King Charles

King Charles

King Charles III, formerly known as the Prince of Wales, was born on November 14, 1948. He is the eldest child of the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip and became king when his mother passed away on September 8, 2022.

King Charles Early Life

King Charles spent his early life at Clarence House. Highgrove House later became his home and is today the private residence of Charles and Queen Camilla.

After attending the pre-prep school Hill House in Knightsbridge, Cheam School, and being private schooled at Buckingham Palace, Charles enrolled at Trinity College in Cambridge in 1967. Four years later, he earned his bachelor's degree, becoming the first heir to the crown to do so.

As portrayed in the hit television series The Crown, he spent one semester at the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth learning Welsh in preparation for becoming the Prince of Wales.

After his short stint in Aberystwyth, Charles attended the Royal Air Force College, where he received pilot training from the Royal Air Force. He also attended the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, where he flew helicopters with the Royal Navy. He had a tour of duty with the Royal Navy between 1971 and 1976.

Charles Marriage to Princess Diana

Lady Diana Spencer and King Charles met for the first time at Althorp, the Spencer estate, in 1977. At the time, he dated Diana's older sister, Sarah. In 1979, their relationship intensified as Charles invited her to dinners and parties, and their romance began to develop. Charles proposed to Diana on 6 February 1981, and on Wednesday, 29 July 1981, they married at St Paul's Cathedral in London.

Princess Diana was only 19 at the time and suddenly found herself living at Buckingham Palace and performing her royal duties. The new life was challenging for her, and her son found herself struggling with her mental health.

She gave birth to Prince William in 1982, and Prince Harry arrived in 1984. Sadly, King Charles and Princess Diana's marriage didn't work out. They both had affairs, Charles with Camilla Parker Bowles and Princess Diana with Army Captain James Hewitt. Their divorce was finalized in August 1996, a little more than a year before Diana tragically passed away in a car accident in Paris.

How much did King Charles get from the Queen?

According to Forbes, King Charles inherited more than $500 million worth of personal assets from Queen Elizabeth II when she passed away. Meanwhile, when Charles assumed the throne, he took over institutions that the Crown managed, with assets estimated to be worth $42 billion.

King Charles Net Worth

In 2024, the Sunday Times presented its yearly Rich List, ranking the 1000 wealthiest people or families in the UK.

According to the list, King Charles's net worth increased by $12.5 million over the past year, bringing his total net worth up to around $772 million.