The Queen Mother Left Harry More Money Than William For The Sweetest Reason

When a family member passes away, talk of money can cause a lot of arguments among children and grandchildren. But this doesn't seem to be the case in the royal family. Prince Harry's inheritance from his great grandmother ended up being more than the amount given to his older brother, Prince William, and the reason why is actually incredibly sweet.

Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon — officially known as the Queen Mother — passed away in 2002, leaving her entire £70 million estate to her daughter, the Queen. Buckingham Palace revealed that this encompassed a lot of clever investments, including paintings by the likes of legendary artist Claude Monet, valuable jewellery, and a Fabergé egg collection, reports the Guardian.

While the Queen is exempt from paying any inheritance tax, the other family members gifted money by the Queen Mother weren't so lucky. However, William and Harry still didn't do too badly as the BBC reported that two-thirds of the royal's money was put into a trust fund specifically for them in 1994.

This figure is thought to have been around £14 million and was shared between the two brothers. Not equally, mind, as the Queen Mother proved herself to be incredibly thoughtful. Instead of splitting her fortune 50/50 between William and Harry, the BBC reports that "the bulk of the cash" went to the Duke of Sussex.

At first glance, this may seem unfair, but it's really not. Harry is currently sixth in line to the throne and is therefore set to be a lot worse off than his brother, who will eventually become king. And that's not all William will receive.

When Prince Charles takes the throne, he will leave the Duke of Cambridge the entire Duchy of Cornwall. The 53,000-hectare private estate is made up of large areas of land in counties such as Devon, Cornwall, and Herefordshire and, according to the Express, is worth an estimated £800 million.

When you're set to receive that amount of money, you can't really be annoyed when your great-granny leaves your younger brother a few more million than you.

Princess Diana also left her sons a small fortune. After she died in a tragic car crash in 1997, her £13 million account was put in yet another trust fund. However, the pair had to wait until they were 25 to receive the money (with a final sum transferred when they reached the age of 30).

Not giving two young men considerable money in one go is a pretty smart move, wouldn't you agree? Plus by the time William and Harry received the inheritance from their mother, it had reportedly increased in value to a huge £20 million, according to the Express.

In the same report, the newspaper stated that the royal siblings were allowed to pick one item from Diana's personal collection shortly after her death. William reportedly chose a Cartier watch, while Harry picked her famous sapphire and diamond engagement ring.

I know what you're thinking. Isn't this the same ring that William gave to Kate Middleton in 2010? Yes, it is but, according to the paper, Harry was kind enough to give it to his older brother so he could propose to his future wife.

There's a few lessons that any of us can learn here when it comes to inheritance. Although all members of the royal family are relatively financially secure, arguing over money in a time of grief is hardly the best route to go down. Let's try and remember that kindness is something to strive for, not material gain.