A former butler to King Charles reveals the one Christmas decorations the royals never use on their trees and the Queen’s sweet festive tradition for the younger members of the family
A former butler to King Charles has revealed the Christmas decorations the royals never use on their Christmas trees.
Grant Harold worked for King Charles between 2004 and 2011 at his residence in Gloucestershire Highgrove.
Talking to MirrorThe former royal butler opened up about the royal family’s Christmas traditions.
The insider said that the royals try not to overdo it with embellishments and will never use embellishments.
Kensington Palace posted this picture of the Princess of Wales standing in front of an elegantly decorated Christmas tree. The fir was decorated with velvet ribbons and silver ornaments
He said, “Everyone gets the decorations but if I go to a royal home, there will be lots of greenery and ornaments and lights, not tinsel.”
Earlier this week, Kensington Palace released a new photo of the Princess of Wales standing proudly in front of her tree in what appears to be the family’s London residence.
As Grant had predicted, the elegantly decorated fir has no ornamental piece.
Instead, the mother of three opted instead for maroon velvet bows, silver ornaments, and a string of lights.
The Queen Consort invited children, who are supported by two of her consorts, to help decorate her Christmas tree at Clarence House earlier this month. The tree was only decorated with red and white ornaments and fairy lights without a scrap of adornment
Former royal butler Grant Harold worked for King Charles at Highgrove from 2004 to 2011.
Meanwhile, the Queen Consort welcomed seriously ill children to Clarence House earlier this month to help her decorate her tree.
The kids — who are supported by two of her protégés, Helen and Douglas House and Roald Dahl’s Wonderful Children’s Charity — chose an array of red and white decorations to hang on the branches, including little stockings and angels.
Although the Queen took a strict approach to her Christmas trees, Grant said the late monarch had a lovely tradition for the younger members of the royal family.
He continued, ‘I heard that at Sandringham the Queen used to arrange a tree in one of the rooms to be left bare for the children to decorate.
It is said that the Queen left one tree at Sandringham bare for the younger members of the royal family to decorate as they liked. A picture of the late monarch in 2019
The Princess of Wales is pictured in front of her Christmas tree in London earlier this month
“It was a tradition that I started and the grandkids would come and all do a little bit of decorating, which I always thought was a great idea.”
This year marks the first time the royal family will celebrate Christmas without the Queen, following her death at the age of 96 in September.
The royals are still expected to attend a service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham before returning home for a Christmas meal.
In November, King Charles was reported to have invited Meghan Markle and Prince Harry to the family’s Christmas celebrations, even though they both stepped down from their royal duties nearly three years ago.
The royals are still expected to spend Christmas at Sandringham Estate (pictured) as usual
But a source close to the king said, “It is unlikely that they will attend.”
This will be the first time that Charles has hosted the annual family gathering and Christmas holiday at the private estate in Norfolk.
The Prince and Princess of Wales will be there, staying at nearby Anmer Hall, the home the Queen has bestowed upon them.
Other family members are expected to join the king and queen consort on their walk to church on Christmas morning.
The Royal Family has made Sandringham their base for Christmas and New Years since 1988.
Although the family traditionally spends the holiday at the country estate, the past few years have seen a change in routine due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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