Surprising royal Boxing Day tradition they've been urged to keep Prince George away from
The Royal Family take part in many traditions each Christmas - some of which are classic and others which are unique to them. From attending a church service, just like many of us up and down the UK to opening their presents on Christmas Eve to pay homage to their German heritage, the royals' day will be enjoyed by everyone.
But every year, the family attracts huge amounts of criticism for one custom that traditionally takes place on Boxing Day. Like many royals before them, hunting has always been a favourite pastime - whether they are shooting stags, grouses or pheasants. Despite the historic significance, there was backlash when it emerged that Prince George, 10, had joined his family to watch the hunt when he was just five-years-old.
Hunting has been the chosen sport of the royals for centuries, but there is a question over whether the tradition will take place this year.
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There is another annual shoot that takes place in the summer called Balmoral’s Glorious Twelfth and it sees the royals go around the Balmoral Estate in Scotland and hunt young grouse.
While it is not known if members of the family took part in the annual season which starts on August 12 each year, the royals have enjoyed deerstalking on the estate for generations.
The hunt is an act of culling elderly stags that will most likely die during the winter months, and as a way of controlling numbers. William shot his first stag when he was 14 years old, which left him “delighted at the time”.
Deerstalking is a shared passion of many members of the Royal Family and has been a tradition throughout the generations. William's father, King Charles, loved the sport so much that Princess Diana used to call him “my killer Wales”.
Despite the historic passions, there was huge concern from animal charities when it emerged that Prince George had attended a hunt at the tender age of five.
PETA director Mimi Bekhechi said few people in 2020 viewed shooting as "anything other than a violent perversion". She continued: "For a child to be compelled to witness such casual killing – and by a parent he looks up to, no less – is potentially as harmful to his or her psyche as it is to the bird's very life.
"It can desensitise children to the suffering of animals – which is cause for concern, given the well-established link between cruelty to animals in childhood and antisocial behaviour in adulthood – and could give George nightmares. To help him grow into a responsible, compassionate leader, his parents must teach him respect for all living beings."
The Prince of Wales was also previously criticised for hunting as he still remains a high-profile advocate for animal conservation.
In 2014, Prince William and Prince Harry were criticised for going on a boar hunting trip on the Duke of Westminster's Spanish estate just days before joining a campaign against poaching and the illegal wildlife trade.
William - who is also the patron of Tusk, an African conservation initiative - was praised for his United For Wildlife campaign as it works to protect endangered species such as rhinos, tigers and elephants.
