British Aristocrat, the Earl of Leicester, Accused of ‘Land Grab’ by Locals
A wealthy British aristocrat whose vast rural estate makes him a neighbor of King Charles has been accused of effecting a rural “land grab” to claim over three thousand acres of land that some locals say rightfully belongs to the community.
The fight centers on a tract of marshy land running to the sea from the quaint Norfolk village of Burnham Overy Staithe, which has been nicknamed Chelsea-on-Sea and where holiday houses often change hands for millions of pounds. The village is just 16 miles from the royal Sandringham Estate.
Locals say that common land has been wrongfully claimed by Thomas Edward Coke (pronounced “cook”), the 8th Earl of Leicester, and is being treated as private property, with charges being levied for mooring boats and launching vessels.