Buckingham Palace said on Sunday that King Charles III planned to take a shortcut and smoother route to his coronation at Westminster Abbey and shorten the procession route his mother took in 1953 as he aimed for a softer event. activities, including some modern touches.
this low key ceremony 6 May will still be steeped in age-old tradition and adorned with the royal coat of arms from the Crown Jewels, but will also feature its own bespoke emoji to reflect Britain’s first coronation in the age of social media. The coronation of Queen Elizabeth II was televised for the first time 70 years ago.
Breaking with tradition, Charles and Camilla, Queen, will drive out of Buckingham Palace in the horse-drawn gilded black Diamond Jubilee state coach built for Elizabeth’s 60th accession. It had heating, air conditioning, electric windows and a suspension system that provided a more comfortable ride than his mother’s throne room.
The 1.3 mile (2 km) route is shorter than Elizabeth’s route to the Chapel Royal. The procession will pass Admiralty Arch; past Trafalgar Square and the statue of Charles I, the monarch who was beheaded in 1649; and the Houses of Parliament before reaching the 11am religious service.
While Charles wanted to show that the monarchy still matters in modern, multicultural Britain, he said he planned to streamline the institution. The coronation is expected to reflect this with a shorter and less lavish ceremony than the three-hour ceremony at Queen Elizabeth II’s inauguration.
Still, many priceless coronation regalia used over the centuries will be part of Charles and Camilla’s coronation, including five symbolic swords, two sceptres and a ruby cross and sapphire monarch ring set with diamonds.
Camilla, who wears Queen Mary’s tiara, will hold a controversial ivory scepter. Britain has banned the trade in ivory almost entirely, and the heir to the throne, Prince William, has launched a campaign against illegal animal part trafficking.
In a solemn service officiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, Charles will crowned king Along with St. Edward’s Crown, millions of people view the centerpiece of the Crown Jewels at the Tower of London every year.
The crown, the inspiration for the coronation emoji, has a 4.9 lb (2.2 kg) solid gold frame studded with rubies, amethysts, sapphires, garnets, topaz and tourmalines, complete with a purple velvet cap and ermine ring . It was worn by Elizabeth at her coronation and adapted for her son.
At the end of the ceremony, Charles will be replaced by a lighter Imperial Tiara to be sent back to the palace.
Unlike the 5-mile (8km) route Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, took around London in 1953, Charles and Camilla will retrace their steps, but on the same route that has been used for every coronation since William IV. A 260-year-old carriage from 1831.
Weighing 8,800 pounds (4,000 kilograms) and drawn by eight horses, the Gold State Coach is known for its rough rides.
Elizabeth described it as “terrible”, Queen Victoria complained of its “agonizing sway”, and William IV – known as the Sailor King – said it was like “a pitching ship on rough seas”.
“When you follow it, you hear it creaking, so it sounds like an old sailboat going,” said Martin Oates, who helped restore it and walked behind it as a brakeman. “It’s not exactly a washing machine, but other vehicles just move from back to front and this one moves from side to side.”
Gilded carriages are too heavy to walk on. This should give people along the way more time to meet the newly crowned king and queen.
Trooping the Color will pay their respects to the King and Queen in Buckingham Palace Gardens, followed by three cheers from the military.
Brian Mayley, Associated Press
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