wise u p,

Left, Pippa Middleton with Percy, whose father, the Duke of Northumberland, deferred his inheritance. Above, the late John Hervey, rich kids! Right, Alnwick Castle, the 7th Marquess of Bristol. Below, Percy family seat House, which Hervey Arctic boot camps and tough sailing lost, along with his entire expeditions are the new lengths that fortune. Below left, the Earl of Sunderland, who will super-rich parents are going to in order to now receive the inheritance originally intended for his father, knock their spoilt children into shape... the Marquess of Blandford and, of course, to protect the family fortune. Keith Dovkants talks to the trainers behind this radical trend Left, Jamie, Marquess of Blandford, whose father, the Duke of Marlborough, partly disinherited him. Right, Blenheim Palace, the Marlborough family seat

eorge Percy had an unusual experience as a schoolboy. His father took him to court. Why, it might be asked, would a wise and kind man like the Duke of Northumberland take legal action involving his 14-year-old son? The answer is bound up in an issue that has bedevilled wealthy families throughout history: how do you stop your heir becoming a spoilt brat? At 14, the earl was at Eton and not in the least brat-like. But he was due to inherit £1 million in cash and £250,000 a year on his 18th birthday in a family will and his father was worried the money would turn his young head. The High Court agreed. With the full approval of George, who is now 27, the inheritance was deferred until he was 25. The duke, whose family fortune is estimated at £315 million and includes Alnwick Castle, was making a preemptive strike against a syndrome that can be the curse of wealth: children grow up surrounded by money, with no need to earn their own. It provides a plump cushion between them and a world of effort and achievement. The overwhelming temptation is to do nothing or to indulge themselves in a pointless sybaritic descent into trouble. So what does a parent do, short of cutting off the cash supply? More and more families are turning to experts for help in making sure the transfer of money, land or a business from one generation to the next ESS, ch pict ur es : ALPHA P R ESS, goes smoothly and that their offspring emerge as competent adults. Sandy Loder is one of the leaders in the field, a fifth generation member of the Fleming banking family and a former army officer who r esea DOMINIC O’NEILL, CAME R A P ESS, GETTY IMAGES ALAMY, specialises in preparing people to inherit. ‘The sons and daughters of successful entrepreneurs often have low self-esteem,’ Loder says. ‘Dad is like an immortal, probably a controlling personality who spends most of his time working. He may be a remote figure who compensates by throwing money at the kids. They, in turn, have Top, A H Loder Advisers chief no consequence in their lives. They might already be getting a vast amount of money. It doesn’t really matter if executive and founder Sandy they don’t get out of bed in the morning. The most pressing question might be: do I buy a Ferrari for the Loder. Above, a Loder client summer?’ Over the past six years, Loder has worked with more than 300 Next Generationers, as they are called, braves the Arctic. Left, the and has noted a trend. A highly motivated entrepreneur might create a substantial fortune but depressingly few Cirdan Sailing Trust’s 104-foot inheritances are maintained beyond the second generation. ‘The qualities of enthusiasm and drive can be Baltic trader Queen Galadriel sapped by money,’ Loder maintains. ‘A rich young person may find that nothing they do really matters. This is Above, a Loder expedition one of the tragedies of great wealth. And the very rich share some of the problems of the chronically poor. They en route from northern become habitually lazy. You can hear it in their vocabulary.’ The question of consequence is at the heart of Norway to Sweden. Right, Cirdan customers aboard Duet Tatler S EPTEMBER 2011 00 Left, Nicholas Far left, former troubled teen Leigh Horowitz and, left, her father, Tommy Hilfiger co-founder Joel Horowitz Knatchbull, far right, Sandy Loder’s philosophy. Turner says a spell at sea is capable of helping even the toughest for troubled youngsters. Leigh tried to escape. Two minders brought who once had drug It is vital, he says, to cases. Cirdan offers berths on its three vessels from around £80 a her back. Eventually, she settled down to life in the camp, surrounded problems, with his father, Lord Romsey, stimulate a sense of day for those who can afford it. It works hard to raise funds for those by snow trails and mountains. Joel Horowitz experienced a sense and the Prince of accomplishment: ‘Some who can’t. For the better-off, there is an opportunity to charter of serenity when he first saw the place. ‘For the first time in years, we Wales. Below, Debbie Next Gen individuals an entire vessel, with skipper and crew. ‘This is a tremendous didn’t have to worry where she was or what she was doing,’ he said. Reynolds with her need to do something for family-bonding experience,’ she says. ‘It takes people outside their After six weeks of detox, Leigh moved to a special boarding school that children Todd and themselves; they need to comfort zone. Children see their parents do things; parents realise cost Horowitz $5,000 a month. She was there for 30 months. The Carrie Fisher. Carrie be shown what they are what the kids are capable of.’ Chartering Cirdan’s 72-foot classic yawl school was run along boot-camp lines. Pupils were expected to do their went on to battle capable of. Perhaps do Duet for a week costs £3,640 for up to seven people. share of cooking, cleaning and other chores. It also specialised in drug addiction something even Daddy According to recent figures, the country’s leading 1,000 rugged outdoor pursuits, especially those involving teamwork. The aim hasn’t done.’ multimillionaires increased their collective wealth by more than was to build self-esteem and a sense of responsibility. It worked for Leigh In April, Loder took five of his clients, including two women, on £60 billion in the past year. Naturally enough, a lot of this money is Horowitz. She turned her back on drugs and became an artist. 30, has battled drug problems since an expedition to the Arctic. These individuals, it should be stressed, finding its way to their doted-upon offspring, creating a potentially his schooldays at Eton. At one were not troubled youngsters, but rather people who either have or dangerous trap. One parent who has witnessed at first hand the effects ut there is no panacea, it seems. The Ascent point, his parents sent him to a refuge may inherit big responsibilities. ‘It’s about getting a sense of achievement,’ of big money on kids talked to Tatler. Sophie (not her real name), a operation and the company that owned it, the on Osea Island, a remote spot off the he says. Certainly, the six-day trip from northern Norway across the mother of four children between the ages of four and eight and the wife Brown Schools, ran into difficulty after allegations of Essex coast where Amy Winehouse snow and frozen waters of the Arctic into Sweden could be considered of a successful and very wealthy manufacturer, deplores an unhealthy mismanagement and controversy over its methods. sought treatment. a gruelling feat. The group, led by two local guides, used sleds pulled atmosphere of competitiveness. ‘The pressure in London now is In 2005, Brown experienced financial problems and Building confidence and character by teams of huskies. They travelled all day and camped at night. They incredible,’ she said. ‘You have these helicopter mums who want to much of its operation was closed down. At that time is an important part of preparing carried food with them – reindeer stew for the humans, tripe for the outdo everybody else. So when the child has a party, real swans and dry in the United States, the business of taking care of the Next Gens, but so, too, are the dogs. At one point the party was hit by a blizzard. Blinded by stinging ice are laid on. In the goodie bags there are Playmobils costing £60 troubled young people was estimated to be worth $2 billion a year. practical aspects. Most banks, snow and hardly able to stand, the team had to pitch camp, feed the each. Entertainers are flown in from around the world. We went to a BThere has been some contraction since then, following a number of including Coutts and C Hoare & Co, dogs and themselves and make everything secure for the night. Sandy party for a one-year-old at the Dorchester. There were acts brought in disappearances and cases of suicide among those attending American have departments that specialise Loder believes in helping people test themselves to their limits. During from everywhere, while the baby was crying in a corner.’ therapy centres. Many parents, even those familiar with the happy in advising on succession. Rothschild the Arctic trek, which cost £4,800 a person, his clients were invited Sophie says the influx of rich Russians has raised the stakes. ‘There ending of the Leigh Horowitz story, were nervous about exposing Private Management runs its own to dive into the frozen waters of a lake. Most did. is so much competition for the good schools. Every child has their children to a regime some felt could be damaging. workshop. The Historic a tutor, although their parents will lie to you and say they For those parents who are perhaps spending less time Houses Association has introduced Successor he idea of a risk-filled or even During the haven’t. Mothers are afraid to say no. The child comes than they would like with their children because of Membership for those in line to inherit dangerous adventure bringing out in and says, “Mummy, I want to take all my friends to work commitments, denying them even their whims Building a historic property. It runs courses and seminars, Arctic confidence and the best in people is not new. It trek, his clients the opening of The Lion King.” And Mummy says yes.’ may seem cruel. It is far easier to indulge them. If one of which was held at Blenheim Palace, was explored in Kipling’s Sophie believes London has become a hothouse for they fail at school, there is always a crammer or an character where, as we have seen, succession issues have Captains Courageous, the story were invited to spoiling children. She and her husband plan to exclusive establishment whose colossal fees may be is an important proved problematic. of a spoilt rich kid who falls dive into the frozen move to the country. ‘We think it will be more real,’ reassuring even if the results are disappointing. All One of the leaders in the field of inheritance

