There has been a lot of talk recently about King Charles’ cancer diagnosis. For the majority of 2024, his health has taken him away from his royal duties.
It seems as if King Charles has been doing better in recent weeks, but he is still likely to go through a number of difficult treatments and there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding his ability to run the royal household.
At Christmas this year, King Charles will be celebrating with the royal family in the same area that they do every year, Sandringham. Queen Elizabeth was said to be very passionate about a traditional Christmas, and although there isn’t much information on how they celebrate since she passed, it seems as if they will be doing it up in style.
On Christmas Eve, they have a formal dinner that includes Norfolk shrimp and lamb. The Queen would always give a signal to the women at 10 PM that it was time to go to bed and at that point, the men would enjoy a brandy. This may not be quite the same at this point, as people can often go to bed when they like.
When they wake up in the morning, they have a classic English breakfast of eggs, sausage, beans, and bacon. They then go to the St. Mary Magdalene church, and then have a Christmas lunch, which usually includes roast turkey.
Only the closest royal family are invited to Christmas at Sandringham. Camilla has reportedly invited her son, Tom Parker-Bowles to be part of the celebration this year.
King Charles is also following tradition, which has included a pre-Christmas lunch at Windsor Castle. There are no pictures that are released from the big Christmas gathering, but some details have been revealed by the man married to the King’s niece, Mike Tindal.
Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis will have their own meal for Christmas lunch as they do not sit at the same table as the grown-ups. They will even be in a different room from the grown-ups.
The royal family members said that seven tables were arranged for Christmas lunch. Tindal spoke about it, saying: “Is there a promotion and relegation based on the year’s performance? Because if there is I imagine you’re pretty much sitting on the right-hand side of Her Majesty. I was on Prince Charles’s table, it was lovely.”
Aside from giving gifts in the normal way, there will be some lighter gifts that are provided as well. This might seem strange considering how Kate Middleton, Prince William, King Charles, and Queen Camilla tend to keep things rather strict in public. Reports are that they have a fun tradition and exchange gag gifts as well.
As an example, Kate reportedly gave Prince Harry a ‘Grow Your Own Girlfriend’ in 2016 before he met Meghan. William gave the Queen a personalized pair of slippers with her face on them one year.
When Meghan was spending her first Christmas with the Royals, a singing hamster on a string was given to Queen Elizabeth. It was said that she loved it, and her corgis loved it as well.
The traditional Christmas lunch will not likely take place at Windsor Castle this year. King Charles moved the gathering to Buckingham Palace. Despite the change, Christmas will offer an opportunity for the Royals to spend time together as a family.
One of the things that has changed in recent times is the fact that King Charles is not very visible in his royal duties. There has been a lot of talk about Prince William succeeding his father to the throne, but that may be years away.
Despite the fact that he may not be sitting on the throne, Prince William may be taking over more of the royal duties while King Charles is going through treatment.
One inside source said: “He’s a lot weaker and tires easily, and doctors are begging him to slow down. Charles will have been told worst and best case scenarios in terms of his health, but it’s clear some of his royal priorities have had to be sidelined.”
They also spoke about the relationship between King Charles and William. They said that he is hesitant to give William too much power in the near future.
The source said: “As devastating as it’s been, he’s had to step away from some of his plans or leave them to William. He has no choice. Cancer has changed him, made him reassess what’s important, and there’s no one he’d rather spend his time with than Camilla. Stepping aside could be what gives him more time with her.”
It seems as if the Prince of Wales is preparing to spend his life as the monarch. Unfortunately, Charles has also begun to accept his fate and according to insiders, he knows that he has certain limitations.
One royal commentator, Sally Bedell Smith said: “Although the King is carrying out his duties with typical determination, he has had to accept limitations during his cancer treatment. As a result, William has been taking on more responsibilities, and he and Kate have been preparing for their future roles sooner than they would have expected.”
Another source added: “There is a sense of calm before the storm. They are next in line for the biggest job of their lives, and of course, Kate’s health has taken priority, but it’s also allowed everyone to take a step back and figure out what’s important right now.”
