THE new King has come onto one of the most extravagant and exalted thrones in existence, and with the title not only comes ‘head of the Commonwealth and defender of the faith’, but also ownership of vast swathes of Pembrokeshire.

King Charles III is now head of the Crown Estate - a collection of lands and holdings in the UK belonging to the British monarch.

Within those holdings is swathes of the Pembrokeshire coastline including Newgale beach, Marloes Sands and both Tenby beaches north and south.

The estate also owns large areas of the Milford Haven estuary as well as miles of the Cleddau.

Western Telegraph: The Crown Estate is a collection of lands and holdings belonging to the British monarch which includes land in Pembrokeshire. Photo Crown EstateThe Crown Estate is a collection of lands and holdings belonging to the British monarch which includes land in Pembrokeshire. Photo Crown Estate (Image: Crown Estate)

Western Telegraph: The estate owns vast sways of Pembrokeshire's coastline. Photo Crown EstateThe estate owns vast sways of Pembrokeshire's coastline. Photo Crown Estate (Image: Crown Estate)

Dating back more than 260 years, the Crown Estate is a portfolio that stretches across the country.

Established by an Act of Parliament, the estate says it’s tasked with generating profit for the treasury for the benefit of the nation’s finances.

However, it also benefits the King’s finances, with net assets to the year ending March 31 being £16.5billion, while its total property value was £15.6billion – up over a billion pounds from the same time last year (£14.4billion in March 2021).

Net revenue profit for 2021/22 was a cool £312.7million.

Western Telegraph: Some of the county's most popular beaches are under the control of the Crown. Photo Elizabeth FitzpatrickSome of the county's most popular beaches are under the control of the Crown. Photo Elizabeth Fitzpatrick (Image: Elizabeth Fitzpatrick)

Western Telegraph: Crown Estate's interactive map shows what they actually own. Photo Crown EstateCrown Estate's interactive map shows what they actually own. Photo Crown Estate (Image: Crown Estate)

Over the last decade the Crown Estate says it has generated more than £3billion for the public purse.

One of the estate's leading objectives is to work in the environmental sector, with plans to create floating windfarms on the Celtic Sea – which it says could attract several billion pounds of investment to south West.

Western Telegraph: Tenby's beaches are under Crown Estate control. Photo Jeff HallTenby's beaches are under Crown Estate control. Photo Jeff Hall (Image: Jeff Hall)

Western Telegraph: The Crown Estate own over half the UK's foreshore. Photo Crown EstateThe Crown Estate own over half the UK's foreshore. Photo Crown Estate (Image: Crown Estate)

READ MORE

Western Telegraph:

Dan Labbad, chief executive, said in the 2021/22 annual report the estate has never been more important.

“The relevance of the Crown Estate has never been clearer,” wrote Mr Labbad.

“Whether it’s the increasing global focus in restoring and protecting our environment for future generations, or the national need to renew and regenerate many of our built environments as we emerge from the pandemic, our assets give us a privileged position from which to contribute meaningfully to these profound challenges and opportunities.”

Follow the Western Telegraph’s Instagram page here and see some of the best images of Pembrokeshire.