King Charles has chosen to give his fourth Christmas broadcast away from his royal homes.
Instead of Buckingham Palace, The King has chosen another building long associated with royalty.
This year’s Christmas speech will come from Westminster Abbey, the place Charles III was crowned in 2023.
The King will speak from the Lady Chapel inside the Abbey, a huge space that was built by King Henry VII.
Buckingham Palace said The King will focus on pilgrimage in this year’s speech and the Chapel and the Abbey is a major site for pilgrims.
The Lady Chapel is also the burial place of fifteen kings and queens including Henry VII as well as Charles II and Queen Anne.
Inside the Lady Chapel is another smaller sacred space, the Royal Air Force Chapel which includes a stained glass window depicting the badges of the fighter squadrons that fought in the Battle of Britain in 1940. King Charles is also expected to reflect on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two in his Christmas address.
This is the second year in a row that King Charles has chosen to give his speech away from the royal residences.
In 2024, he spoke from the Fitzrovia Chapel in London.
The first Christmas broadcast of King Charles III was made from St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, the final resting place of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
The only Christmas speech The King has given away from a chapel was in 2023 when he spoke from inside Buckingham Palace, reflecting on the Coronation.
The King’s Christmas speech is always broadcast at 3pm on Christmas Day. The first was given in 1932 by King George V and the first televised speech was by Queen Elizabeth II in 1958.
