Duke of Westminster, confidant of the royal family, dies aged 64

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are sending condolences after the death of Duke of Westminster, Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, aged 64.

"It is with the greatest sadness that we can confirm that the Duke of Westminster died this afternoon," a spokeswoman for the Duke's household said last night. "His family are all aware and they ask for privacy and understanding at this very difficult time."

The Duke is believed to have been taken ill while at his Abbeystead Estate in Lancashire and was admitted to the Royal Preston Hospital, where he later died.

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A Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said: "A message of condolence is being sent by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh."

The Prince of Wales and his wife, the Duchess of Cornwall, were said to be "deeply shocked and greatly saddened" by the news. The two families were close and Grosvenor's widow, the Duchess of Westminster, is one of the Duke of Cambridge's godmothers.

Born on 22 December 1951 in Omagh, Northern Ireland, Grosvenor was the only son of the fifth Duke of Westminster. The BBC quotes him as saying "academic studies came very low down on the list of priorities" and he left Harrow School with two O-levels.

When his father died in 1979, Grosvenor inherited not only his title, but also control of the family's extensive lands and became one of the UK's biggest property developers, expanding the family business into Europe and Asia.

In early 2016, the Sunday Times's Rich List estimated his fortune at £9.35bn, making him the third richest man in Britain and the 68th wealthiest man in the world. However, his property empire took a £1bn hit in the wake of the Brexit vote, The Times says.

As well as his business ventures, the Duke also enjoyed a long career in the Territorial Army, where he rose to the rank of major-general before retiring in 2007.

In 1978, 1,000 guests attended his wedding to fellow aristocrat Natalia Phillips. The couple went on to have four children: Tamara, Edwina, Hugh and Viola. Mindful of his own time at boarding school, Grosvenor sent all four to state primaries and day-only private secondary schools near the family seat of Eaton Hall, Cheshire.

His only son, Hugh, 25, who is godfather to Prince George and works for a green energy company, will assume the title of Duke of Westminster.