This Is How Much Of England The Royal Family Really Owns

With the royal family having presided over the United Kingdom for many centuries, it's safe to assume they own a lot of land throughout the regions it governs. 

The family own many homes, for example, but they also own other non-residential properties. According to Veranda, the royal family has called 26 different buildings throughout the United Kingdom home over the years. These range from expansive castles to smaller, more humble abodes, but they all have the royal touch. These homes include the Castle of Mey, Dumfries House, Thatched House Lodge, Clarence House, and of course the likes of Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. 

While the royal family may seem like they are always in charge of everything from the outside, a board of directors working for The Crown Estate actually oversees the family's financial matters, often making final decisions on expenses (via Forbes). This would likely include any purchases or expansions of land and properties.

According to Forbes, the royal family possesses an estimated $28 billion in assets. These assets are attributed to the Crown Estate — which provides the majority of this money — along with Buckingham Palace, the Crown Estate Scotland, Kensington Palace, the Duchy of Lancaster, and the Duchy of Cornwall.

The royal family's property extends to more than homes. According to Independent, forests, hotels, and even farms are included among the crown's land. In essence, the crown owns a lot of land.

In London, the crown owns nearly all of Regent Street in addition to a lot of St. James Park. The latter area includes buildings used for retail and offices, but the crown's land doesn't stop there. Independent reports that the U.K.'s offshore wind farms belong to the crown as well, and so do 14 shopping districts and three shopping centers outside of London. Of course, these are in addition to their residence and historic buildings. Their historic buildings include Northern Ireland's Hillsborough Castle, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, and St. James' Palace.

As noted by Forbes, the crown owns the Duchy of Cornwall and the Duchy of Lancaster. According to Independent, the Duchy of Lancaster is 18,433 hectares of land in size shared between England and Wales. The Duchy of Cornwall, on the other hand, is 53,000 hectares in size split between 23 counties in the U.K. Finally, the royal family owns 8,000 hectares of land in the form of the Sandringham Estate.

At the end of the day, the royal family owns a lot of land across the U.K., all of which has been acquired over their centuries-long rule over the country.