In the annals of Royal Family history, 2025 will be remembered as the year the monarch took the virtually unprecedented step of stripping his younger brother of his titles and honours.
But as much as the scandal surrounding the former prince now known only as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor garnered headlines, there were other notable moments this year that sent signals about the monarchy and its future.
“I think 2025 is a year that is going to be remembered in the history of the monarchy — or at least among royal historians — as probably one of the most significant of the reign of Charles III,” said Justin Vovk, a royal historian and member of the advisory board of the Institute for the Study of the Crown in Canada.
Every year in review for the Royal Family is a “roller-coaster ride,” he said, and 2025 “has had dramatic highs and lows.”
In considering the year’s significance in King Charles’s reign, Vovk turns to “the monarchy’s involvement in Canada’s relationship with the United States and Donald Trump.”
Charles was publicly silent for several months as the U.S. president’s repeated rhetoric about “the 51st state” rattled Canadians in the early months of 2025. While many observers saw subtle signs of support for Canada from Charles, as a constitutional monarch, any actions he might take would be on the advice of the Canadian government.
So there was much focus on Charles when he came to Ottawa to deliver the speech from the throne in late May. Those listening to it in the Senate burst into applause when he drew the speech to a close by saying, “As the anthem reminds us: The true north is indeed strong and free.”
WATCH | King Charles delivers the speech from the throne:
FULL SPEECH | King Charles delivers speech from the throne
King Charles, speaking from the Senate chamber on Tuesday, delivered a speech from the throne that acknowledged the worry that comes with a ‘drastically changing world’ — including a changing relationship between Canada and the U.S. But the speech also looked forward, pointing to government plans to increase affordability, take on major projects and build a strong economy that ‘serves everyone.’
The two-day trip — Charles’s first to Canada as monarch — wrapped up with a sense that it was a historic moment for both the country and for him.
“In our lifetime we haven’t seen the monarchy engage so directly — albeit indirectly — with a major Canadian constitutional issue like this,” Vovk said.
“And it had very tangible effects on the monarchy’s popularity, at least in the short term, on Canada’s position on the international stage — again at least short term, the relationship with the United States and public perceptions of the monarchy.
“I think as King of Canada, this will be remembered as one of King Charles III’s defining moments.”
The moment didn’t go unnoticed in the United Kingdom, either.
“I think it made people think about the international role of the monarchy, and I think it brought to focus that the King is not just King of the United Kingdom, but that … he is King of Canada as well,” Craig Prescott, a constitutional expert and lecturer in law at Royal Holloway, University of London, said in an interview.
“I think it served as a useful reminder that there’s more to the monarchy than I think people realize.”
WATCH | On their way to Parliament:
King Charles and Queen Camilla parade to Parliament
King Charles and Queen Camilla travelled in a ceremonial horse-drawn carriage through the Parliamentary Precinct in Ottawa on Tuesday ahead of the speech from the throne.
Trump was also at the centre of another high point of the royal year: his state visit to the U.K. in September.
It was in some ways an unusual state visit — it included a carriage ride, for example, that for security reasons took place behind castle walls rather than out in the streets.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer issued the official invitation while sitting with Trump in the Oval Office in Washington, D.C., in a move seen widely as an attempt to appeal to the president’s admiration of the Royal Family and to help ease trade talks between the U.K. and the U.S.
“Clearly you would say the Trump state visit here was a highlight in that it showed the value … of the monarchy,” Prescott said, “and the role that the monarch can play in supporting the government’s foreign policy objectives.
“And whilst they are separate from politics, it shows that they have this non-party political role and the government of the day can utilize that, and that was shown to great effect with Trump’s state visit, ultimately.”
In both visits — Charles to Canada and Trump to the U.K. — Prescott saw a “deftness of touch” from the monarchy.
