Advent Day 11: Christmas Eve 1847 – Queen Victoria’s Journals

ir Edwin Landseer, “Queen Victoria at Loch Laggan”, Sep-Dec 1847, oil on panel, RCIN 403119, Royal Collection Trust/© His Majesty King Charles III 2022, accessed here. © Royal Collection Enterprises Limited 2025

“This festive day, the eve of such blessings & the day when ever since our childhood we have been happy & joyous, in giving & receiving, — I hail with gratitude & joy. I know no day, or rather more anniversary which we celebrate with more feelings of mutual joy & goodwill. The hustle of all the preparations is a great delight. — Alas! again not a gleam of sunshine & raw & cold. We found it very unpleasant when we walked out, but Albert went on afterwards to shoot. —

Soon after luncheon much occupied with the last arrangements for the “Bescherung” & Xmas Trees. It seemed an interminable business arranging all the heaps of toys for the Children. The tables & trees were as last year in the King’s Blue Bedroom. We took Mama & the Children in there 1rst, & it was a pleasure to see the excitement & delight of the latter. To dear Mama we gave some more pieces of plate, casts of Vicky’s & Affie’s statues, &c. —

Albert then took me into the Red King’s Room, where my presents were laid out, & most invaluable things he gave me, amongst them being the original beautiful cartoon by Overbeck of his famous picture of “Religion glorified by the Arts”, — more fine bronzes, also a fine large brooch of one single large pearl set round with diamonds. I had many other nice gifts from dear Mama, the Children, &c. Lastly I took Albert into the 3rd little room, on the other side of the Blue Room, where his presents were arranged. My gifts were 2 really beautiful little pictures, the one by Landseer, representing the view from near the floating bridge at Laggan, with small figures of me & the 2 Children in the foreground, looking at a hill pony carrying a dead deer, — & the other, — a little gem by our excellent Winterhalter of a female figure, reclining, quite lovely, as to face, drawing & colouring, & then an ancient watch, &c —. He was extremely pleased with all my gifts & thought the pictures beautiful. —

We next went to the Oak Room, to give the whole Court their tree & presents, which seemed to please all, & we then took them in, to see ours, remaining a little while with the Children, who were so happy, playing about with their things; none more so than Affie, with a fine Blue’s helmet. I was finally quite done up & rested. — No one extra to dinner, excepting Ld Canning, came to stay till the 29th I wore my beloved Albert’s beautiful pearl brooch & other dear gifts from former Christmases. —

RA VIC/MAIN/QVJ (W) [24 December 1847] (PRINCESS BEATRICE’S COPIES), VOLUME 24, p186-188, RETRIEVED [30 November 2025]. Supplied by Royal Collection Trust / © HM King Charles III