Why Charlotte and George weren’t at church with their parents this Christmas Day

Amidst the furore of the royals arriving at St Mary Magdalene church yesterday, you might not have noticed that there were some pretty notable absentees.

All eyes were on Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle as they made their way to Christmas Day service with their husbands Princes William and Harry. We were all watching out for whether the rumours of a feud between the duchesses could possibly be true - but did you spot that Kate and William's kids were missing? The royal couple attended without Prince George, five, Princess Charlotte, three, and eight-month-old Prince Louis. The reason, according to Elle, is simply that the kids are too young. As any parent will know, getting little ones to sit still and be quiet during Mass (or anything, really) is no mean feat so the youngest royals were left at home. Charlotte and George did attend Christmas Day service with the Middleton family in Berkshire in 2016 but it looks like they Kate and William decided that three would be too many this time. Fair enough. There's no set rule about what age a royal child can attend church. Prince William made his first appearance at church at Christmas aged five while Harry didn't come until he was seven.