Talking of gold…

    THE QUEEN’S private wealth is valued at £1.15 billion, excluding the main royal palaces and property “held in trust for the nation” (which we never get to see) such as the world’s largest private art collection.

    We were only told last year that a secret deal in 1952 with Winston Churchill, allowing the Queen to reclaim tax on dividends and interest from investments, has been worth about £1 billion to her.

    Some royal assets include:

    • Six properties that the Queen owns as sovereign – including Buckingham Palace with its 600 staff and vast art collection, and Windsor Castle with its 1,000 rooms.
    • The Queen’s privately owned estates at Sandringham and Balmoral
    • £102 million stamp and medal collection
    • £72 million in jewels
    • £7.1 million worth of cars
    • £3.6 million in race horses
    • 30 furs (kept in the fridge at Buck House!) worth £1 million