Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster ( Duchy of Lancaster ) is an English duchy named for the Honor , Castle and City of Lancaster in the county of Lancashire . It has been owned by the English or British monarchs since 1413 .
Duke of Lancaster
Originally the ownership of the Duchy of Lancaster was tied to the title of Duke of Lancaster . The first award of the title Duke of Lancaster took place on March 6, 1351 by Edward III. and with the consent of Parliament . The first holder of the ducal title was Henry of Grosmont , 4th Earl of Lancaster . At the same time, the Duchy of Lancaster, whose rich property was widely scattered, was given the status of a county palantine with the associated rights, such as its own law firm, its own courts of law and officials , following the example of Cheshire . Henry of Grosmont left no male heirs, after which the title of duke expired for the first time with his death in 1361. The lands belonging to the duchy were divided between his two daughters Maud and Blanche . When Maud died childless in April 1362, Blanche's husband John of Gaunt , 2nd Earl of Derby , was able to reunite the lands and had the title of duke reassigned to him on November 13, 1362. When his son and heir was crowned as Henry IV in 1399 , the title became extinct by merging with the crown. In 1399, the duchy went to Henry of Monmouth , the third bestowal of the title of duke . Since Henry V became King of England in 1413, the title of Duke of Lancaster has again expired by merging with the English crown. The duchy passed into the possession of the crown and is still owned by the respective monarch to this day.
Duchy of Lancaster
History as the private property of the monarchs
When Henry Bolingbroke became King of England as Henry IV in 1399 , the restoration of the Duchy of Lancaster, which had been confiscated by Richard II, was his first official act. He named his eldest son, later King Henry V , the new Duke of Lancaster and issued the Charter of Duchy of Liberties . In the later issued Great Charter of the Duchy , the separation of the Duchy of Lancaster from the crown estate was further laid down. Edward IV had this separation confirmed by Parliament in 1461, when he had seized the Duchy of Lancaster during the Wars of the Roses . After the end of the Wars of the Roses, Henry VII confirmed this special position in 1485 in his own charter. Since then, the legal status of the Duchy of Lancaster has not changed any further.
In the 17th century, the Stuart kings James I and Charles I sold large parts of the estates due to lack of money, and after the end of the civil war further parts of the estates were sold to cover the costs of the war. Nevertheless, the Duchy of Lancaster remained even during the Commonwealth of England made and fell after the restoration of Charles II. Back. Under him and under Wilhelm III. the land sale continued, so that the income from the Duchy of Lancaster decreased significantly. Queen Anne finally enacted a law in 1702 prohibiting further land sales. Still, the estates were run down and almost insolvent. In 1760 the income from the estate was less than £ 17 a year. In that year, Georg III. his real estate except the Duchy of Cornwall to the state. In return, he received an annual civil list of taxpayers' money. The Duchy of Lancaster was probably not included in this agreement due to the low income, or the king did not regard it as a crown property, but continued to see it as a private property.
Under George III. was reformed , especially under the chancellor James Smith-Stanley , the administration of the Duchy. Thanks to improvements and investments, income rose again. In the 19th century, radical politicians tried in 1830 and 1837 to put the Duchy of Lancaster and the Duchy of Cornwall under state administration. After her accession to the throne, Queen Victoria agreed to publish the amount of income annually. Since land sales were prohibited, the Duchy of Lancaster Lands Act was passed in 1855 , according to which the possessions could be centralized by barter or other means. This made it possible to manage the property, which was then spread over 16 counties and covered 155 km², more economically. If the Duchy's earnings were just £ 5,000 in 1838, they had risen to £ 60,000 by 1896. During the 20th century, the management of the property was further modernized. Under Elizabeth II, large parts of the proceeds were used for charitable or charitable purposes.
Currently, the Duchy of Lancaster comprises over 184 square kilometers of real estate in England and Wales with arable land, business parks and housing developments. The majority of the possessions are in Lancashire, Yorkshire , Cheshire , Staffordshire and Lincolnshire . In addition, several companies belong to the Duchy, especially on Strand in London as well as other company investments.
administration
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is officially responsible for the Duchy of Lancaster . In practice today, the Chancellor is usually a non-portfolio minister of the British Government, while the administration of the Duchy is in the hands of the Duchy Council, founded in 1351 . In addition to the Chancellor, whose office was held in history by important people such as Sir Thomas More , Sir Francis Walsingham and Sir Robert Cecil , there was still the office of Chamberlain in the Middle Ages . However, this office disappeared in the early 16th century when the Chancellor gained increasing influence. The offices of the two chief stewards have also not been awarded since the 16th century, while the receiver general, as chief financial officer, is now also the keeper of the privy purse and is the administrator of the private assets of the British monarchs. Further offices are the Attorney General as the highest legal representative and the Clerk of the Council, who is the managing director of Duchy.
Today the members of the Duchy Council are appointed by the monarch on the proposal of the Chancellor. The council is headed by a chairman and remains responsible only to the Chancellor and the English monarch.
Web links
- Duchy of Lancaster - Official Website (English)
- The British Monarchy - Official Website (English)