In front of a congregation of about 100 world leaders and a television audience of millions, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the spiritual leader of the Anglican Church, slowly placed the 360-year-old St Edward’s Crown on Charles’ head as he sat upon a 14th-century throne in Westminster Abbey.
Gun salutes were fired at the Tower of London and across the capital, the nation, in Gibraltar, Bermuda and on ships at sea. “God save King Charles. Long live King Charles. May the king live forever,” the congregation at the abbey said after a trumpet fanfare.
During the historic and solemn two-hour service, which dates back to the time of William the Conqueror in 1066, Charles’ second wife Camilla was also crowned queen.
While rooted in history, the ceremony – televised for only the second time – is also an attempt to present a forward-looking monarchy, with those involved reflecting a more diverse country and all its religions.
With the nation struggling to find its way in the political maelstrom after its exit from the European Union and maintain its standing in a new world order, the monarchy’s supporters say the royal family provides an international draw, a vital diplomatic tool and a means of keeping Britain on the world stage.
“No other country could put on such a dazzling display – the processions, the pageantry, the ceremonies, and street parties,” Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said.
Despite Sunak’s enthusiasm, the coronation takes place amid a cost of living crisis and public scepticism, particularly among the young, about the role and relevance of the monarchy.
Saturday’s event was on a smaller scale than that staged for Queen Elizabeth in 1953, but still sought to be spectacular, featuring an array of historical regalia from golden orbs and bejeweled swords to a scepter holding the world’s largest colorless cut diamond.
Charles, 74, automatically succeeded his mother as king on her death last September, and the coronation is not essential but regarded as a means to legitimize the monarch in a public way.
After the service, Charles and Camilla, 75, departed in the four-ton Gold State Coach built for George III, the last king of Britain’s American colonies, to ride to Buckingham Palace in a one-mile procession of 4,000 military personnel from 39 nations.
Meanwhile hundreds of soldiers in scarlet uniforms and black bearskin hats lined the route along The Mall, the grand boulevard leading to the palace, in what is the largest ceremonial event of its kind in Britain since the coronation of Charles’ mother.
Tens of thousands of people ignored pouring rain to mass in a crowd more than 20 deep in some places to watch what some saw as a moment of history.
“When I was a young girl, I was able to watch (the coronation of) Queen Elizabeth on television in Hartford, Connecticut, at a friend’s house because we had no TV,” said retired U.S. teacher Peggy Jane Laver, 79. “So I’m thrilled to be here for the coronation in person.”
Great and good
Inside the abbey, which was bedecked with flowers and flags, politicians and representatives from Commonwealth nations took their seats alongside charity workers and celebrities, including actors Emma Thompson, Maggie Smith, Judi Dench and U.S. singer Katy Perry.
Charles looked solemn as he swore oaths to govern justly and uphold the Church of England – of which he is the titular head.
He was then hidden from watching eyes by a screen for the most sacred part of the ceremony when he was anointed on his hands, head and breast by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby with holy oil consecrated in Jerusalem.
After being presented with symbolic regalia, Welby placed the St Edward’s Crown on his head and the congregation cried out “God save the King”.
His eldest son and heir Prince William, 40, then knelt before his father to pledge his loyalty as his “liege man of life and limb”, both moments greeted by cheers from crowds outside.
WATCH:
https://www.cf.org/news/watch-moment-king-charles-iii-is-crowned-at-historic-coronation/
Prince William and Kate Middleton looked their regal best as they arrived at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on Saturday morning.
The Prince and Princess of Wales were seen arriving after King Charles and Queen Camilla, sparking speculation they were late.
However, the royal couple was worth the wait, with Kate stunning in an Alexander McQueen dress — the same designer she wore to her wedding back in 2011.
The princess also wore pearl and diamond earrings belonging to the late Princess Diana, as well as the George VI Festoon Necklace made in 1950 for the late Queen prior to her own coronation.
She completed the look with a Jess Collett x Alexander McQueen headpiece.
Prince William, meanwhile, wore the Ceremonial dress uniform of the Welsh Guards.
William and Kate are participating in the historic event along with their kids, Prince George, 9, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5.
Prince George had a starring role as one of the Pages of Honor.
As the heir to King Charles, 74, Prince William will also have an active role in the coronation.
He will reportedly help King Charles put on the Golden Imperial Mantle, a floor-length gold cloak dating back to 1821.
William is the only member of the royal family who will have a speaking role in the ceremony, as he will also carry out the Homage of Royal Blood.
After his father is crowned, Prince William will kneel before his father and place his hands between the king’s and say, “I, William, Prince of Wales, pledge my loyalty to you and faith and truth I will bear unto you, as your liege man of life and limb. So help me God.”
Kate Middleton does not have an official role in the coronation. It was reported that both King Charles and Queen Camilla will wear coronation robes, but it wasn’t clear if Kate would. Both William and Kate are wearing formal robes and mantels, though Kate is not wearing a tiara.
https://www.cf.org/news/photos-princess-kate-stuns-in-alexander-mcqueen-dress-royal-jewels/
Prince Harry has been demoted to a third-row seat at his father King Charles III’s historic coronation at Westminster Abbey.
Harry, 38, will be seated in the third row between his cousin Princess Eugenie’s husband, Jack Brooksbank, and Princess Alexandra, a cousin of his late grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, The Post has learned.
The front row is reserved for full-time working royals, and will include Harry’s estranged brother, Prince William, 40, and sister-in-law, Catherine, Princess of Wales, 41.
William, as the Prince of Wales and heir to the throne, is expected to kneel and swear loyalty to his father, while Harry will merely be a spectator.
The Duke of Sussex is expected to be wearing a morning suit for the historic occasion.
“Harry didn’t push for a seat up front and he didn’t push to wear his military uniform,” a source told The Post.
In addition to Britain’s first coronation since 1953, Saturday’s ceremony marks the first time Harry will be face-to-face with his family since the debut of his bombshell memoir, “Spare,” in January.
He and his wife, Meghan Markle, have been largely estranged from the royals since they decamped to California in 2020.
Meghan, 41, opted to skip the coronation and is remaining at the couple’s Montecito estate to mark son Archie’s fourth birthday.
Harry, meanwhile, flew into London on a commercial flight early Friday.
He did not see his father at Buckingham Palace, and instead headed directly to his and Meghan’s Windsor home, Frogmore Cottage.
He is expected to board a return flight just two hours after the ceremony.
Two days ahead of the coronation, one of King Charles’ close friends blasted the flame-haired prince’s behavior in recent months, calling the confessions in “Spare” “the cruelest.”
“Well, in respect of Prince Harry, I just think it’s the most tragic [situation],” Lord Nicholas Soames told Times Radio.
Despite this, Soames said “it would have been a great pity” if Harry skipped his father’s coronation altogether.
“This is the day about the king and the queen [Camilla], not about Prince Harry,” he insisted.
https://www.cf.org/news/harry-snubbed-with-seating-at-king-charles-coronation/
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