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Royal Christmas Traditions

When it comes to Christmas, the British royal family are just like the rest of us. They get together with the whole family, have meals, exchange gifts and enjoy relaxing and spending time together. In this post, I am sharing a few of the Royal family's Christmas traditions. 




1. One week before Christmas, the Queen hosts a luncheon for extended family at Buckingham Palace.


2. The royals serve as patrons of many charities and they continue to support their respective causes throughout the holiday season by throwing Christmas parties for them. In 2018, William and Kate attended celebrations for military personnel deployed in Cyprus and their families in London.


3. Just like many other families, they send out annual Christmas cards to  well-wishers around the world. These cards always feature a portrait of the family. The royals official website says that the Queen and Prince Philip send out around 750 Christmas cards. She likes to get a head start on signing the cards while she is in Balmoral for the summer holidays.


4. Every year, the Windsors spend their holidays at the Sandringham Estate,which is 100 miles north of London. The Queen traavels there by train to King's Lynn Station in Norfolk.


5. Everyone likes sports and games right? Princes William and Harry sure do. They like to play football with members of staff on Christmas Eve. Team William wears Aston Villa socks and Team Harry wears Arsenal apparel.


6. The Queen donates to local charities every year and gives Christmas trees to Westminster Abbey, St Paul's Cathedral, St Giles Cathedral, and the Canongate Kirk in Edinburgh. 


7. A formal black-tie dinner is held on Christmas Eve,where the Queen's favorite cocktail, a "Zaza" is served. 


8. The Queen has multiple Christmas trees. Every year, three trees are brought to Buckingham Palace.The royal family has a large Christmas tree and a large silver artificial tree in the dining room at Sandringham.The queen lets her great-grandchildren help decorate the trees. 


9. To honor their German heritage, the Windsors exchange and open presents after having afternoon tea on Christmas Eve instead of on Christmas day. 


10. On Christmas day, the whole family attends a church service at St Mary Magdalene on the Sandringham Estate. Fans of the royals line up for hours to catch a glimpse of them walking in and out of the church and sometimes, after the service, William and Kate and other members greet the people waiting, shake their hands and talk to them. 


11. After Christmas lunch, the family plays charades. 


12. Ever year since 1952, the Queen has given an annual Christmas broadcast, in which she reflects on the past year and looks ahead to the future. The royal family watch it together on Christmas day. 





The Christmas holiday and celebrations will be very different for many families, including the royals. Due to the corona virus pandemic, they will spend Christmas quietly in Windsor instead. 



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