Inside The Royal Family’s Christmas At Windsor As The German State Visit Rolls On

0:03 Calarogu Shark Media. Hello and welcome to Palace Intrigue. I'm your host, Mark Francis. The Royal Household has unveiled this year's Christmas decorations, with Windsor Castle once taking center stage again. Catherine Jones of the Royal Collection Trust says the state apartments, with their soaring ceilings and gilded finishes, were designed as magnificent backdrops for ceremony and entertaining, making them ideal for the annual transformation. In Saint George's Hall, the traditional twenty foot Nordman fur sourced from Windsor Great Park now stands in place, dressed with around three thousand lights and oversized ornaments.

0:44 As Jones explains, some of the foil decorations we use on Saint George's whole trier fifty centimeters or more in diameter. It's about a foot and a half and many of the baubles are larger than footballs. A balcony and even a small cherry are needed to reach the topmost branches. Sustainability remains a priority under King Charles, with decorations re used and rotated between residences. The decorations are recycled and reused as much as possible, Jones notes, adding that even tinsel is now sourced in recycled and recyclable form. She also explains that early royal decorations weren't preserved, as many were either replaced when worn or edible in the nineteenth century.

1:27 Windsor's festive atmosphere owes much to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, who helped popularize the Christmas tree in Britain. Royal commentator Katie Nichols says it really comes into its own and it's just magical for the public Christmas time. Visitors can also see garlands along the grand staircase, wreaths throughout the grounds, and the miniature decorations added last year to Queen Mary's celebrated Doll's House, including a tiny Christmas tree topped with a partridge. Beyond Windsor, the Palace of Hollywood House in Edinburgh has again been richly decorated the towering firs in the Throne Room and great while Sandringham's private celebration focuses on more traditional family ornaments. At Clarence House, Queen Camilla continues her custom of inviting children from charities to help decorate the tree, assisted last year by her equerry, Major oli Plunkett, who used his military sword to place their chosen ornaments. The tree featured in last year's Christmas broadcast, recorded at London's Fitzerovia Chapel, was adorned with sustainable decorations before being donated to Royal Trinity Hospice. A new addition for twenty twenty five is a seasonal shop at the Royal Meuse at Buckingham Palace, offering festive treats, decorations and gifts, including botanical gins sourced from Royal estates and crystal pieces inspired by Queen Victoria's tableware. The Royal family's Christmas routine is built on long standing custom, with many traditions continuing unchanged following the death of Queen Elizabeth. Each December, the Windsor's gather at Sandringham for several days of private and public festivities, ranging from black tie dinners to spirited games

3:01 of charades. One of the earliest events of the season is a Christmas luncheon for the Wider family. For many years it was hosted by Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace, though King Charles and Queen Camilla have recently shifted the gathering to Windsor Castle. Royals also spend the season supporting charities, with senior figures hosting parties and in the Princess of Wales's case, a carol service. Holiday cards remain a fixture too, Queen Elizabeth was known for sending several hundred each year, often beginning the signing during her summer stay at Balmoral. The family's holiday base is the Sandringham estate in Norfolk. William and Harry once played at Christmas Eve football match with staff there Team William and Aston Villa colas Team Harry and Arsenal Gear, though Prince Harry now there was in the United States with his family and is not expected to attend. The Royals also maintain a long standing commitment to giving back, with annual donations to local charities and Christmas trees provided to major churches in London and Edinburgh in years part as the official website notes, churches and schools in the Sandringham area would also receive a tree from Her Majesty. Christmas Eve brings a formal dinner, previously accompanied by Queen Elizabeth's preferred cocktail, the Zaza. Prince Harry recalls in Spare that mills were held at a long table covered with white cloth and white name cards.

4:20 The same evening features the family's gift exchange, a nod to their German heritage. As Harry wrote, we were at Sandringham in the big room with a long table covered with white cloth and white name cards. Suddenly everyone began opening at the same time, free for All royal residences are decorated extensively. Buckingham Palace traditionally displays three fir trees in the Marble Hall, while Sandringham features both a large Christmas tree and a silver artificial one, historically decorated with the help of the youngest family members. Even corgy ornaments have been known to make an appearance. Christmas morning sees the family attend church together at Saint Mary Magdalene on the Sandringham estate, followed by lunch and the customary game of charades. The day ends with the annual broadcast, a tradition begun in nineteen fifty two. Since nineteen fifty seven it has been televised, and the family typically watches the King's Address together. A set of old curtains from one of the royal Residences has been given a new lease of life as a festive Christmas stocking for a charity fundraiser.

