Prince Charles, 70, has confessed he is “confronting his own mortality” in a recent TV interview, where he discussed the fact that Prince William will one day take over from him as the Duke of Cornwall and inherit the $1.88 billion Duchy of Cornwall estate.
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The future king appears in an ITV documentary Prince Charles: Inside the Duchy of Cornwall where he discusses the estate, and how William is learning the practices that will enable him to take it on in the future.
Upon Charles’ ascension to the throne, William will inherit the land and properties that form the Duchy.
According to Town & Country, the estate consists of 53,000 hectares of land in 23 counties.
And it’s worth a pretty penny, according to the documentary, the predicted value of the estate currently stands at an eye-watering £1bn ($1.88bn).
While in the first episode, Charles’s life work as the longest serving Duke of Cornwall is examined, by episode two, the focus moves to Charles and his son, William.
Charles said on the show: “I can’t believe it’s 50 years of this, because it doesn’t seem possible. Because of course, it’s a lifetime, completely.”
And when asked how he feels about the “succession” to William, he replied: “Confronting your own mortality is a very good thing for you, if I may say so, it’s quite good for the soul.”
Charles was then almost moved to tears while watching William, 37, talking to a tenant farmer about the pressures of hill farming.
He said: “I couldn’t believe it. I was deeply touched and moved by what he [William] said.
“It practically reduced me to tears, it did really because I suddenly thought… well just hearing that from him, has made the last 50 years worthwhile.
“I want to be able to potter round, you know on a stick, in my dotage, saying gosh look at this, you know.”
William is already taking his future responsibilities seriously and added: “I’ve started to think about how I will inherit the Duchy one day and what I do with it.”
The Duchy was created by King Edward III in 1337 to provide an income for his son, Prince Edward.
As per tradition the portfolio of assets always goes to the monarch’s eldest surviving son.
When Prince Charles took over the running of the Duchy 50 years ago, it was barely breaking even; today, it’s worth nearly £1bn, generating a profit of £21m.
The funds support not only Charles’ own household with Camilla, but also those of William and Catherine, Harry and Meghan and the princes’ grandchildren, as well as funding charitable work.
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