In the end, it was the year that Prince William described as probably “the hardest year in my life.” The sudden dual cancer diagnoses of the King and Princess of Wales thrust the royals, and the UK, in to unprecedented territory. Working timetables were tossed aside as the family dealt with personal challenges that William described as “brutal.”

The King's Speech will see Charles in a former hospital chapel as he and Princess Kate mark the holiday after a year in which they were diagnosed with cancer. Prince Andrew and Prince Harry will be absent.

The British monarchy kept some beloved holiday traditions alive this year, including its annual Christmas Day stroll. In a break from tradition, however, the family's holiday message was delivered from a hospital chapel with King Charles striking a personal note,

King Charles III and several close members of the royal family attended Christmas services at Sandringham Church on Wednesday, a long-standing tradition.

Members of the British royal family exchange gifts every Dec. 24 — not on Christmas morning as many families do. As Prince Harry put it in his 2023 memoir, Spare, doing so is “a German tradition that survived the anglicizing of the family surname from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor.”

The Royal Family gathers at King Charles' Sandringham estate in Norfolk each Christmas, continuing a tradition dating back to Queen Victoria. The 20,000-acre estate, purchased in 1862, holds significant historical value for the family.