The seventh Duke of Westminster – once described as one of Britain’s most eligible bachelors – is officially Britain’s richest man under 40.

According to the 2024 Sunday News Rich List member Hugh Grosvenor, 33, has a net worth of £10.127 billion – a significant increase from the £9.878 billion he owned in 2023.

However, he will soon lose his bachelor status when he ties the knot in the society wedding of the year next month.

Although he owns about half of Mayfair, Grosvenor will opt for greener surroundings when he marries Olivia Grace Henson at Chester Cathedral in Cheshire on June 7.

The Duke also plans to leave London – and with it the hundreds of properties at his disposal, generously spread across the most coveted parts of the real London Monopoly board.

Explaining his reasons for avoiding the capital in favour of his Cheshire property, he said the decision to leave was a “really easy one” and he hoped to put down roots in the area with his future wife.

“It’s obviously a place where we’re going to live.

“We are going to build a life together and are slowly preparing to move away from London, live here more permanently and really put down roots.

“So yeah, in the end it was a really easy decision.”

Hugh’s network and wealth

Grosvenor is one of the richest men in Britain with an estimated net worth of £10.127 billion.

Although Grosvenor generally prefers to keep a low profile, he is said to be very close to the royal family; the King, Queen and Prince of Wales are expected to attend his wedding next month.

King Charles is Hugh’s godfather and was present at his christening in 1991.

Prince William, on the other hand, values ​​the Duke so much that he made him Prince George’s godfather in 2013.

Grosvenor is also close friends with Prince Harry, who made the Duke Archie’s godfather.

However, the Sussexes were reportedly not invited to the wedding so as not to overshadow Grosvenor’s big day, as tensions had grown within the royal family.

The Duke inherited his title and the Grosvenor Estate in 2016 when his father Gerald Grosvenor died at the age of 64. At the time, the then sixth Duke of Westminster was the richest landowner in Britain.

Today, his son owns the 300-acre Grosvenor estate, which includes some of London’s most desirable neighborhoods, including Mayfair and Belgravia.

Training

Grosvenor studied Countryside Management at Newcastle University before working for a Grosvenor Group company – the Wheatsheaf Group, a food and agriculture investment company.

He then moved to Bio-bean, a company that converts coffee waste into sustainable products such as biofuel.

He has previously spoken about his commitment to environmental issues and seems determined to protect them.

“The key point – and this is as true for London as it is for all the other huge Chinese cities that spring up every year – is that it puts a duty on planners to protect the green spaces, the environmental sustainability and the essential character of the places. There will be enormous pressure to cut these areas and we must resist that pressure,” he said.

The future bride

The Duke of Westminster’s new wife, Olivia Henson, also has connections to the royal family, although the couple met through friends.

Henson studied at Marlborough College with Princess Eugenie.

Through her marriage to Grosvenor, she becomes Duchess of Westminster and appears to share her partner’s passion for the environment.

She studied Hispanic Studies and Italian at Trinity College Dublin and currently works as a Senior Account Manager at Belazu, an environmentally friendly food production company.

The Duke’s considerable fortune has been the subject of close scrutiny since it was acquired in 2016, as it is held in a trust fund.

As the Guardian At that time, an inheritance tax of up to 40 percent could have been incurred, but due to the way the money was held, this did not happen.

Financial advisor Ian Dyall explained how it works: “The advantage of trusts is that they are not part of a person’s estate.

“With a discretionary trust, you have a whole shortlist of potential beneficiaries to whom the trustees can allocate benefits.

“That’s why you can’t point the finger at a potential beneficiary and say, this is your money. The money can stay in the trust and be passed down from generation to generation and no one pays inheritance tax on it.”

Farewell to London

But despite his immense wealth, Grosvenor reportedly prefers a “low-key” life, which may explain his decision to leave London.

“Hugh is quite reserved,” said a friend The times“He takes his roles very seriously, but when he’s not working, he’s relaxed.”

While little is known about the wedding other than the celebrity guest list and venue, Grosvenor reportedly spent an incredible £5 million on his 21st birthday.

This money was spent on a party that entertained 800 guests, including Prince Harry, and featured entertainment from Michael McIntyre and Rizzle Kick.