The Duchy of Cornwall is one of two royal duchies in England, the other
being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch
inherits possession of the duchy and title of Duke of Cornwall at birth or
when his/her parent succeeds to the throne, but may not sell assets for
personal benefit and has limited rights and income as a minor. If the monarch
has no male children, the rights and responsibilities of the duchy belong to
The Crown and there is no Duke. The current duke is Prince Charles, the
Prince of Wales. The principal activity of the duchy is
the management of its land totalling 135,000 acres or 550 km2. Nearly half of
the holdings are in Devon, with other large holdings in Cornwall,
Herefordshire, Somerset and almost all of the Isle of Scilly. The duchy also
has a financial investments portfolio. For the fiscal year ending 31 March
2013, the duchy was valued at £763 million, and annual profit was £19
million, a revenue surplus gain of 4.1% from the previous year.
The Duchy Council meets twice a year. The duchy also exercises certain legal
rights and privileges across Cornwall, including some that elsewhere in England
belong to the crown. For the County, the Duke appoints a number of officials and
is the port authority for the main harbour of the Isles of Scilly.
The government considers the duchy to be a crown body and therefore exempt from
paying corporation tax. The tax position of the duchy has been challenged; thus,
since 1993, the Prince of Wales has voluntarily paid income tax on the duchy
income less amounts which he considers to be official expenditure.
History The duchy was established on
000000001337-03-17-0000March 17, 1337 by the Royal Great Charter out of the
former Earldom of Cornwall by Edward III for his son, Edward, Prince of Wales,
the "Black Prince", who became the first Duke of Cornwall. A few more charters
were issued by Edward III regarding the duchy. The duchy consisted of two parts:
the title and honour, and the landed estate that supported it financially.
The core of the estate at its foundation was the 17 duchy manors found within the
county. The duchy does not share the same boundaries as the county, and much
of the estate has always been outside those boundaries. However, the duchy
maintains a special relationship with Cornwall, and maintains various rights,
such as that of appointing the county's High Sheriff. The extent of the estate
has varied as various holdings have been sold and acquired over the years, both
within Cornwall and also in other counties.
Duke Edward then ordered a survey called "The Caption of Seisin of the Duchy of
Cornwall" in May 1337 to determine the extent Duchy holding of the Cornish land
including manors, castles, knights's fees, profits of the Stannary courts,
shrievalty of Cornwall and other revenues. The Caption also included
borough surveys, some burgesses lists, claims to liberties, charter copies and
free tenant and villeinage censuses. The subsequent charter of Henry IV to
Prince Henry stated: We have made and created Henry our most
dear first-begotten Son, Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall and Earl of
Chester, and have given and granted, and by our Charter have confirmed to him the
said Principality, Duchy, and Earldom, that he may preside there, and by
presiding, may direct and defend the said parts. We have invested him with
the said Principality, Duchy, and Earldom, per sertum in capite et annulum
in digito aureum ac virgam auream juxta morem.
By this charter, all the manors of the earldom passed to the duchy and are
known as the Antiqua maneria while those manors outside Cornwall but attached to
the duchy, but not consider a part of the duchy but as the prince's land, by
the creation charter are known as the forinseca maneria. Additional
incorporated estates were called the annexata maneria by the
seventeenth-century. = The duchy in the Interregnum,
1649–1660= On the death of King Charles I, the
Crown lands came under the control of Parliament; this lasted until the
restoration of King Charles II in 1660. = Post-Interregnum=
In 1975, Charles established the Duke of Cornwall’s Benevolent Fund to benefit
south west communities, with revenue coming from the net proceeds from
Cornwall bona vacantia. In 1988, West Dorset District Council allocated land
in the ducal estate, west of Dorchester, for housing development, which became
known as Poundbury. The Duchy Originals company was set up in 1992 to use
produce from farms on the ducal estate, with some proceeds going to his
charities. Duchy Originals was licensed out to Waitrose in 2009 after losses in
2008. Under the Land Registration Act 2002,
the Duchy was required by October 2013 to have filed with the Land Registry
mineral rights given to the Duchy in 1337. Some land owners of Talskiddy were
surprised that these rights would be expressly inserted into their registers
of title upon being informed of the filing in February 2012.