5:23 Members of a sewing group at Dumfries's House in Ayrshire have turned the former Sandringham House drapes into twenty five handmade stockings in time for the holiday season. The sewing Bee meets weekly at the historic estate, which is closely linked to the royal family and now operated by the King's Foundation. In recent months, their sessions have been devoted to cutting, stitching and embellansing the curtain fabric as part of the charity project. Twenty four of the individually numbered stockings are now being auctioned to support the King's Foundation work, while the final stocking will be presented to the King as a personal Christmas gift. Each stocking required more than six hours of work using techniques including hand embroidery, piping and careful scene matching. The initiative reflects the Foundation's mission to teach and preserve traditional craftsmanship and heritage skills. Christine Wilson and Andrea Middlemiss joined the Sewing Bee without any prior experience. Wilson, a retired finance officer, has been part of the group since it launched in twenty sixteen. Middle Miss said it's an honor to be doing it because of the curtains, because of where they've come from and the story behind it, and the thought that they've been hanging up in this palace for goodness knows how long.

6:36 The King's Foundation twenty twenty five Christmas charity auction runs until five pm on Friday, December twelfth. The BBC has confirmed that the King will make a special appearance on Radio four and the days before Christmas. On December twenty third, the network will broadcast a bespoke edition of This Natural Life from Dumfries's House in Ayrshire, featuring the Monarch as a guest contributor. The broadcast will also include conversations with students, young people and staff involved in the outdoor education programs based on the estate. While walking through the arboretum, the King reflects on the origins of his love for the natural world and touches on subjects ranging from rural skills and marine conservation to the art of topiary and the satisfaction of using a pair of secateurs. Following the recording, Martha Kearny said it was great to see the King so relaxed in a place which means so much to him and where he puts his philosophy of nature into practice.

7:32 More palace in just a moment. Hey, you know you can get rid of all those commercials with a subscription to Kellerroga Shark Media. That's right. You can get this show and hundreds of others commercial free. Every Royal show we do commercial free. All you do is hit that button up top there on the Apple Play that says listen uninterrupted, and for four ninety nine a month you can get all the shows commercial free, along with special bonuses like getting full seasons of our shows before they are released to the public. So we thank you for your support. Get yourself a Christmas present. It is a busy day for the German State visit, with President Frank Walter Steinmeier and his wife Elkie bunden Bender undertaking a series of significant engagements across Windsor, London and Coventry. The day begins a Windsor Castle, where the President and First Lady will make a private visit to Saint George's Chapel to lay flowers at the tomb of Queen Elizabeth. It's a quiet moment of remembrance marking the late queens enduring importance to both nations. The couple will then rejoin the King and Queen at Windsor for a reception highlighting the work of volunteers across the UK. The event is held in partnership with the Big Help Out and showcases the positive impact community service continues to have in talents and cities nationwide. Following the reception, their majesties will accompany the President and First Lady to view the State Sleigh, the ornate winter carriage created by Prince Albert for Queen Victoria.

8:57 The sleigh, first recorded in the Queen's Diary and forty five, is a reminder of the royal family's long German connections, including Christmas traditions introduced by both Queen Charlotte and Prince Albert. With those joint engagements completed, the King and Queen will take their leave while the President and First Lady continue their program in London. They will visit Westminster Abbey to lay a wreath at the grave of the Unknown Warrior before the President delivers remarks to assembled Parliamentarians at the Palace of Westminster. The President will also meet members of the German community in the UK at the German Embassy, while Miss bunden Bender, a former judge, will join the Lady Chief Justice at Royal Courts of Justice for a discussion on women in law. Later, the couple will undertake engagements at Bobby Moore Academy and the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, followed by a visit to the VNA Storehouse. And this evening, the Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Lawrence will represent the Royal family at a formal banquet at guild Hall hosted by the Lady Mayor in the City of London Corporation. The President and First Lady will attend is the honored guests, bringing the second day of the state visit to a close. And there you have it. You'd like to email us or address is the Palace Intrigue at gmail dot com. And by the way, Friday, Saturday and Sunday on our later Palace Intrigue episodes, we're counting down the top twenty five Royal stories of twenty twenty five.

10:23 You don't want to miss that one. I'm Mark Francis my thanks to John McDermott. This is palace intrigue and good terms