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Prince & Princess of Wales

Prince George and Princess Charlotte attend Christmas Day church service for the first time

Prince George and Princess Charlotte have attended the traditional Christmas Day church service at Sandringham for the first time.

Their Royal Highnesses arrived at church on foot alongside their parents, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

One-year-old Prince Louis was absent from proceedings due to his young age.

For six year-old Prince George, who will one day be king, this was his first experience walking to church with hundreds of well-wishers gathered around to get a glimpse of him.

Also attending church alongside The Queen was Prince Andrew, although in stark contrast to the Cambridges, he kept away from the public.

Princess Beatrice also attended church alongside and her fiancé, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.

The Duke of Edinburgh was absent from proceedings this year, having only been released from hospital on Christmas Eve after a four-night stay.

Also missing the church service in Sandringham were the Duke & Duchess of Sussex, who have instead opted to take baby Archie Harrison to Canada for some private family time.

Most of The Royal Family arrived at Sandringham a couple of days ago.

On Christmas Eve, the family exchanged presents – though, by convention, gifts tend to be humorous and not of material value, with The Queen wishing to retain the core values of family at Christmas.

Christmas day itself consisted of breakfast before they set off to the annual Christmas church service with the whole family. The family will later return to the house before the traditional Christmas dinner is served.

Guests will then sit down to watch The Queen’s Christmas message on television at 3pm, with The Queen apparently leaving the room to watch it alone.

Members of the Royal Family will stay with The Queen at Sandringham until at least Boxing Day when the traditional Boxing Day shoot takes place. The Queen will remain at Sandringham until after Accession Day (6th February), with the Duke likely to remain at the residence throughout 2020.