In 2013, the Duchy's office in Cornwall moved from Liskeard to Restormel Manor's
old farm buildings. In 2014, the Duchy purchased the southern half of the Port
Eliot estate from Lord St Germans. By 2015, Prince William, had started
attending the twice-yearly Duchy Council.
Property By the seventeenth century, the Ducal
estates were classified as being a part of one of three groups:
Antiqua maneria, the ancient manors of the Earl within Cornwall
forinseca maneria, those manors outside Cornwall but attached to the duchy, but
not considered a part of the duchy but as the prince's land, by the creation
charter annexata maneria, or annexed manors,
those manors added to the Duchy holdings The duchy owns — 0.20% of UK land) over
23 counties, including farming, residential, and commercial properties,
as well as an investment portfolio. In modern times, the considerable income
from the duchy has been the primary source of income for the Prince of
Wales, both as to personal funds and public and charitable work. The estates
are the source of land management work of seven offices:
London Head Office Hereford Office, Dewsall, Hereford
Eastern District Office, Newton St Loe, Bath
Poundbury Office, Poundbury, Dorchester, Dorset
Western District Office, Restormel Manor, Lostwithiel, Cornwall
Dartmoor Office, Dartmoor, Yelverton, Devon
Isles of Scilly Office, Hugh Town, Isles of Scilly
The duchy was created with the express purpose of providing income to the heir
apparent to the throne; since 2011, the eldest child of the monarch. This heir,
the Duke of Cornwall has the 'interest in possession' of the duchy's assets
which means they enjoy its net income, do not have its outright ownership and
do not have the right to sell capital assets for their own benefit.
In 2010, the duchy generated £17.1 million in income. In 1913 the
Government Law Officers gave an opinion that the Duke of Cornwall is not liable
to taxation on income from the Duchy. However, since 1993 Prince Charles has
voluntarily agreed to pay income tax at the normal rates. Approximately half of
this income was spent on public and charitable works.
Since the passing into law of the Sovereign Grant Act 2011, revenues of
the Duchy of Cornwall will pass to the heir to the throne, regardless of
whether that heir is the Duke of Cornwall. In the event that the heir is
a minor, 10% of the revenues will pass to the heir, with the balance passing to
the Crown. Most property is tenanted out,
particularly farm land, while the forest land and holiday cottages are managed
directly by the Duchy. The estate's holiday cottage business is centered on
Restormel Manor, near Lostwithiel. The Duchy owns The Oval cricket ground in
London, which was built on land in Kennington that formed part of the
original Duchy estate. The Duchy has ventured into planned development with
Poundbury, near Dorchester in Dorset. Legal status and additional rights
Both the Duchy of Cornwall and the Duchy of Lancaster — since 1399 held by the
monarch in a personal capacity—have special legal rights not available to
other landed estates: for example, the rules on bona vacantia, the right to
ownerless property, operate in favour of the holders of the duchies rather than
the Crown, such that the property of anyone who dies in the county of
Cornwall without a will or identifiable heirs, and assets belonging to dissolved
companies whose registered office was in Cornwall, pass to the duchy. In 2007,
£130,000 was realised from the right of bona vacantia, and given to a charitable
fund. The duke owns freehold about three-fifths of the Cornish foreshore
and the 'fundus', or bed, of navigable rivers and has right of wreck on all
ships wrecked on Cornish shores, including those afloat offshore, and
also to "Royal fish", i.e. whales, porpoises, and sturgeon. The Duchy of
Cornwall is the Harbour Authority for St Mary's Harbour. There are separate
attorneys-general for the duchies. The High Sheriff of Cornwall is appointed by
the Duke of Cornwall, not the monarch, in contrast to the other counties of
England and Wales. The duke had a ceremonial role in summoning the Cornish
Stannary Parliament. In Bruton v. ICO the first tier tribunal
found that the duchy was a public authority for the purposes of the
Environmental Information Regulations 2004. The Guardian reported in 2011
that, since 2005, the Prince of Wales has been asked to give his consent to a
number of draft bills on matters ranging from town planning to gambling, because
it could affect the interests of the Duchy of Cornwall. Andrew George,
Liberal Democrat MP for St Ives, commented that "The duchy asserts that
it is merely a private estate. Most people will be astonished to learn that
it appears to have effective powers of veto over the government." Writing in
the Guardian, lawyer David Gollancz commented that: "The duchy exercises a
unique range of legal powers, which elsewhere are reserved for the crown....
