Shortly before Christmas, the European royals send photo greetings to the people. Duchess Kate exudes a good pinch of Christmas spirit via Instagram: This year, she hosted a Christmas charity event in Westminster Abbey for the first time, and the program will be broadcast on British TV on Christmas Eve. “We wanted to thank the great people out there who support their communities. And we also wanted to honor those whose problems may have been less visible,” she writes. The first photos show her in a red sweater tying a wreath and decorating the Christmas tree. It was such a difficult year.
“We were still emotionally and physically at a distance from each other.” But this separation has shown that we really need each other. “And how small gestures of kindness and love can give us comfort and relief in times of worry,” says the Duchess. The pictures are in contrast to the official Christmas photo of the Cambridges, which turned out to be a little Christmassy this year. The Christmas card shows a summery picture of Kate, Prince William and the children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis – William even wears shorts on it.
Christmas with the Royals: The best photos
In Sweden, however, the court published a Christmas snapshot of Princess Estelle and her brother Prince Oscar at the traditional Lucia festival on December 13th last week. Her aunt Princess Madeleine and her family also traveled to Sweden to spend the holidays with the Swedish royals. She, her husband Chris O’Neill and the children Princess Leonore, Princess Adrienne and Prince Nicolas received the Christmas trees for the castle – a tradition at the Swedish court.
The most unusual Christmas greeting this year came from Monaco: Princess Charlène shared a drawing on Instagram. She shows her with her husband Albert and the children Jacques and Gabriella in front of a Christmas tree – a family idyll that will probably not exist this year. Because Charlène is seriously ill and is being treated separately from her family in an unknown location. “I wish everyone a wonderful and safe festive time,” she writes about the picture.
In the Netherlands, the royal family keeps things simple: “The holidays are just around the corner: it’s time to come home together,” says Instagram about a picture of King Willem and Queen Maxima with their three daughters. The eldest, Princess Amalia, moved out to study this year and is now back home for Christmas.