Christmas time is upon us! For the British Royal Family, that means spending the holiday with loved ones at Sandringham.
Naturally, what awaits the royal children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, is probably a weekend full of fun, gifts, and great food. At the same time, reports suggest that they might not stay with their grandpa, King Charles, and Camilla for that long.
This year will be an emotional one for the Royal Family, as it marks the first time they’ll spend the holidays without their beloved Queen Elizabeth. Nevertheless, the children we undoubtedly be swept up in the magic of it all.
The Royal Family has many traditions – some go back decades and decades. Where Christmas is concerned, even the food the royals eat is usually the same.
Unfortunately this year, the children, including 4-year-old Prince Louis, look set to eat Christmas lunch without their parents. That’s at least according to Mike Tindall …
Christmas has always been an important time for the royals. For decades, Queen Elizabeth always held fast to her yearly traditions. She used to spend much of early December at Buckingham Palace, where she gave all her staff Christmas presents and attended a carol service in the Royal Mews.
This year will be the first time any living royal celebrates the festive season without their beloved matriarch. Most likely, they will continue to honor her by carrying on the traditions that have shaped the royal Christmas period for decades.
The royals have always spent the Christmas holidays at the Sandringham House Estate in Norfolk. Queen Elizabeth would travel by train to her country estate. From there, she sent out about 750 Christmas cards every year to her family, friends, and other royal household members and government officials.
Some might think that Christmas with the Firm would mean massive Christmas decorations, a tree some 30-feet tall, and their own choir to sing on command. Perhaps that is what will happen this holiday season, but when the Queen was alive, that wasn’t the case.
No, Elizabeth’s former chef, Darren McGrady, revealed that she used to place several Christmas trees around the house at Sandringham. Most of them were real trees, but the one tree in the living room at the Norfolk estate was artificial – the Queen had owned it for more than 30 years.
“The Queen is not lavish, so the décor is minimal,” McGrady told Good Housekeeping in 2016.
“The royal family has a large Christmas tree and a large silver artificial tree in the dining room, which is about 30 years old.”
William & Kate want children to have a normal Christmas
These days, with many young children and grandchildren, royal Christmases are certainly more hectic and louder than before.
According to a US Weekly source, Prince William and Kate Middleton are keen on celebrating Christmas with their family at Sandringham. This is because they want to give their children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, a yearly family tradition – not only because it’s fun, but because the couple wants to give their kids as “normal” a life as possible.
“It’s important to them that their kids share childhood traditions like their school pals,” the insider told Us Weekly in 2018.
“They’re going all-out to make it extra special.”
However, this year’s Christmas might not include staying with grandpa King Charles and Camilla for the entire holiday season.
According to royal expert Jeremy Archer, William and Kate are looking to stay at Sandringham for Christmas but then travel to Berkshire to spend New Year’s Eve with Kate’s parents.
“It is going to be different, but Christmas at Sandringham works well for the family,” Archer told OK!.
“Unlike Windsor and Buckingham Palace, it’s a sporting venue and fits in well with their traditional Boxing Day shoot. In addition, the Prince of Wales has his house, Anmer Hall, quite close by, so it wouldn’t inconvenience him and Kate.”
Read more