The Saint Edwards Crown was placed on Charles at the moment of coronation.
As a history buff, I would be remiss if I didn’t add a post about the Coronation of King Charles.
Technically he became King upon the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, in September. On May 6, 2023, King Charles will be crowned King of the United Kingdom at a traditional ceremony at Westminster Abbey in London.
Millions of people across the UK and beyond, including in Canada, will celebrate the coronation. It will not be on a scale as large as Queen Elizabeth’s. The route is shorter, and there are fewer people invited. Her procession from the palace was 4 miles long, while his will be 1.3 miles. She had 8000 guests, and he will have 2000. King Charles’ ceremony will be one hour long instead of Queen Elizabeth’s four-hour coronation.
The general public isn't invited to the coronation ceremony. Attendees at this ceremony will be heads of state, government officials, royal family members, royals from other nations, and celebrities. Prime Minister Trudeau will be there representing Canada.
Countries that consider King Charles III their King:
The United Kingdom
Antigua and Barbuda
Australia
The Bahamas
Belize
Canada
Grenada
Jamaica
New Zealand
Papua New Guinea
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
The Solomon Islands
Tuvulas
Charles descends from a large family, several of whom married into royal families from other nations. Foreign monarchs will be in attendance from Monaco, Japan, Denmark, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Luxembourg, Greece, New Zealand, Belgium, Bhutan, and The Netherlands. Royalty hasn't gathered on a scale like this since Edward II's funeral in 1910. Today there are twenty-six monarchies remaining.
Anyone seventy-five and under won't remember there being a reigning King.
Queen Elizabeth II was born on April 21, 1926, and ascended to the throne in 1952 after the death of her father, George VI. Her coronation was held on June 2, 1953, when she was twenty-seven.
When the last King was on the stamp (George VI), this stamp is from the envelope of a letter my mom sent to my dad in the 1940s when they were dating.
Queen Elizabeth served as monarch for an incredible 70 years and 214 days. Her image as Queen is one we are all familiar with. She has been on our postage stamps and currency for a long time.
Charles III was born on November 14, 1948. He was seventy-three when he became King in September and turned seventy-four in November. Talk about waiting a long time for a job promotion. No British monarch has been older on their coronation day.
Queens and Kings of the last two centuries:
Name and Years Served
George IV (1820 - 1830) 10 years
William IV (1830 - 1837) 6
Victoria (1837 - 1901) 63
Edward VII (1901 - 1910) 9
George V (1910 - 1936) 25
Edward VIII (1936) - abdicated before his coronation
George VI (1936 - 1952) 15
Elizabeth II (1952 - 2022) 70
Charles III (2022 -)
What is a coronation?
Although not a legal requirement, the coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power. It is the act of placement of a crown upon a monarch's head. This ancient symbolic ceremony is a combination of a religious service and pageantry.
The Procession
Customs dating back over 1000 years will be featured on coronation day. King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla will ride in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey. The route will be lined with thousands of people hoping to glimpse the couple on this historic day. We have seen wedding and funeral processions travel this path all our lives.
Thousands of Armed Forces members will participate in the largest ceremonial operation of its kind for a generation. Representatives from Commonwealth countries and the British overseas territories will join them.
The Coronation Ceremony
The UK is the only European country still using regalia – symbols of royalty like the crown, orb, and sceptres in coronations. Several changes of headwear and robes will take place during the ceremony.
You will see the 700-year-old oak and gold coronation chair. Twenty-six monarchs have been crowned in this chair.
The Archbishop of Canterbury will ask Charles to confirm and take an oath to uphold the law and the Church of England during his reign. The most sacred part of the service will be the anointing with oil from a gold flask. We won't see the whole anointing process as there will be a canopy to provide privacy for this part of the service.
The oil was produced for the coronation using olives harvested from groves on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.
The crowning moment, when the King is crowned, is known as the investiture.
“God Save the King” will resound through the church and the streets. Trumpets will sound, and guns will salute across the UK at midday.
Charles and Camilla’s children and grandchildren will be in attendance. Several of their grandchildren will be among the honorary pages taking part.
The final part of the ceremony will see the King take the throne. Camilla will be anointed and crowned Queen in a similar ceremony following Charles’. Her ceremony will be shorter and won't involve the taking of the oath, which is solely for the monarch.
I was confused. I thought the title of Queen was only given to someone that inherited the title in the line of succession, not by marriage. Camilla would then be called Queen Consort, but if you look at the above release from Buckingham Palace, she is called Queen Camilla. Prince Philip was never called King Philip, someone please enlighten me on this.
The King and Queen Consort will return to Buckingham Palace, in the 260-year-old Gold State Coach that has been used in every coronation since 1831.
Working members of the Royal Family will then greet the waiting crowds from the balcony of Buckingham Palace. The public celebrations will end with a fly-past involving members of the military. A private banquet will be held at the palace that evening.
On Sunday, May 7, a Coronation Concert will take place at Windsor Castle. Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, Andrea Bocelli, Bette Midler, and other international stars will perform.
For many years, there’s been controversy swirling around the Royal Family. We don’t have to agree with history, but it happens anyway. Many people in the UK are upset about the cost of the coronation and the fact that Charles is there by birth, not as an elected official. The Queen was a beloved figure, so he has some big shoes to fill. The rest of his story is yet to be written.
A centuries-old tradition steeped in history will be interesting to witness. My parent's generation remembers the Queen’s coronation, and mine will remember this one.
You can watch the coronation at 6:00 a.m. Saskatchewan time on May 6 or on one of the reruns that you will see for the rest of your life.
CORONATION DAY
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