Even the King suffers the dear life
The Sovereign Grant is a recent invention. For centuries the English Kings have lived on the revenues of their estates (and of the taxes); in more recent times, of an annuity that each member received from Parliament. In 2011, a law of Parliament introduced the more transparent mechanism of the “Sovereign’s Fund”. How it works is complex: all the heritage of the monarchy, which ranges from countless buildings in central London, including the entire Mayfair district, to the seabed, has been merged into the Crown Estate, the “Crown estate”, also it is established by an Act of Parliament. Everything that the Estate obtains is sent to Parliament which in turn fixes the annual sum to be returned to the monarchy for its expenses. However, the “grant” is fixed every two years: for 2023-2024 it has already been decided at 86 million. However, due to inflation, which in England gallops to 10%, while the King’s “salary” remains unchanged, the royal house has lost, in real terms, about 12 million pounds. Even the rich cry (the dear life).
God save the Monarchy
Retrograde, fossil of an Ancien Regime now buried by history, caste of pampered snobs who lead dream lives while citizens trudge, emblem of unjust privileges, the monarchy, albeit increasingly criticized (very often inappropriately), remains the best investment UK taxpayers have ever done and may still do. For a handful of pounds (not even per family, but only per taxpayer), the monarchy feeds a huge induced business, which keeps the economy going and creates jobs.
The real ruler? The marketing
Along Piccadilly, the beating heart of London, every shop window is decorated for the coronation. The whole street, like every corner of the capital, is a riot of merchandising for the new King Charles III, from the cups of the immigrant souvenir shops, at 10 pounds, to the crown-shaped biscuits of the ultra-luxury Peggy Porschen pastry shop (17 pounds each ). The Fortnum & Mason grocery store, today a department store that is the destination of every Anglophile, has been there since 1707 and has seen its crowns. In recent decades he has begun to create souvenirs and special objects for royal occasions: the teapot, in fine porcelain, made especially for the event costs 160 pounds. On the morning of May 6, King Charles will be officially crowned sovereign, with the sacred oil. But the real ruler is marketing.
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