Inherited approximately £1.8 million from her step-grandmother Harriot, Duchess of St Albans, becoming reportedly the richest woman in England.
On 12 May 1837, following the death of Harriot Mellon, Duchess of St Albans (widow of banker Thomas Coutts), Angela Burdett inherited the vast Coutts banking fortune, estimated at around £1.8 million along with a substantial share in Coutts & Co. bank.
This inheritance, made on the condition that she add 'Coutts' to her surname and remain unmarried to a foreigner, instantly transformed her into one of the wealthiest women in Britain, often described as 'the richest heiress in England.'
Rather than retreating into private luxury, Angela used this fortune as a platform for an extraordinary five-decade career in philanthropy. She became a partner in Coutts & Co., an unusual position of financial authority for a Victorian woman, and used her wealth to fund housing projects, schools, churches, and medical initiatives across Britain and its empire.
This event is historically significant not just for its scale, but because it gave a woman direct control over immense capital in an era when women had few independent property rights, especially once married. Her stewardship of this inheritance became a model of large-scale, systematic philanthropy that influenced later charitable giving in Britain.