Updated

Prince Charles' funding from the British taxpayer fell by almost 50 percent during the last financial year.

The prince's annual accounts showed Friday that his income from the government and a royal grant was 1.1 million pounds ($1.68 million) in the year to March 31, down from 2.1 million pounds a year earlier.

The decrease is largely due to lower travel costs as countries the prince visited often picked up the bill.

Travel spending fell by 49 percent despite the prince attending 657 official engagements, 154 of them overseas.

Charles receives most of his income from properties and investments on his 136,000-acre (55,000-hectare) Duchy of Cornwall estate. That income rose 4 percent to 19 million pounds, and Charles paid more than 4.4 million pounds in tax.