Prince of Waterloo - Estate of The Prince

Estate of The Prince

In addition to this title, the Dutch king also granted Wellington 2,600 acres (10.5 km²) of land and a yearly dotation of 20,000 guilders. To this day the Dukes of Wellington retain the title Prince of Waterloo, and enjoy an annual income of around £100,000 from the longstanding tenants occupying the land.

Owing to the establishment of the separate Kingdom of Belgium in 1831, the title (being Dutch) and the land (located in Belgium) became separated. After the Belgian independence the dotation was by the Treaty of London included in the public debt to be assumed by the new Kingdom of Belgium.

The land held by the Prince of Waterloo has recently (2001) come under pressure from retired Belgian senator Jean-Emile Humblet. In 1817, the government in what is now Belgium struck a deal to pay the duke £1,600 a year in return for the proceeds of sales of timber which the duke wanted to clear from the forested land. Until 1988, successive dukes enjoyed this annual payment, but the present Prince of Waterloo, Arthur Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington, agreed to forgo the payment in exchange for outright ownership of 60 acres (240,000 m²) of the 2,600 acres (10.5 km²) to which he has rights. But some Belgian taxpayers, lead by Humblet, say the deal does not reflect the value of the land - which they say is part of Belgium's national territory - use the debate to draw attention to the wider issues of the original agreement, contending that Belgium was effectively coerced into accepting the terms of the original agreement because it could not afford to offend Britain.

Also, in 2009 a Member of Parliament from Vlaams Belang questioned the Minister of Finance, Didier Reynders about the grant. Reynders replied that this grant is part of the international obligations of Belgium under the Treaty of London and that he had no intention of reneging on the obligation, as all the Dukes have faitfully fulfilled their obligations.