overboard from a transatlantic she says. ‘We try to teach our kids that having , getty images too often the next step is rehab. The recent past is part of preparing planning is the London-based Peter Leach waters of a the Next liner and is picked up by the crew of a fishing lake. Most did things is a privilege and that they must share because full of cautionary tales that send a chill through company. Consultant Alexandra Sharpe says: ‘It’s a schooner.T Aboard the sailing ship, his moneyed not everyone is the same. For years we had our own Britain’s great houses. Jamie Blandford – Marquess of Gens question of preparing for transition. You have to get background means nothing and he learns the seamen’s plane, but now, for the children’s sake, we use EasyJet. Blandford, heir to the Duke of Marlborough – was the next generation engaged, help them find what they code of hard work, comradeship and self-discipline. They actually prefer it. At the airport they love to , alpha p r ess famously partly disinherited by his father after a chaotic want to get out of life. Many haven’t figured out what they A number of organisations have sought to replicate this go off to WH Smith and buy a pack of sweets. They can’t youth during which he spent £5,000 a week on drugs and a want to do.’ For those who have and desperately want to get experience for Britain’s youngsters, particularly for those who come do that at Farnborough.’ month in prison for trying to get more drugs with forged prescriptions. into the family firm, there can be complications. One of the biggest from troubled backgrounds. Sailing charities have often worked with Experts would support Sophie’s contention that children need Lord Blandford’s inheritance, which includes Blenheim Palace, was stumbling blocks to smooth succession is often the older generation’s the deprived. Some specialise in helping young offenders. The Cirdan to have a healthy relationship with wealth from a young age. By the taken away from him and placed in the hands of a trust. It will now reluctance to let go. Sailing Trust welcomes would-be seafarers from all parts of the social time a young person needs help, the best chance of putting them pass to Jamie’s son, the Earl of Sunderland. Carrie Fisher – Princess Leia of Star Wars – was a Hollywood Next spectrum, echoing Sandy Loder’s belief that both the very rich and straight has already been lost. It was a lesson learned the hard way John Hervey, 7th Marquess of Bristol, was the wastrel aristocrat Gen whose childhood was almost a textbook of bad parenting. Her the very poor can experience similar difficulties. The trust was set up by Joel Horowitz, co-founder of Tommy Hilfiger. His daughter straight from central casting. He died aged 44 in 1999 after blowing father, singer Eddie Fisher, boasted that he shared drugs and women in 1983 by Bill Broad, a Church of England clergyman who inherited Leigh had everything a child could wish for. At 16, she was smart the family fortune on a life of drink- and drug-hazed hedonism. with John F Kennedy. Her mother, actress Debbie Reynolds, showered a sizeable fortune from his father, a prominent figure in the City of and pretty and enjoying a rich-kid lifestyle based around an exclusive He lost his ancestral home, Ickworth House, in the process. There the young Carrie with presents and money. ‘We had three pools,’ London. Reverend Broad spent the cash on sailing vessels equipped private school and a home in a chic suburb in New Jersey. were fears that Nicholas Knatchbull, godson of Prince Charles and Fisher recalls, ‘in case two broke.’ When Carrie was a teenager, her to take young people to sea. At first, Cirdan’s clients were nearly all But Leigh was doing poorly at school and, when her parents tried r ick mcm u llan , alamy ch pict ur es : pat great-grandson of Earl Mountbatten, might go the same way. He is mother gave her marijuana so she could ‘experiment and move on’. disadvantaged, often from the inner city. Now, public-school children to talk to her, she would start to cry, slam the door and lock herself in heir to Lord Brabourne and £100 million, but his family was afraid Fisher did: to more potent drugs that nearly killed her. Fisher has

