King's Speech 2025: King Charles gives his Christmas address

Evening Standard

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00:30["Pomp and Circumstance"]

01:01["Pomp and Circumstance"]

01:09Earlier this year, as we commemorated the 80th anniversary of D-Day,

01:15the Queen and I had the enormous privilege of meeting once again

01:20the remarkable veterans of that very special generation

01:24who gave of themselves so courageously on behalf of us all.

01:30Listening to these once young servicemen and women touched us deeply

01:36as they spoke of their comrades drawn from across the Commonwealth

01:42who never returned and who now rest peacefully

01:46where they made the ultimate sacrifice.

01:49Their example of service and selflessness

01:52continues to inspire across the generations.

01:57During previous commemorations, we were able to console ourselves

02:02with the thought that these tragic events seldom happen in the modern era.

02:07But on this Christmas Day, we cannot help but think

02:12of those for whom the devastating effects of conflict

02:16in the Middle East, in Central Europe, in Africa and elsewhere

02:22pose a daily threat to so many people's lives and livelihoods.

02:27We also think of the humanitarian organisations

02:31working tirelessly to bring vital relief.

02:36After all, the Gospels speak so vividly of conflict

02:41and teach the values with which we can overcome it.

02:45The example that Jesus gave us is timeless and universal.

02:51It is to enter the world of those who suffer,

02:55to make a difference to their lives

02:58and so bring hope where there is despair.

03:03As the famous Christmas carol Once in Royal David's City reminds us,

03:09our Saviour Holy came down to earth from heaven,

03:14lived among the poor and mean and lowly

03:18and transformed the lives of those he met through God's redeeming love.

03:24That is the heart of the Nativity story.

03:28And we can hear its beat in the belief of all the great faiths

03:33in the love and mercy of God in times of joy and of suffering,

03:39calling us to bring light where there is darkness.

03:44All of us go through some form of suffering at some stage in our life,

03:50be it mental or physical.

03:53The degree to which we help one another and draw support from each other,

03:59be we people of faith or of none,

04:02is a measure of our civilisation as nations.

04:07This is what continually impresses me

04:12as my family and I meet with and listen to

04:16those who dedicate their lives to helping others.

04:20I am speaking to you today from the chapel of the former Middlesex Hospital in London,

04:26now itself a vibrant community space,

04:30and thinking especially of the many thousands of professionals and volunteers

04:37here in the United Kingdom and across the Commonwealth

04:41who, with their skills and out of the goodness of their heart,

04:46care for others, often at some cost to themselves.

04:51From a personal point of view,

04:54I offer special heartfelt thanks to the selfless doctors and nurses

04:59who this year have supported me and other members of my family

05:04through the uncertainties and anxieties of illness

05:08and have helped provide the strength, care and comfort we have needed.

05:14I am deeply grateful too to all those who have offered us

05:19their own kind words of sympathy and encouragement.

05:24On our recent visit to the South Pacific to attend the Commonwealth Summit,

05:30I was reminded constantly of the strength which institutions,

05:35as well as individuals, can draw from one another

05:39and of how diversity of culture, ethnicity and faith

05:44provide strength, not weakness.

05:48Across the Commonwealth, we are held together by a willingness to listen to each other,

05:54to learn from one another and to find just how much we have in common.

06:01Because through listening, we learn to respect our differences,

06:07to defeat prejudice and to open up new possibilities.

06:12I felt a deep sense of pride here in the United Kingdom

06:16when, in response to anger and lawlessness in several towns this summer,

06:22communities came together, not to repeat these behaviours,

06:28but to repair, to repair not just buildings, but relationships

06:34and, most importantly, to repair trust

06:39by listening and, through understanding, deciding how to act for the good of all.

06:47Again, listening is a recurrent theme of the Nativity story.

06:53Mary, the mother of Jesus, listened to the angel

06:57who revealed to her a different future, full of hope for all people.

07:04The message of the angels to the shepherds,

07:08that there should be peace on earth,

07:11in fact echoes through all faiths and philosophies,

07:16it rings true to this day for people of goodwill across the world.

07:22And so it is, with this in mind,

07:26that I wish you and all those you love a most joyful and peaceful Christmas.

07:34Once in royal David's city

07:42Stood a lowly cattle shed

07:49Where a mother laid her baby

07:56In a manger for his bed

08:03Mary was that mother mild

08:10Jesus Christ her little child

08:19He came down to earth from heaven

08:26Who is Lord and God of all

08:33And his shelter was a stable

08:39And his cradle was a stall

08:46With the poor, like me, and lowly

08:53With God above, our Saviour holy

09:01And the wise at last shall see him

09:08Through his own redeeming blood

09:15For that child so dear and gentle

09:22Is a lowly man above

09:29And he leads his children on

09:36To the place where he is bound

09:44Holy man, O lowly saviour

09:50With the altars standing by

09:57We shall see him bound in heaven

10:03Set at God's right hand on high

10:10Where thy souls, ye children, bow

10:17Holy ones, shall wait around

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