King Charles uses Christmas address to thank medical workers

King Charles III used his annual Christmas address to thank the medical workers who have provided care for the royal family and hailed the humanitarian workers “tirelessly” providing aid to those engulfed in conflict around the world. 

The 76-year-old British monarch delivered his speech from Fitzrovia Chapel, a community space in London and a former hospital chapel, circumventing tradition as typically monarchs deliver their holiday remarks from a castle or a palace. 

“From a personal point of view, I offer special heartfelt thanks to the selfless doctors and nurses who this year have supported me and other members of my family through the uncertainties and anxieties of illness and have helped provide the strength, care and comfort we have needed,” Charles said during his nearly seven-minute speech. 

This year has presented a bevy of health challenges for the royal family. Charles, who ascended to the throne in 2022, was diagnosed with cancer and has been getting treatment ever since, Buckingham Palace said in early February this year. A month later, Charles’s daughter-in-law Catherine, the Princess of Wales, was found to have cancer. 

“I am deeply grateful too to all those who have offered us their own kind words of sympathy and encouragement,” Charles said. 

Charles also spoke about those suffering in wars around the world, including in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan. 

“But on this Christmas Day, we cannot help but think of those for whom the devastating effects of conflict in the Middle East, in Central Europe, in Africa and elsewhere pose a daily threat to so many people's lives and livelihoods,” the monarch said. 

“We also think of the humanitarian organizations working tirelessly to bring vital relief,” he added.