It seems anomalous, and worrying, that such a huge estate, created and
conferred by law and exercising significant legal powers, should be able
to escape public scrutiny by calling itself a private estate." The
requirement for the Prince of Wales to give consent to draft bills that could
affect the interests of the Duchy of Cornwall is not a new power granted to
Prince Charles, but a centuries-old parliamentary practice that involved the
same requirement for consent being conferred on previous Dukes of Cornwall.
For some Cornish activists, Cornwall itself is described, de jure, as a duchy
as opposed to an ordinary county, and the duchy estates are distinguished from
the duchy itself, having themselves been annexed and united to "the aforesaid
duchy". The Royal Commission on the Constitution in 1973 recommended that
Cornwall be officially referred to as "the duchy" on what it described as
"appropriate occasions" given the nature of the county's "special relationship"
with the Crown. The designation is sometimes found used informally in
respect of the county as whole. Historically all justices of the Assizes
who visited Cornwall were also permanent members of the Prince's Council which
oversees the Duchy of Cornwall and advises the Duke. There are on record at
least three instances in which the prince over-ruled the king by
instructing his officials to ignore or disobey orders issued to them by the
King's Chancery. Taxation
The government considers the duchy to be a crown body and therefore exempt from
paying corporation tax. The tax position of the duchy has been challenged by
British republicans. Following the ruling that the duchy was separate from
Prince Charles for the purposes of regulation, Republic, the campaign for
an elected head of state, has asked HM Revenue and Customs to investigate if
the duchy should still be exempt from tax. The tax exemption is based on the
assumption that the duchy estate is inseparable from the tax exempt person
of Prince Charles, which is now open to question.
Since 1993, the Prince of Wales has voluntarily paid income tax on the duchy
income less amounts which he considers to be official expenditure. The Prince
paid a voluntary contribution to the treasury of 50% of his Duchy income from
the time he became eligible for its full income at the age of 21 in 1969, and
paid 25% from his marriage in 1981 until the current arrangement commenced in
1993. Tax is calculated after deducting official expenditure, the biggest source
of which is the Prince's staff of about 110 who assist with his performance of
official duties, including private secretaries and a valet working in his
office at Clarence House and at Highgrove House. The official
expenditure of the Prince of Wales is not audited by the National Audit
Office. Coat of arms
The armorial bearings of the Duchy of Cornwall are as follows:
Arms: Sable, fifteen bezants, five, four, three, two, one.
Supporters: On either side, a Cornish chough proper supporting an ostrich
feather Argent, penned Or. Motto: Houmont, meaning courage.
The heraldic shield is ensigned with the Heir Apparent's coronet. The supporters
were granted by Royal Warrant of 21 June 1968.
Loyal Toast Traditionally, Cornish people refer to
the Duke of Cornwall in the Loyal Toast, much like the Duke of Normandy in the
Channel Islands. Offices
Attorney-General Auditor
Chancellor Lord Steward, High Steward or Seneschal
Vice-Admiral of the Duchy of Cornwall High Sheriff of Cornwall
Keeper of the Privy Seal Keeper of the Records
Lord Warden of the Stannaries Receiver-General
Solicitor-General Surveyor-General
Vice-Warden of the Stannaries Cornwall Herald
See also List of office holders of the Duchy of
Cornwall Cornish heraldry
Cornish corporate heraldry Duchy Originals from Waitrose
References Further reading
Kirkhope, John The Duchy of Cornwall: a feudal remnant? : an examination of the
origin, evolution and present status of the Duchy of Cornwall. Ph.D. thesis,
University of Plymouth External links
Official website stmarys-harbour.co.uk Duchy of Cornwall
St Mary's Harbour in Scilly, Cornwall