One day after King Charles’ accession, he appeared on television to make his first public address to the nation in order to pay tribute to his mother, the late Queen.
It was in this speech that he also confirmed that his eldest son and daughter-in-law - then styled as the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and Cambridge - would be known as the Prince and Princess of Wales.
As a result, Prince William became the 27th Prince of Wales and was granted the additional titles of the Duke of Cornwall, the Earl of Chester, the Duke of Rothesay, the Earl of Carrick, the Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland.
Prince William also inherited the vast private estate of the Duchy of Cornwall which was established by King Edward III in 1337 for his son, Prince Edward, the Black Prince.
At the time, a charter ruled that each future Duke of Cornwall would be the eldest surviving son of the monarch, as well as the heir to the throne.
The revenues from the estate are used to fund the public, private, and charitable activities of Prince William and his family.
When he was still The Prince of Wales, King Charles worked with the Duchy of Cornwall for many years and created many notable legacies, such as the Poundsbury and Nansledan Estates. However, following his accession last September, the responsibilities were passed onto Prince William.
King Charles has long been training his eldest son for his new role as The Prince of Wales and what his role within the Duchy of Cornwall estate will involve.
Asked about his plans for the estate in an ITV documentary in 2019, Prince William said: "I've started to think about how I will inherit the Duchy one day and what I do with it. I think it's really important, about the family angle, I really do."
Speaking in reaction to Prince William's comments, King Charles said: "When I saw it, I couldn't believe it. I was deeply touched and moved by what he said. Frankly, it reduced me to tears."
Following the publication of the Sovereign Grant Report for 2022/2023, it was revealed that Prince William had received a private income from the Duchy of Cornwall of nearly £6million this year – but could get more than £20million next year.
William is now entitled to its surplus profits every year. The Duchy generated record profits of £24.048 million in 2022-23 - up £1.02 million from £23.024 million the year before, a jump of about 4.5 per cent, the estate's own accounts showed.
Usually the Prince would get the £24million as his private income, but his finances were complicated by him becoming heir to the throne halfway through the financial year.
The King, as the former Prince of Wales, was entitled to £11.28million of the surplus before his accession. And William, who spent about six months of the last financial year as the Duke of Cornwall and Prince of Wales, was entitled to £12.77million.
In the Duchy's own detailed financial accounts, the Prince of Wales paid tribute to his father for leaving an “indelible mark” on the Duchy and being passionate about driving change.
William said: “I am committed to the cause of tackling climate change and I am proud of the estate's efforts to contribute to this challenge. If we can also help respond to social challenges such as mental health and homelessness, I will feel my term as duke has been worthwhile.”
He added: “I recognise that I have taken the helm at a challenging time for many Duchy tenants, businesses and communities.” He said, like his father, he “will support the Duchy family through this, seeking to ensure the estate continues to evolve and move forward as a modern enterprise that delivers on our vision of sustainable stewardship - for communities, enterprise and nature.”