WATCH | A carriage procession inside castle grounds:
Trump rides with King Charles in carriage procession
U.S. President Donald Trump rode with King Charles in a horse-drawn carriage in Windsor, England, on Wednesday, part of a multi-day visit to the U.K. that will include a state banquet at Windsor Castle. CLARIFICATION (Sept. 17, 2025): An earlier version of this video was published with missing audio. It has been reuploaded.
“These were seen as both being diplomatic quagmires or … minefields I think is the phrase … to try and maintain that personal relationship with Trump whilst … fulfilling what the King needed to do with Canada.”
Closer to home for Charles, the scandal that surrounded Andrew and his friendship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein leaves its own mark on 2025 — and history.
“There’s always an appetite for scandal in the Royal Family, and this is, I think, the biggest scandal since the abdication” of King Edward VIII in 1936, Prescott said. “The allegations that Andrew has faced have been horrendous.”
The controversy surrounding Andrew had been a “continuing low point for the monarchy” for the past several years, Vovk said.
There had been a growing sense that eventually something had to give, but it was only as more details emerged that called into question Andrew’s previous accounts — particularly his disastrous 2019 BBC interview regarding his friendship with Epstein — that Charles took more specific action against his brother.
“Once more of the Epstein files were released that started to directly deconstruct Andrew’s statements — and that unfortunate interview from several years ago — that is when we saw the monarchy take some of the most decisive action it has taken against one of its own in 100 years,” Vovk said.
The front pages of most of Britain’s national newspapers are pictured in a spread created in London on Oct. 31, dominated by stories about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor being stripped of his title of prince. (Rhianna Chadwick/AFP/Getty Images)
It was also an example, Vovk suggests, of a change in the way the monarchy handles crises.
“We have seen change in what we can expect from the sovereign now,” Vovk said. “I think there is a public expectation, justifiably so, that the sovereign play a more active role at the very least, just even to justify why we have the monarchy.”
The situation around Andrew is also prompting an inquiry in the U.K. Parliament next year on royal properties — much controversy surrounded his lease for Royal Lodge, from which he is being evicted — and the Crown Estate. Prescott said that will feed into a review of the Sovereign Grant.
“In a more political sense, this will be the big flashpoint, because there’s increasing criticism of the [duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall, held by King Charles and Prince William], the money that the Royal Family have got or they get under the Sovereign Grant. I think this will be the big issue for 2026.”
An ‘incredibly rare’ royal message
King Charles speaks about his cancer recovery during a pre-recorded message filmed at Clarence House in London. (Tommy Forbes/Bango Studios/PA Wire/Reuters)
In a rare royal moment late Friday, King Charles offered an optimistic personal update about his cancer treatment while also promoting the virtues of screening and early detection for the disease.
“Today, I am able to share with you the good news that thanks to early diagnosis, effective intervention and adherence to doctors’ orders, my own schedule of cancer treatment can be reduced in the new year,” Charles said.
Charles revealed the information in a pre-recorded message that aired on TV in the U.K. on Friday night. It was part of a campaign by the charity Stand up to Cancer to encourage people to take advantage of screening that can detect the disease in its early stages, when it is easiest to treat.
Such a communication from a monarch has few precedents.
“This was an incredibly rare message,” Vovk said via email.
“Aside from the annual Christmas Day message, television statements, even pre-recorded ones, have only been made during extraordinary times.”
Examples, Vock said, include messages from Queen Elizabeth following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
King Charles, left, sits with a patient during a visit to the University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer Centre in London on April 30, 2024. (Suzanne Plunkett/The Associated Press)
It also appears to be a message with a very specific goal, Prescott said in an email.
“He could have simply announced his news in the traditional way via a press release next year. But he has chosen to use his news to draw attention to the importance of early diagnosis and to encourage people to get checked.”
Still, there is some regard for the royal tradition of not going too deeply into personal medical details — there remains no public knowledge of the specific nature of Charles’s treatment or his specific form of cancer.
Traditionally, Prescott said, members of the Royal Family have guarded their medical confidentiality carefully.
