Lead: Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice walked with senior royals to the Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene on the Sandringham estate on the morning of 25 December 2025. Their father, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was stripped of his royal titles earlier in the year, was not present. King Charles III and Queen Camilla led the procession from Sandringham House for an hour-long service that began at 11:00 GMT, attended by other key members of the family. The appearance helps close a turbulent year for the monarchy amid health updates from the sovereign and ongoing scrutiny of Andrew’s ties and living arrangements.
Key Takeaways
- Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice attended the Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene, Sandringham, walking behind King Charles III and Queen Camilla.
- The service began at 11:00 GMT and lasted about one hour on 25 December 2025.
- Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (the former Duke of York) did not attend; he has been stripped of royal titles and is reported to be spending the holiday at Royal Lodge near Windsor Castle.
- Both princesses were accompanied by their husbands: Eugenie with Jack Brooksbank and Beatrice with Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.
- Other attendees included the Prince and Princess of Wales with their children, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, the Princess Royal and VAdm Sir Timothy Laurence, and Zara and Mike Tindall.
- Hundreds of onlookers gathered on a bright morning in East Anglia to watch the family walk to church.
- King Charles has publicly reduced his cancer treatment this year and used the moment to stress early diagnosis and treatment.
- Questions remain about Andrew’s accommodation and the peppercorn rent controversy that led to his vacating—or preparing to vacate—Royal Lodge.
Background
The Sandringham Christmas service is an annual royal tradition that brings the immediate family together on 25 December at St Mary Magdalene church, a short walk from Sandringham House. This service often serves as a public-facing moment to demonstrate continuity and cohesion within the monarchy; family members typically process on foot under the watch of assembled crowds. In 2025 the ritual took on added significance because the family has navigated several high-profile issues through the year, including the sovereign’s health and sustained attention on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s external associations.
Earlier in 2025 Andrew was stripped of his remaining royal titles by his brother, King Charles III, following public outcry over revelations about his connections to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. That development has altered Andrew’s public role and residence arrangements, and his absence from Sandringham on Christmas Day was widely noted. Meanwhile, the king’s own health has been a focal point: Charles disclosed a cancer diagnosis in 2024 and later announced adjustments to his treatment schedule in 2025, making public appearances more closely observed.
Main Event
On Christmas morning the royal group left Sandringham House and walked the short route to St Mary Magdalene for the 11:00 service. King Charles III and Queen Camilla led the line, followed by senior family members; Eugenie and Beatrice were visible walking a few paces behind them with their respective husbands. The Princess Royal and VAdm Sir Timothy Laurence were close behind the sovereigns, and Zara and Mike Tindall were also in the procession a few steps back.
The Prince and Princess of Wales attended with their children, joining other working and extended royals for the service. Those present maintained a composed public demeanor; the scene was described as bright and clear, with hundreds of people gathered along the route to observe. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his former wife, Sarah Ferguson, were not in attendance—the latter having last attended the Sandringham service in 2023.
Reporters and witnesses noted the absence of Andrew as a distinct contrast to pre-2025 services, when he sometimes appeared. The former Duke of York is believed to be spending the holiday at Royal Lodge, his residence near Windsor Castle, while arrangements are made for him to move to Marsh Farm on the Sandringham estate as that property undergoes renovation. The relocation and his loss of royal styles have been subject to continuing news coverage this year.
Analysis & Implications
The presence of Eugenie and Beatrice at Sandringham underscores the family’s attempt to display unity while managing reputational fallout linked to their father’s situation. Their attendance—alongside the direct heirs and other senior royals—helps signal continuity of ceremonial duties even as individual roles are recalibrated. For the monarchy, visible rituals such as the Christmas walk perform political and symbolic functions: they reassure domestic and international audiences of stability in the institution.
King Charles’s health trajectory has altered the public calculus for royal appearances in 2025. His announcement that he had scaled back cancer treatment and his remarks stressing early diagnosis reframed the narrative away from secrecy toward a public-health message. That shift can diffuse speculation but also concentrates scrutiny on the family’s public stewardship during a period of medical vulnerability for the sovereign.
Andrew’s removal of royal titles and the controversy around his peppercorn rent at Royal Lodge have practical and symbolic consequences. Practically, the change affects where he resides and which staff or privileges remain available to him; symbolically, it marks a formal distancing by the palace from a figure associated with serious public allegations. The litigation, revelations, and housing questions are likely to remain a reputational challenge for the institution, prompting wider debate about oversight and the privileges afforded to senior royals.
Comparison & Data
| Present (selected) | Not present (selected) |
|---|---|
| King Charles III | Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (former Duke of York) |
| Queen Camilla | Sarah, Duchess of York |
| Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice (with husbands) | — |
| Prince and Princess of Wales + children | — |
| Princess Royal; Zara & Mike Tindall; Duke & Duchess of Edinburgh | — |
The table above lists key attendees and notable absentees reported for the 2025 Sandringham service. Hundreds of members of the public gathered to observe; the event’s scale and composition are broadly consistent with pre-pandemic Sandringham services, though the conspicuous absence of Andrew this year marks a departure from previous family line-ups. The palace’s residential decisions—moving Andrew from Royal Lodge to Marsh Farm—introduce administrative shifts that can be tracked in subsequent reporting.
Reactions & Quotes
Officials and observers framed the morning as a traditional family service set against an unusual public backdrop. The king’s recent public message about his treatment brought added attention to the event and to the monarchy’s handling of personal health matters.
“good news”
The Guardian (media report on palace announcement)
The phrase above was used in coverage summarizing the sovereign’s update that he had scaled back his cancer treatment; news reports noted that Charles encouraged early diagnosis and treatment in the same statement. That messaging has been repeated by multiple outlets and picked up by health commentators as a public-health reminder from a prominent figure.
“the importance of early diagnosis and treatment”
The Guardian (media report summarizing the king’s remarks)
Coverage also focused on Andrew’s status: reporters and commentators have drawn attention to the residential and financial arrangements that led to public criticism earlier in the year. The lack of his presence on Sandringham’s procession route was widely noted by assembled crowds and news outlets.
Unconfirmed
- Exact timetable for Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s move from Royal Lodge to Marsh Farm remains unconfirmed in official records.
- Further details or documents that might clarify the full extent of Andrew’s links to Jeffrey Epstein have been reported but remain subject to ongoing verification.
- Any internal palace decisions about long-term changes to senior royal privileges or titles beyond those already announced have not been publicly confirmed.
Bottom Line
The Sandringham Christmas service offered a familiar public tableau—a royal procession, a church service and crowds gathered on a winter morning—while also highlighting the pressures the monarchy has faced in 2025. Eugenie and Beatrice’s visible participation reinforced a sense of family continuity, even as their father’s exclusion from the event and his change in status signalled continuing institutional adjustments. Observers will watch how the palace manages residency, public messaging and the king’s health updates in the months ahead.
For the public and media, the ceremony served both as a moment of seasonal pageantry and as a barometer of the monarchy’s ability to absorb reputational shocks. The coming weeks and official statements—particularly about residential moves and any further revelations—will shape whether this Christmas is remembered mainly for unity or as an interlude amid deeper changes.
Sources
- The Guardian (UK newspaper; report on Sandringham Christmas Day service, 25 December 2025)