THELast year, the long guest list at King Charles III’s Christmas at Sandringham caused protests from staff. Too many Royals – around fifty – to be served on the three public holidays, from Christmas Eve to Boxing Dayor British Boxing Day. But 12 months later, the sovereign has decided to make only very few omissions: 43 relatives will sit at the table, set up in the room of the residence that has been associated with Royal festivities for years.
King Charles III invited only the most loyal Royals
Only the Royals most loyal to the Crown will be admitted to Charles and Camilla’s club. In addition to William and Kate who, according to pecking orderor the ranking of the most important royals, are the guests of honor and will arrive last together with their children George, Charlotte and Louis, the monarch has invited her sister Anna, with her husband Timothy, her children Peter, Zara and their respective families. Edoardo and Sophie, the Dukes of Edinburgh, will also be there with their children Louise and James. Camilla’s offspring, Tom and Laura, with their numerous grandchildren, have decided, instead, to alternate Christmas and, after having celebrated 2024 at Sandringham, this year they will instead spend it with their respective in-laws.
The princesses run away
Also crossing the gates of Sandringham on Wednesday 24th will be Annabel Elliot, Camilla’s sister, and Princess Margaret’s children, David, Earl of Snowdon, and Lady Sarah Chatto, with their respective children. Princess Beatrice, undecided whether to accept her uncle the king’s invitation or celebrate with her parents Andrea and Sarah Ferguson, preferred to go skiing abroad with her husband, children and friends. Eugenia, however, would have decided to spend the holidays at her home in Portugal.
Those excluded indefinitely
For the second consecutive year Andrea, now a former prince, will not be able to join his brother the king and his Royal relatives: Charles has also banned him from family occasions. And there won’t even be Harry and Meghan, towards whom the Royal atmosphere is becoming increasingly cold. As the English newspaper commented Guardian with an ironic cartoon of Carlo and his traditional speech (broadcast by the BBC broadcaster on the afternoon of 25 December): «Christmas is a time to get closer to family members… Well… uhm… not exactly everyone».
The program of celebrations approved by King Charles
Once they have accepted the invitation and arrived at Sandringham, the king’s guests will have to adhere to a very dense series of daily commitments, organized with military precision and at pre-established times. The opening of the Christmas presents takes place, as always, on the evening of the 24th (even if Kate would prefer to move it to the morning of the 25th, as all the Middletons do). In the morning, after a breakfast buffet, everyone heads to church, with a Royal parade greeted by the ever-present waiting crowd. And soon we all gather at the table for Christmas lunch, followed by a walk in the countryside in which guests are obliged to participate, without any exceptions
Dinners, cocktails and five o’clock tea
After the usual walkthrough, everyone takes their places in the Drawing Room of the Royal residence to await the arrival of theafternoon teaafternoon tea with sandwiches and pastries, served by white-gloved butlers and valets. Then, the evening cocktails are followed by a light dinner, in anticipation of the long and exhausting hunting trip on Boxing Day. All this by changing clothes often and always arriving on time. Carlo, as we know, can’t stand latecomers.
Will Christmas 2025 be the last one spent at Sandringham?
The British Royals have celebrated Christmas at Sandringham since 1988. That year, Queen Elizabeth, tired of the renovation work underway at Windsor Castle – which had hosted the celebrations for decades – decided to move everything to the Norfolk residence. However, this may be the last Christmas Charles and the other Royals spend at Sandringham. According to rumors at court, Charles and his son William prefer the proximity and comfort of the castle, given that the sovereign already spends a lot of his time there and the prince lives a few meters away. A change that would truly mark the end of an era.