and young people from rich backgrounds are also to be found her room. Her teachers suspected she was taking drugs, but when r esea that his lifestyle rendered him unsuitable to inherit. Knatchbull, turned her life as a cosseted child of Tinseltown into a one-woman on Cirdan’s ships, one of which, Queen Galadriel, is a 104-foot, her parents tried to keep her at home she show, Wishful Drinking. In it, she reveals how her parents’ two-masted former trading vessel that looks as if it just sailed in would sneak out. The Horowitz family pampering pursued her into adulthood. When she got into drugs, Osea Island, from Pirates of the Caribbean. has talked frankly and movingly about in Essex, where the people t o call Fisher and Reynolds recruited their friends Cary Grant and Ava ‘When young people have problems, it doesn’t matter whether what happened to Leigh and how they Nicholas Knatchbull Gardner to try to straighten her out. they are rich or poor,’ the trust’s Leonie Turner says. ‘An advantaged fought back. They discovered she had attended rehab A H Loder Advisers ahloderadvisers.com or 020 7042 9292 Talk to Frank Many may discern a common factor in Fisher’s story and person with a drug problem, for example, ends up just like someone been using pot for years. Then Horowitz (for drugs advice) talktofrank.com or 0800 77 66 00 Addiction Advisor those of other rich kids who hit trouble – access to too much who has very little.’ Going to sea under sail has helped such people, found heroin in her backpack. That addictionadvisor.co.uk/addiction-centres or 0845 564 9733 Beat (for money. Some parents think this is the most valuable lesson she says, and given others a sense of responsibility and self-discipline. was it. He told Leigh they were going eating disorders) b-eat.co.uk or 0845 634 1414 C Hoare & Co to be learned. George Percy’s father, the Duke of Northumberland, ‘They have to work together, raise sails, keep a lookout. There are on a ski trip and the next day they hoaresbank.co.uk or 020 7353 4522 The Cirdan Sailing Trust appears to be among them. Warren Buffett, one of the world’s no computers or games. They take turns to cook and clean; they boarded a chartered plane. It took cirdansailing.com or 01621 851433 Coutts & Co coutts.com or 020 richest men, has told his children they won’t share all his estimated learn the way of a ship. At night, they sit at a table together to eat them to a wilderness in Idaho and an 7753 1000 Historic Houses Association hha.org.uk or 020 7259 5688 wealth of £30 billion. Instead, he says, he plans to leave them and share their experiences.’ establishment called Ascent, a refuge Peter Leach peterleach.com or 020 7725 1250 Rothschild Private ‘enough to do anything, but not enough to do nothing’. ( Management privatebankingandtrust.rothschild.com or 020 7280 5000.

Tatler S EPTEMBER 2011 00