King Charles III’s Coronation will take place on Saturday at Westminster Abbey in London, during the ceremony, the King will be crowned alongside Camilla, the Queen Consort.
A coronation is the symbolic religious ceremony during which a sovereign is crowned and the physical act of placing a crown on a monarch’s head.
It formalizes the monarch’s role as the head of the Church of England and marks the transfer of their title and powers. However, it is not actually necessary for the monarch to be crowned to become King.
The King and Camilla, the Queen Consort, will travel to Westminster Abbey in a relatively modern horse-drawn carriage, which has electric windows and air conditioning.
They will ride in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach, first used in 2014, before returning in the Gold State Coach used in every coronation since the 1830s.
More than 6,000 armed forces members will take part, making it the largest military ceremonial operation in 70 years.
Personnel from across the UK and the Commonwealth will join processions in London.
Thousands of veterans have also been invited to watch the coronation from a special viewing platform. They will join NHS workers on a stand in front of Buckingham Palace.
Westminster Abbey has been Britain’s coronation church since 1066. King Charles III will be the 40th reigning monarch to be crowned in May 2023.
The first documented coronation at Westminster was that of William the Conqueror on 25 December 1066. Before this year, there had been no fixed location for the ceremony.
Since the late 14th century, every coronation ceremony has basically followed the same order of service laid down in the Abbey’s magnificent medieval illuminated Latin manuscript, the Liber Regales, which can be viewed in the Galleries at the Abbey. The coronation of Elizabeth I was a mixture of Latin and English but that of James I in 1603 was an entirely English liturgy.
Music plays an important part in the service. Many of the texts have been used at successive coronations. “Zadok the Priest” was sung at Edgar’s coronation, receiving its famous setting by Handel in 1727 for George II’s coronation. A congregational hymn and the singing of the National Anthem were only introduced at the 1953 coronation.
There are several stages to the service: For the crowning, King Charles will be given a long shimmering gold-sleeved coat called the Supertunica.
The robe was created for George V in 1911 and has been worn at successive coronations including by the late Queen Elizabeth II.
While standing beside the 700-year-old Coronation Chair, the monarch is presented to those gathered in the Abbey by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The congregation shouts “God Save the King,” and trumpets sound.
The sovereign swears to uphold the law and the Church of England.
After that, the King’s ceremonial robe is removed and he sits in the Coronation Chair. A gold cloth is held over the chair to conceal the King from view. The Archbishop of Canterbury anoints the King’s hands, breasts, and head with holy oil according to a secret recipe.
The sovereign is then presented with items including the Royal Orb, representing religious and moral authority; the Scepter, representing power; and the Sovereign’s Scepter, a rod of gold topped with a white enameled dove, a symbol of justice and mercy. Finally, the Archbishop places St Edward’s Crown on the King’s head.
The King leaves the Coronation Chair and moves to the throne.
Separately, a campaign has been launched to recruit thousands of bell-ringers to mark the coronation under the “Ring for the King” scheme.
Coin collection and post stamps were issued to celebrate the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III, in which each new coin features the first crowned coinage portrait of His Majesty the King
Source: Kuwait News Agency