One of Britain’s wealthiest aristocrats sells his 9,500-acre estate – including a caravan site and pub – for £35m in the largest sale of a single piece of land in England.
Lord Max Percy, the youngest son of the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, put Rothbury Estate on the market.
The estate, including 12 farms, 1,800 acres of woodland and the Simonside Hills, has been owned by the Percy family since 1332.
The sale also includes a river for salmon and trout fishing, 23 homes, a caravan site and the Crown and Thistle pub in the small village of Alwinton.
Rents on the farms, buildings and houses on the estate currently bring in £283,000 a year, providing an instant income for any prospective buyer.
Lord Max Percy, youngest son of the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, has marketed Rothbury Estate
The Duke and Duchess of Northumberland have maintained that their son’s sale of land is a private transaction
Estate agent Knight Frank is putting the 9,486 acre property on the market with an asking price of £35 million.
They boast that the “incredibly rare” sale is “the largest single carbon offsetting opportunity to hit the open market in England for decades.”
It is the first time the estate has come onto the market since the Percy family claimed their claim to the estate in 1332 and the largest sale of land in England for three decades.
A slick online video promotes the ‘historic sale’ of ‘one of the UK’s most prestigious estates’.
It continues: ‘Land with royal ties dating back to King Henry VIII. Significant ecological, ecological and natural capital opportunities.
‘Peats, heathland, river, forest and grassland. A diverse terrain rich in biodiversity and rare species.
‘The space to be part of future food solutions alongside a wealth of national pursuits.
‘All woven into the fabric of this breathtaking landscape.’
Lord Max, 32, is the youngest child of the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland and grew up in Alnwick Castle – which was used as Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films.
Lord Max Percy (pictured with his wife Princess Nora of Oettingen-Spielberg) at the service of thanksgiving for his grandmother Elizabeth, Dowager Duchess of Northumberland
The estate, including 12 farms, 1,800 acres of woodland and the Simonside Hills, has been owned by the Percy family since 1332.
The sale also includes a salmon and trout fishing river, 23 homes and a caravan site
The Rose and Thistle pub in the small village of Alwinton is also part of the portfolio
He started as an intern at Somerset Capital – the investment management firm founded by Jacob Rees-Mogg – before working as an investment analyst in Cape Town, South Africa.
In 2017 he married the German Princess Nora van Oettingen-Spielberg, the daughter of Albrecht Ernst, Prince of Oettingen-Oettingen.
The sale has angered Rothbury residents, who say the estate should be ‘given back to the people’.
Independent councilor Steven Bridgett said he feared the land would be bought by someone with ‘more money than sense’
Independent Councilor Steven Bridgett, who represents Rothbury on Northumberland County Council, denounced the proposed sale, saying he feared the land would be bought by someone with ‘more money than sense’.
He said, ‘Just what we need. More land is being thrashed to (mostly international) companies, so that they can offset their CO2 emissions and generate revenue through the government for planting areas with trees.
‘My fear is that we will see this estate disappear in the same way as many other estates in the south of England and in Wales – bought up by a company or company for tax purposes or by someone with more money than sense, parts of it developed and many of it was planted with trees as a result of government funding priorities.
‘Because it looks like we’re all going to be eating tree bark in the future.
“There will be no chance for the next generation to work the land or help improve the landscape and environment.”
The rent of the farms, buildings and houses on the estate currently brings in £283,000 a year, providing an instant income for any prospective buyer
Ralph, Duke of Northumberland is one of Britain’s wealthiest landowners with a property empire worth £315 million in 2011 (Pictured: The Duke and Duchess of Northumberland take the King on a tour of their childhood home, Alnwick Castle )
Resident Anna Carter, 40, said: ‘This land should not be owned by anyone other than the people who live here.
“Besides the risk of unwanted and harmful developments, how on earth is it that we live in a time where one person, born by accident, can own vast tracts of land on which so many people depend?”
One user wrote on Facebook: ‘Feudal Britain at its best! The same old unelected elite playing with human lives and making millions while the rest of us farmers go to hell.”
Another said, “How come our ancestors fight wars for this land and this land, but we have no say in what we do with the land. This is wrong in so many ways.”
One user added: “Greed money grabbers…it was stolen from the people so it must be returned.”
Meanwhile, another said, “Goodbye old lands, hello houses, houses, houses.”
Ralph, Duke of Northumberland is one of Britain’s wealthiest landowners with a property empire worth £315 million in 2011.
Northumberland Estates, which looks after the Duke and Duchess’s business interests and property portfolio, insisted their son make a private sale.
A spokesman said: ‘After much deliberation, Lord Max has decided to sell a plot of land forming part of the Rothbury estate to the south of the town.
“All tenants and employees affected by the potential sale have been informed and all stakeholders are being contacted to ensure the sale process is properly managed.”
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