List Of British Politicians By Wealth At Death Article Index for
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List Of British Politicians By Wealth At Death





ABOUT THE TABLES


Based on probated wills after the death of the politician. Please note that land is not always included, reducing the figure for some landowners to a small fraction of their actual wealth. Also, many wealthy individuals transferred wealth to descendants before their deaths as this was a means of avoiding death duty from its introduction in the late 19th century through most of the 20th century. Thus these figures cannot be taken as a full picture of the '''politicians' wealth in their lifetimes or at their death''' and should not be quoted as such. The advent of punishing death duties caused many landed families to become steadily poorer as the century progressed.

Because of inflation, '''amounts left at earlier times are worth a lot''' '''more'''. This is especially true after Britain went off the Gold Standard during the Great Depression . Post World War Two heavy taxes, inflation and slower economic growth reduced the value of the pound even more. As an example, when Winston Churchill resumed writing after World War Two . he faced a tax of 97.5% on his earned income.

Year refers to the year the will was probated ( usually within a few months of death).

In some cases, like '' Henry Chaplin '', persons who were quite wealthy early in life were in reduced circumstances at time of death. Others, like '' Lord Beaverbrook '', gave away most of their estates to charity before death. Follow the links to brief biographies of the persons listed.

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POLITICIANS AND PUBLIC FIGURES ACTIVE IN VICTORIAN TIMES



POLITICIANS AND CIVIL SERVANTS ACTIVE FROM 1903 TO 1939



POLITICIANS AND CIVIL SERVANTS ACTIVE FROM 1939 TO 1966



REFERENCES


  • Dictionary Of National Biography : facts about the value of probated wills are taken from this standard reference.

  • ''Decline and Fall of the British Aristocracy'', David Cannadine, Pan books, London, 1992. Details of land areas are taken from this well known work.




SEE ALSO