Kate Middleton glows while spreading Christmas cheer after health battle
Kate Middleton hosted the fourth annual Together at Christmas caroling service Dec. 6
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kate Middleton is spreading Christmas cheer after a scary year being diagnosed with cancer and recovering from major abdominal surgery.
On Dec. 6, the Princess of Wales hosted the fourth annual Together at Christmas caroling service. The holiday concert was held at Westminster Abbey in London, and Middleton arrived for the service alone before meeting her husband, Prince William, and their three children — Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
Middleton looked vibrant and healthy while wearing a long red coat with a large black bow fastened to the collar. She paired the look with pearl earrings, heeled boots and her signature blow-out look.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kate Middleton looked happy and healthy at the fourth annual Together at Christmas caroling service. (Getty Images)
The official Instagram account for the Prince and Princess of Wales uploaded photos from Friday night's event along with a caption that said, "An evening to come together and celebrate this festive season as the Together at Christmas Carol Service returns to Westminster Abbey.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Shining a light on individuals from all over the UK who have shown love, kindness and empathy towards others in their communities," the statement added.
The caption noted that the public would be able to watch the service on ITV and ITVX Official on Christmas Eve.
Middleton gave rare remarks about her health during the Together at Christmas event. The princess was asked by pop star Paloma Faith to open up about the challenges she faced this year.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I didn’t know this year was going to be the year that I’ve just had," Middleton said in a video captured by Channel 5 News U.K. and uploaded to X, formerly Twitter.
Paloma Faith attended Middleton's Together at Christmas event Dec. 6. (Getty Images)
"The unplanned," Faith interjected.
"The unplanned, exactly," Middleton replied in agreement. "But I think lots of people this year have had such challenging times."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}This was a hard year for the entire family. Middleton's Together at Christmas caroling service marked a public appearance for her three children — Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
People reported the three young royals carried notes to put on the Kindness Tree outside the venue.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Before the event started, the official Instagram account for William and Kate shared photos of Westminster Abbey "looking beautifully festive ahead of tonight’s Together at Christmas Carol Service."
The Princess of Wales held her first Together at Christmas carol service last year before she was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year. Christmas Day at Church of St. Mary Magdalene on the estate last year was the princess’ last public engagement for months before she revealed her diagnosis.
Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Kate Middleton during the Together at Christmas carol service Dec. 6. (Aaron Chown/WPA Pool/Getty Images)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In September, she announced she had finished her round of preventative chemotherapy.
King Charles III was also diagnosed with an undisclosed type of cancer this year.
Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Kate Middleton at Friday night's event. (Aaron Chown/WPA Pool/Getty Images)
The royal family’s sojourn to Sandringham is a long-held tradition in which the late Queen Elizabeth would usually retreat to the estate from December through February, when her father, King George VI, died.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Charles, Queen Camilla, William and Middleton and their children are expected to head to Sandringham before Christmas and remain there until New Year's.
King Charles had his own health battles this year. (Getty Images)
"It will be like any other Christmas, focused on the young family," Grant Harrold, former personal butler to Charles, told the New York Post in November. "They are very family-orientated, like the late queen, so that will be their focus."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}People reported at the beginning of December that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle haven't received an invitation from the royal family to join them at Sandringham in Norfolk for their annual Christmas holiday.
Kate Middleton announced her cancer diagnosis in a video message in March. (Getty Images)
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are expected to spend Christmas in the United States, where they live.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The report came just as Middleton posted an emotional holiday message on her Instagram, writing that a "special letter, reflecting on the importance of love, empathy and how much we need one another in the most difficult times" will be sent to the guests invited to her second Together at Christmas Carol Service at Westminster Abbey next month and the "fifteen Community Carol Services across the country, thanking those attending for all they do for others."
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The Sussexes haven’t spent Christmas at Sandringham with the royal family since 2018, the same year they were married. The couple left England in 2020 and eventually settled in California.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News Digital's Brie Stimson contributed to this report.