Emily Taylor is a humble and kindhearted seamstress devoted to her family's business in Philadelphia. She is also in love with her European boyfriend Leo James. As the Christmas season approaches, Leo reveals that he is in fact Prince Leopold, heir to the throne of a small sovereign country called Cordinia, which is loosely based on Monaco. He takes Emily back to his country for the Christmas holidays and introduces her to his mother Isadora, Queen of Cordinia, who disapproves of the young American immediately. Wanting her son to marry a duchess named Natasha—Leo's ex-girlfriend—whom she finds more suitable than a commoner, the Queen goes out of her way to make Emily feel unwelcome at their castle. Emily tries to adapt to her new royal surroundings, but feels more comfortable with the castle's butlers and housemaids than she does with her boyfriend's royal family and friends. While in town with Leopold buying Christmas Trees, Emily befriends Poppy, a little orphan girl. Emily is then befriended by Galina, the Baroness of Newbury who she later finds out used to be a commoner like herself. Galina also takes to Poppy right away. The conflict comes to a head when the scheming Queen secretly invites the duchess to the castle for Christmas. With the help of the head butler Victor, Emily is schooled in etiquette and then makes a grand entrance at the Christmas ball in a dress she designed herself out of the Queen's old gown. Her happiness is cut short, however, when the Queen discovers her talking with two of the kitchen staff whom she fires immediately. Later, when Leo proposes marriage, Emily, realizing she doesn't fit in, turns down his offer and returns to America. Sometime later, the Queen realizes all the hurt she's caused and remembers her feelings of love for Victor, whose love she rejected years earlier because he was a commoner. Looking to make up for the hurt that she caused, the Queen accompanies her son and Victor to Philadelphia and watches as Leo proposes once again—and this time Emily accepts. The movie ends with Leopold and Emily's wedding with Poppy in attendance with the Baron and Baroness of Newbury who have presumably adopted her.
A Royal Christmas first aired on Hallmark Channel on November 21, 2014.
Critical response
In her review for The Hollywood Reporter, Allison Keene gave the film a positive review and found the cast—especially Lacey Chabert and Jane Seymour—all "natural and likable". Keene continued: Keene concluded that the film is "one part Cinderella, two parts The Princess Diaries, a dash of Wills and Kate, and a pinch of 'win a trip to Downton Abbey'".
