however.

The Duchy of Cornwall is the land that belongs to the Prince of Wales and so will be passed on to Prince William when he inherits the title.

Because it is held in trust for the Prince of Wales, only the revenue form the Duchy can be used and the estate cannot be sold.

This caused a crisis for the prince in 1996 when he was going through his high-profile divorce from Princess Diana.

In her 2007 book “The Diana Chronicles”, Tina Brown explains: “Diana’s team had taken additional counsel, which confirmed that for her settlement Diana could look through Charles’ personal wealth from the Duchy of Cornwall to the considerable Windsor wealth beyond.”

When Diana delivered her demand of a £17million lump sum settlement and £400,00 annually, the prince was forced to borrow form the Queen to meet the terms.

The Telegraph reported in 2004: “It is understood the Queen lent her son several million pounds for the divorce settlement and that he is still repaying her.”

Charles’ personal banker Geoffrey Bignell told the newspaper: “I was told to liquidate everything, all his investments, so that he could give her the cash. He was very unhappy about that.”

Part of Diana’s huge divorce settlement was used to establish private trust funds for the two princes,.

They were reportedly worth about £10million each when William and Harry were able to access the funds when each brother  turned 30.

Source: Read Full Article