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British RoyalsQueen Elizabeth II

Christmas Trees go up at British royal residences

The British royal residences are beginning to look a lot like Christmas: the Christmas trees have gone up at Buckingham Palace, Clarence House, and Kensington Palace as the royals prepared to celebrate the holiday season.

The Royal Family Twitter account posted a time-lapse video last week of garland and three Christmas trees going up in the Marble Hall at Buckingham Palace. The Palace notes that Queen Charlotte, consort to King George III, is believed to have sparked the Christmas tree tradition at the palace, but it was Queen Victoria and Prince Albert who truly popularised he tradition throughout the country.

Up at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the Queen’s official Scottish residence, the Throne Room has been decorated with a Christmas tree while the Grand Staircase is wreathed in garland and lights.

The Duchess of Cornwall hosts a Christmas party every year at Clarence House and invites children to help her decorate the Christmas tree there. This year, young terminally ill patients from the Helen & Douglas House and Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity were invited to help Camilla decorate.

Two reindeer – Dancer and Blitzen – were on hand to help out, and after a lunch of sausage and mash, the children helped Camilla decorate the Christmas tree.

Over at Kensington Palace, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge threw a Christmas party for the families of servicemembers overseas in Cyprus last week. Activities included creating Christmas crackers, stockings, and writing letters to family members overseas. William and Kate later delivered the letters the next day when they visited Cyprus.

Historic Royal Palaces shared a time-lapse video on their Twitter account showing the installation and decoration of the 30-foot Christmas tree in front of Kensington Palace.

The Duke of York posted a photo on his official Twitter account showcasing the Christmas tree at his Buckingham Palace office.

The Royal Family will attend a pre-Christmas luncheon at Buckingham Palace hosted by The Queen and Prince Philip closer to the holiday. The Queen and Prince Philip will then depart for Sandringham, where they spend Christmas every year alongside their family.

On Christmas Day, the family attends a church service at St. Mary Magdalene Church and then returns to Sandringham for family time – and to watch The Queen’s Christmas Message.

About author

Jess Ilse is the Assistant Editor at Royal Central. She specialises in the British, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish Royal Families and has been following royalty since Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee. Jess has provided commentary for media outlets in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Jess works in communications and her debut novel THE MAJESTIC SISTERS will publish in Fall 2024.