“We knew very little about the Queen and Prince Philip’s health, unless it was absolutely necessary, and in the Queen’s case, she had extremely robust health for most of her life, so there wasn’t much to share,” Prescott said.
Queen Elizabeth reportedly faced her own cancer diagnosis, but it was not made public. In a biography after her death, author Gyles Brandreth said he had heard she had a form of myeloma — bone marrow cancer.
King Charles, left, talks with prostate cancer patient Matthew Shinda, right, during a visit to a ward when he officially opened Midland Metropolitan University Hospital in Smethwick, England, on Sept. 3. (Richard Pohle/The Times/The Associated Press)
Charles also made a direct appeal for everyone to play a role in catching cancer early, something Vovk said “is a little bit tricky.”
“On the one hand, it does stray a bit into the area of the sovereign telling people what to do,” Vovk said.
“That being said, this is hardly a controversial topic in which the King needs to be mindful of his constitutional role.”
In many ways, the messaging is “quite consistent with what we heard from Queen Elizabeth over the last 10 to 15 years about ways that people should look to support one another and their communities through caring, engagement, dialogue and active citizenship,” Vovk said.
Prescott said it’s “precisely the sort of cause members of the Royal Family can take up using the platform of the monarchy.”
“He perhaps has not gone as quite far as the Queen did during COVID, who on a video call with people from the NHS [National Health Service] set up to talk about the vaccine, said that people who don’t take up the COVID vaccine were ‘very selfish.’ The message was crystal clear.”
– With files from The Associated Press
Supporting Canadian — and world — youth
Andrea Chakma, second from left, a PhD student from Waterloo, Ont, stands with Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, fourth from left, and international youth representatives in Lagos, Nigeria, on Nov. 22. Edward was hosting youth and leadership representatives from most of the more than 120 countries that operate the Duke of Edinburgh Award. (Seren Atis)
Four months after meeting Prince Edward when he was in Canada this past summer, Andrea Chakma saw him again recently when the Duke of Edinburgh was in Africa supporting his namesake youth-oriented organization.
The engineer and PhD student, who is studying social robotics at the University of Waterloo in southern Ontario, was in Nigeria as Edward hosted youth and leadership representatives from most of the 120 countries that operate the Duke of Edinburgh Award.
“He was front and centre chatting with everybody. It was lovely,” Chakma, who was part of the Canadian delegation to award events in Lagos, said in an interview.
“He’s so passionate about the award, and you can definitely sense it…. He was very friendly and was just very invested in understanding how this award has impacted us and what change we would like to see as well.”
During Prince Edward’s visit to Canada in late June and early July, he focused some of his attention on the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award — Canada and how it is evolving.
King Charles’s younger brother took part in forums in Charlottetown and Toronto as the award — which has long had involvement from independent schools — works to blend trades and skills-based experiences into public education.
Chakma, left, takes part in an event in Lagos, Nigeria. (Submitted by Mark Little)
Mark Little, chief executive officer of the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award — Canada, was also in Lagos and had an opportunity to speak again with Edward.
Following on from that summer visit to Canada, Little said Edward was very interested in the award’s growth here.
“He was very interested in us bringing on the new school boards. He was very interested as a followup to his meeting with Paul Calandra, the minister of education in Ontario. And he is genuinely very interested in the innovation that we’re taking with the award.”
Canada was also mentioned in the keynote speech during the award events in Lagos.
Martin Houghton-Brown, secretary general of the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Foundation, said Canada’s approach to the award is re-engineering how it works in schools.
“Until recently, most participants came from just 23 independent schools. Now, through partnerships with public boards, trades colleges and virtual hubs, the potential reach has grown to half a million young people.”
Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, gives a speech during the opening ceremony for the 2025 International Gold Event and Forum for the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award program at Lagos Continental Hotel in Lagos, Nigeria, on Nov. 19. (Olympia de Maismont/AFP/Getty Images)
Little took that mention as “reinforcement of the innovation Canada is doing” and said Edward followed up with him. “He’s … very keenly interested to help us be successful.”
