Did The Royal Family Go Broke? Prince Philip’s ‘Money Problems’ Comments Revisited

Prince Philip is known for his tendency to make remarks that don’t always wind up well-received by the public. Now, comments he made back in 1969 about the royal family’s “money problems” have been reexamined.

In the 2017 documentary, “The Story of the Royals,” Royal Observer Sarah Gristwood revealed that comments the Duke of Edinburgh made back then about the family having “financial issues” weren’t well-received by the British public because they seemed very out of touch with what everyone else was going through at the time.

“We never quite know with Prince Philip, when he is joking and when he is really making a mistake,” Gristwood said (via Express UK).

The particular comments in mind come after his 18-day tour of Canada and the United States in 1969, where he said the royal family would “go into red next year,” and even indicated that if nothing had changed, they would have to give up living at Buckingham Palace for a smaller residence. He also commented that he would have to give up playing polo due to the difficulties.

“When he said, that goodness, yes, he might have to give up polo, it really didn’t go down too well. That was exactly the feeling that the Royals were infinitely overprivileged,” Gristwood said.

During the time period in question, the British government was marked by economic failure and demands for reform, including of the Monarchy, which made his comments all the more concerning.

While the monarchy’s finances at the time weren’t really in trouble, at last to a massive extent, they seem to be on solid financial footing now, especially in terms of the Sovereign Grant, which is the amount of money the government provides to the royal household in support of the Queen’s official duties, maintenance of the occupied royal palaces and the residential and office areas of Kensington Palace and other properties.

According to the expenditure report for 2017-2018, the total for 207-2018 was £76.1m which included a reserve of £30.4m to fund renovations in Buckingham Palace.

The Queen also has her own personal wealth from her family estates and other personal additions to her fortune. She and other members of the royal family are also known for some frugal behaviors when it comes to their spending habits as well.