Sally Scott, a royal enthusiast, poses on the Mall in front of Buckingham Palace before the coronation of Charles, the King of Great Britain, and Camilla, the Queen Consort, on May 4, 2023, in London.
ENGLAND —
King Charles III will be crowned on Saturday, and Britain is getting ready. The historic event has been invited to dozens of heads of state, and millions are expected to watch it on television.
The event will be conducted at Westminster Abbey in London, where Charles’ mother, Queen Elizabeth II, burial was held in September after her passing at the age of 96.
The coronation service, which lasts two hours, will be presided over by Canterbury Archbishop Justin Welby. He will ask those in attendance and the millions of people watching on television to publicly swear allegiance to King Charles, breaking with centuries of tradition, by saying: “I swear that I will pay true allegiance to Your Majesty, and your heirs and successors according to law. God, please assist me.
The event will feature female bishops and religious leaders for the first time.
British swagger
It will be a spectacular occasion with a lot of pomp and ceremony. It is anticipated that hundreds of thousands of people will queue on the path from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey. The Diamond Jubilee state coach will transport Charles and his wife, Queen Consort Camilla, to the service.
Before the coronation of Charles, the future King of Great Britain, and Camilla, the Queen Consort, in London on May 4, 2023, the Household Cavalry marches down the Mall outside Buckingham Palace.
The chair used to crown British kings for more than 700 years will be used by Charles as he takes his seat. The Stone of Scone, a historic ceremonial rock that King Edward I took from the Scots in 1296, is enclosed by it. The sacred oil will be brought from Jerusalem and used to anoint the monarch. Pope Francis donated pieces of the processional cross that are said to be from the actual cross that Jesus was crucified on.
According to royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams, every aspect of the event has historical and theological significance.
“The coronation dates back more than a thousand years to King Edgar’s crowning at Bath in the year 973 A.D. William the Conqueror was crowned at Westminster Abbey for the first time that is known to have happened in 1066. And the rite itself hasn’t altered all that much throughout time,” Fitzwilliams remarked.
Following the service, Charles and Camilla will ride in the Gold State Coach—built in 1762 and used for every coronation since 1831—back to Buckingham Palace. A team of eight grey horses will pull it.
The Gold State Coach is visible during the Platinum Jubilee Pageant, which concludes the celebrations for Queen Elizabeth’s platinum jubilee, on June 5, 2022, in London.
Street gatherings
Following the passing of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, on September 8, Charles officially assumed the throne. The British people may celebrate their new monarch at the coronation. Throughout the nation, neighborhood street parties are scheduled; however, rainy days, another British custom, pose a threat to the fun.
Although there will be significant differences, it will be similar to Elizabeth’s coronation 70 years ago.
“You had a 25-year-old queen as well. Fitzwilliams stated, “I mean here — and this is a problem with King Charles and Queen Camilla — and that is their age.
Share this: