From Buckingham Palace to Windsor Castle and the Sandringham Estate, King Charles III owns quite a few lavish properties. They are well-known across the world and are some of the most famous of the monarch's homes.
But the full list of what the King actually owns goes beyond all the royal palaces and includes huge swathes of land, beaches and estuaries across Wales. Land owned by the monarch includes Ogmore Castle and Tintern Abbey all the way down to mines and river beds from south Wales to the Isle of Anglesey.
The Crown Estate, which acts as a trust for the King, owns 65% of the Welsh foreshore and riverbed and more than 50,000 acres of land. Between 2020 and 2021, the Crown Estate saw the value of its holdings in Wales increase from £96.8m to £603m. Here are all the beaches, estuaries, land and property in Wales owned by King Charles III.
Read more: Mourners vent frustration after being turned away from queue to view Queen’s coffin
Beaches and Estuaries
Anglesey coastline
Through the Crown Estate, King Charles owns parts of the Anglesey coastline, including parts of Menai Straits, Afon Cefni, the coastline that stretches from Bodorgan to the Cymyran Strait between the isle and Holyhead, as well as Traeth Coch (Red Wharf Bay).
Anglesey beaches include Traeth Bychan, Traeth Lligwy, Traeth Llanddwyn and Traeth Dynion (The Creek) near Amlwch. Cemaes Bay and the coastline near Cemlyn facing the Irish Sea are also owned by the King, according to the Crown Estate map.
Gwynedd coastline
As well as the Menai Strait coastline near Bangor and Caernarfon, the King owns the majority of the Llyn Peninsula coastline - stretching from Trefor and ends near the Cricieth coastline in Meirionydd.
The Glaslyn Estuary near Porthmadog is also on the list, as well as the Mawddach Estuary and the Dyfi Estuary that is located on the conjunction of the counties of Ceredigion, Gwynedd and Powys.
Conwy coastline
Parts of River Conwy are included on the list, as well as the beaches of Conwy Morfa, Llandudno Bay and Penrhyn Bay.
Denbighshire and Flintshire coastline
Under the Crown Estate, the King also owns the coastline that stretches from Rhyl to Prestatyn in Denbighshire, as well as parts of the Flintshire coastline where Talacre beach is located.
Ceredigion coastline
Most of the Cardigan Bay coastline in the county is owned by the King. His ownership stretches from the coastline starting near Borth down through Trefechan, Llanrhystud, Aberarth, Aberaeron and New Quay.
Beaches such as Traeth Llangrannog, Tresaith and Aberporth Beach, as well as Afon Teifi are also highlighted on the map.
Pembrokeshire coastline
In Pembrokeshire, places such as Newport and Aberfforest beaches are owned by the King. Also included in the list is Fishguard Harbour, the Cleddau Estuary, as well as the coastline that stretches from Penally to Amroth.
Carmarthenshire and Swansea coastline
On the Foreshore and Estuary Map, it also shows that the River Towy - between Laugharne and Kidwelly and goes up to the town of Carmarthen in Carmarthenshire, is owned by the monarch. Between the Camarthenshire and Swansea coastline, the River Loughor is also owned by the King.
The Bridgend and Vale of Glamorgan coastline
Only a part of the Bridgend - Vale of Glamorgan coastline is owned by the King according to the map, which includes the coastline between Newton Beach in Porthcawl all the away to the Ogmore by Sea beach. In the Vale of Glamorgan, the coastline near Llantwit Major beach to Porthkerry is also included on the list, as well as the sea by Swanbridge and Lavernock.
Cardiff coastline
Parts of the sea near Cardiff Bay is also highlighted as being owned by the King in the map, as well as the River Taff that goes from Sophia Gardens, pass the Principality Stadium and stops at Penarth Road Bridge in the city centre.
Newport coastline
The River Usk from as far as Tredunnock to the Newport Docks is owned by the King.
Land and Property
Ogmore Castle
This 12th-century castle came to be owned by the Queen and now King Charles through a marriage hundreds of years ago. The remains of the Norman castle lie on the south east bank of the River Ewenny around two miles south of Bridgend. The Norman family of de Londres founded Ogmore Castle in 1116.
The manor and the castle then came to the Duchy of Lancaster in 1297 through a marriage of two young royals. The castle includes a ruined courthouse, a lime-kiln, and a 12th-century stone keep - one of the earliest examples of its kind. The castle is now under the guardianship of CADW, the body which looks after historic monuments across Wales.
Tintern Abbey
Despite being a shell of what it once was, this site remains the best-preserved medieval abbey in Wales. Now owned by the Crown Estate, the abbey church was rebuilt by the lord of nearby Chepstow Castle in the late 13th century.
According to CADW, who look after the site, the present-day remains are a mixture of building works that span a 400-year period from around 1131 to 1536. In 1536, the abbot then in charge surrendered the site to King Henry VII's officials bringing the abbey's way of life to an end after 400 years.
Wildfowl and Wetland Centre, near Llanelli
While King Charles does own every swan in the UK, it turns out he also owns an area where a lot of them live in Llanelli. This huge 450-acre site full of lakes, pools and lagoons is home to some of the world's most interesting birds.
The centre is owned by the Crown Estate and is hugely popular with birdwatchers hoping to catch a glimpse of some of the rare and endangered species living there. It also cares for a large collection of some of the world's rarest ducks, geese and flamingos - with some so tame you can hand-feed them.
Plynlimon Estate
The huge 3,000-acre estate in Aberystwyth is located in the heart of the Cambrian Mountains. The site was previously up for sale but Land Registry data shows the freehold is still owned by the Crown Estate.
In 2016, it was on the market for £1.4m and included huge areas of common land for grazing. In the brochure by Knight Frank Estate Agents, it stated that all mineral rights were excluded from the sale and would be reserved by the Crown Estate.
Castle Pill, Milford Haven
The medieval castle is owned by the Crown Estate and was possibly used as a Civil War stronghold. Little is known about the site with only a few defensive walls remaining.
How does the King own the land?
The 73-year-old owns the property in a number of different ways. There is a private property belonging to the King himself and the land he owns in right of his Crown.
Since becoming King, Charles has inherited a wealth of palaces, castles, and stately homes. There are nine official residences, however there are other homes the royals like to stay in, and many of them can be visited by the general public. Read more about the royal residencies here.
King Charles III has now inherited Highgrove House, Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Palace of Holyroodhouse, Hillsborough Castle, Sandringham House, Balmoral Castle, Clarence House and Llwynywernod in Llandovery from the late Queen.
Other Royal Palaces and the Royal Parks are owned by the Crown, as is a large quantity of land known as the Crown Estate. The Crown Estate belongs to the reigning monarch during their reign. However it is not their private property – it cannot be sold by the monarch, nor do revenues from it belong to the monarch.
The Government does not own The Crown Estate. It is managed by an independent organisation, with surplus revenue from the estate paid to the Treasury. Occupied royal palaces are maintained by the Royal Household Property Section, unoccupied palaces are the responsibility of Historic Royal Palaces, and the royal parks are managed by the Royal Parks charity on behalf of the Government.
READ NEXT:
- Some people think Michael Sheen went too far by criticising King Charles for visiting on Glyndwr day
- Bearded man heckles King Charles in Cardiff over the cost of the monarchy
- Huw Edwards replaced on BBC's royal coverage on Friday
- I queued all night to meet King Charles and he told me I shouldn't have bothered
- Mark Drakeford says 'We need to have a debate about the Prince of Wales'
