Absent from the royal celebrations since 2018, Prince Harry will spend Christmas 2025 in California with Meghan Markle and their children. It will be a time marked by nostalgia, as the royal family gathers at Sandringham.
For the seventh consecutive year, the Duke of Sussex will not participate in the British royal family's Christmas celebrations. Living in the United States, he is preparing to spend the holidays away from his father and brother, in a still-tense family atmosphere.
A Christmas apart from royal traditions
Prince Harry will not be part of the traditional family gathering at Sandringham again this year. He was, however, a familiar face at these celebrations for a long time, particularly during the walk to St. Mary Magdalene Church on Christmas Day. Since 2018, these events have taken place without him. According to former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond, this period could rekindle ambivalent feelings in him.
She notes that he has already confided that "he misses certain aspects of his life in the UK, including the camaraderie, pub culture, his friends, and family gatherings." She adds that images of his loved ones attending Christmas church together could "indeed tug at his heartstrings."
However, this nostalgia would be temporary. Jennie Bond points out that by spending the holidays with his family in California, "the allure of the often gray and wet Norfolk could quickly fade."
A family life centered in California
This year, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are expected to spend Christmas in Montecito, surrounded by their children and Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland. Meghan Markle recently appeared in a Netflix program dedicated to holiday preparations.
She shares her vision of a Christmas focused on details and family intimacy. She explains that "it's the little moments that create the atmosphere we want for the holidays," mentioning the handwritten messages slipped into their children's Advent calendars.
She also confides her fondness for personalized Christmas tree decorations, believing that "it's a place in the house where you can truly tell your family's story and feel the passage of time through the decorations." A deliberate way of creating new traditions, far removed from royal protocol.
Family ties remain strained in the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, King Charles III is expected to spend Christmas surrounded by his eldest son, his daughter-in-law, and their children at Sandringham. A situation that is said to cause the monarch considerable sadness. Jennie Bond believes that "for King Charles, there will always be a degree of sadness in the thought that his two sons and their children are not reunited with him at this very special time of year."
She also highlights the contrast between public pronouncements extolling love and the importance of family, and the reality of a still-fraught relationship between the two brothers. Adding to this is the delicate situation of Meghan Markle's father, who was recently hospitalized after major surgery. A spokesperson for the Sussexes confirmed that a letter from the Duchess is "now in Thomas Markle's hands," thanks to "the help of trusted and reliable contacts." All of these elements lend a particular tone to this Christmas, a blend of distance, memories, and complex family realities.