Little said many who were meeting in Lagos saw it as a “zeitgeist moment” and an opportunity for the award to meet an increasing need for experimental non-formal education and learning.
“We’re all coming together at the same time. There are trade challenges. There’s an [increasing] polarization within everybody’s countries,” he said.
“There are challenges to how we support climate change and also balance the need for economic growth, youth unemployability, artificial intelligence and how that’s threatening young people and maybe expounding on, you know, what’s happening with youth employability.”
Chakma said the passion Edward brings to the award can bring in other people.
“It … really makes a difference in the lives of youth to know that there’s individuals who really do care and support this initiative and that they’re rooting for them.”
Signs of the festive season
Prince William, left, Prince George, Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte and Catherine, Princess of Wales, attend the Together at Christmas carol service at Westminster Abbey in London on Dec. 5. (Chris Jackson/Reuters)
As the calendar moves closer to Christmas, members of the Royal Family have been marking the festive season.
Catherine, Princess of Wales, hosted her fifth annual carol service at Westminster Abbey last week. The service will be broadcast in the U.K. on Christmas Eve.
Queen Camilla held her 20th annual party for children who are seriously ill on Thursday. During the festivities at her Clarence House residence, the children helped decorate a Christmas tree.
Queen Camilla, left, and Myla, right, place a decoration on the Christmas tree at Clarence House in London on Thursday. (Aaron Chown/Reuters)
King Charles was at Westminster Abbey for a candle-lit Advent service in which he remembered the plight of Christians facing persecution.
King Charles attends an Advent service at Westminster Abbey in London on Wednesday. (Chris Jackson/Reuters)
A six-metre Christmas tree was on prominent display at Windsor Castle during the state visit last week by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Guests attend the state banquet for German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his wife, Elke Budenbender, at Windsor Castle on Dec. 3 in Windsor, England. (Aaron Chown/Getty Images)
Even with the tree, there was also a bit of diplomacy and history at work.
“Of course it reflects that it was an idea that came from Germany,” Prescott said.
During the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria, her husband, Prince Albert, brought his own traditions from Germany, particularly the Christmas tree.
Christmas trees had been in use during previous royal Christmases, but expansion of that era’s mass media helped spread the word about what the Royals were doing in the festive season.
Prince William, left, and Catherine, Princess of Wales, arrive ahead of the state banquet for German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his wife, Elke Budenbender, during their state visit to the U.K., at Windsor Castle on Dec. 3. (Carlos Jasso/Getty Images)Royally quotable
“Nice to see you. You know my husband very well now.”
– Catherine, Princess of Wales, in a comment widely reported after she greeted Canadian actor and comedian Eugene Levy at the carol service she hosted at Westminster Abbey in London. As part of Levy’s Apple TV+ series The Reluctant Traveler, he spent time with Catherine’s husband, Prince William.
Catherine, Princess of Wales, left, speaks with Canadian comedian Eugene Levy, right, at Westminster Abbey for the Together at Christmas carol service in London on Dec. 5. (Chris Jackson/The Associated Press)Royal reads
Prince William has visited a number of severely ill children from Gaza who are being treated in the U.K., a Kensington Palace spokesperson says. [BBC]
The younger generation will have a “ghastly legacy of horror to deal with” unless the world starts to act with serious intent to combat climate change, King Charles said as he watched images in a TV documentary of his own visit to the Canadian Arctic half a century ago. [ITV]
Following the controversy and scandal over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been formally stripped of his last remaining royal titles. He is also unlikely to receive any compensation upon leaving Royal Lodge in Windsor, according to information published by the U.K. government. [The Independent, BBC]
Prince Harry’s security arrangements while visiting Britain are reportedly to be reviewed after a direct request from him to the U.K. home secretary. [The Guardian]