The British royal family is often presented as symbolic or ceremonial, yet it sits atop vast wealth and privilege. This course explores the monarchy’s financial power, examining property, art collections, inheritance, taxation exemptions and public accountability. We consider how royal wealth has been accumulated and protected, and what this reveals about class, power and transparency in modern Britain. Designed for critical discussion, the course invites participants to look beyond pageantry to the structures beneath.

DELIVERY MODE

Face to face

COURSE RESOURCES

• Andrew Lownie, Entitled, the Rise and Fall of the House of York, William Collins, 2025
• Norman Blake, Royal Mint, National Debt and the Shocking Truth about Royal Finances, Biteback, April 2026.

COURSE OUTLINE

1. Sources of income for the royal family including the Sovereign Grant of 2025-2026 and why the sources remain controversial in 2026
2. Historical sources of income including the slave trade and the invasion of other countries in the New World from the 16th century, piracy and plunder of other European empires and the dissolution of the monasteries under Henry VIII
3. the former Prince Andrew lost his titles and honours in 2025. What has this episode in royal history exposed by way of profligate lifestyles and entrenched privileges ?
4. Comparisons with other monarchies past and present in terms of vast wealth and unmitigated extravagance, including the Shah of Iran and the Peacock Throne, the King of Thailand, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Louis XVI, whose ineptitude and failure to understand anything about the national debts in France in 1789, precipitated the French Revolution.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

1. Gain an understanding of the extent of vast wealth and privilege within the British monarchy
2. Compare and contrasts the resources of contemporary monarchies and others from past historical periods
3. Discuss current attempts to hold the royal family to account or change the status quo in Britain in 2026