[imagesource: Victoria Jones / Pool via Reuters]

The Crown Jewels, cash machines, castles, creatures galore (including corgis), and a stellar car collection are just a few of the amazing things that Queen Elizabeth II owns.

And brooches, lots and lots of brooches.

Although, these little statement pieces didn’t come up in The Telegraph‘s tally of all the weird and wonderful things that Her Royal Highness owns.

Rather, the list mostly constitutes the property and land in the Queen’s portfolio, divided up specifically between the monarch’s private royal residences, those belonging to the Crown Estate, and those belonging to the Duchy of Lancaster.

We’ll get to all of that in a jiffy, but first, ponder how much the Queen is worth in total:

In March 2021, the 95-year-old monarch was said to have a net worth of £365 million, according to The Sunday Times Rich List, up £15 million from 2020.

Yaaas, Queen. Sorry, I had to.

Alright, let’s talk about her castles.

Her private royal residences make up three giant properties:

1. Sandringham House – the  Norfolk house where the family often spends Christmas, inherited by the Queen from her father, King George VI, in 1952.
2. Balmoral Castle – the Aberdeenshire spot for summer breaks.
3. Westminster Abbey (below) – the spot for coronations, royal weddings, funerals and memorial services.

Image: Dan Kitwood

The properties belonging to the Crown Estate are looked after by the Royal Household, which the reigning monarch does not have control or financial rights over.

The Crown Estate is a property portfolio worth more than £11,5 billion and includes the 775-room Buckingham Palace, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Windsor Castle, and the Tower of London.

Plus, many royal parks, forests and rural land, and various shopping destinations across the country are also in the mix.

Including the Tower of London:

Image: Pawel Libera

The private estate called The Duchy of Lancaster is an inherited portfolio considered to be the private property of the Queen.

These properties largely fund the Queen’s private and public expenses, including Savoy Estate, acres of rural land across England and Wales, and about a dozen historic properties.

Moving on to the oh-so delectable Royal Collection:

One of the world’s largest selections of art, the Royal Collection contains 150 000 of paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, tapestries, furniture, ceramics, books, metal works, armour, jewellery and other historical titbits – such Queen Victoria’s sketchbook, from 1861.

The Collection belongs to the reigning monarch and it cannot be sold by the king or queen on the throne. The Royal Collection also includes the Crown Jewels, which are kept at the Tower of London.

The Queen also owns a few creatures, most notably her dear corgis:

Image: windsor.royal.family/Instagram

Racehorses, in excess of 100, are also her pets of choice.

Otherwise, the Queen apparently also owns swans, particularly all the unmarked mute swans in open water in England and Wales.

Plus, the law sets forth that the reigning monarch gets to claim ownership over all the whales, surgeons, and porpoises within three miles of Britain’s shore.

But the weirdest might just be the royal’s very own private cash machine, which is in the basement of Buckingham Palace.

Of course, there are also many cars, including vintage Rolls-Royces, Jaguars and custom Bentleys, making up a collection estimated to be worth £10 million.

By virtue of her royal status, the Queen doesn’t even need a proper license to drive them.

Must be nice.

[source:telegraph]