Slowly, Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, placed the 360-year-old St Edward’s Crown on the king’s head as around 100 heads of state and dignitaries, including the US first lady, looked on. Jill Biden, as well as millions of television viewers.
Charles took over the reign of Britain to succeed his mother, Queen Elizabeth, after her death in September, and at the age of seventy-four he became the oldest British monarch to put that crown on his head and to sit on the throne which dates back to the 14th century at Westminster Abbey. The ceremony also includes the coronation of his second wife Camilla (75).
Although the ceremony is steeped in history, its officials try to project the image of a monarchy and a forward-looking nation.
Like 40 of his predecessors, Charles was crowned at Westminster Abbey, which has seen every coronation ceremony in the country since William the Conqueror in 1066, and only the second time the ceremony has been televised.
The ceremony is on a smaller scale than that held for the late Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953, but aims to be dazzling nonetheless, with an array of historical symbols ranging from golden balls and jeweled swords to a scepter carrying the largest colorless cut diamond in the world. .
Hundreds of soldiers in scarlet uniforms and tall black hats lined Mall Road, the wide avenue leading to Buckingham Palace, where tens of thousands of people gathered to watch the event, ignoring the light rain.
But not everyone was there to greet the king: hundreds of Republican lawyers booed and waved signs saying, “It’s not mine.”
More than 11,000 police were deployed to quell any attempt to disrupt the ceremony, and the “Jumhuriya” group said police arrested its leader, Graham Smith, along with 5 other protesters.
What happened inside Westminster Abbey?
Inside the church, decorated with flowers and flags, sat politicians and representatives of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as charity workers and celebrities, including actresses Emma Thompson, Maggie Smith, Judi Dench and American singer Katy Perry. Among the ceremonies in the church was a performance of Handel’s “The Honest Priest”, as has been the norm at every coronation since 1727. There were novelties, such as a cantata by Andrew Lloydweber, famous for his performances in the West End and Broadway, as well as a gospel choir. A mass was held and religious leaders returned an “unprecedented” salute at the end. Charles’s grandson, Prince George, and Camilla’s grandchildren took on the role of finalists. There was no official role for Charles’s youngest son, Prince Harry, after his public and highly publicized falling out with the Royal Family, nor for his brother, Prince Andrew, who was forced out of royal duties. . Harry and Andrew are seated in the third row, behind the other working members of the royal family.
How did King Charles appear in front of everyone?
The solemn look on the King’s face as he took an oath to rule justly and defend the Church of England of which he is the titular head before the holiest part of the ceremony when the Archbishop of Canterbury anointed his hands, his head and his chest with holy oil blessed in Jerusalem. After presenting Charles with symbols of royalty, Welby placed St Edward’s crown on his head, to the audience’s cries of “God Save the King”. After the church ceremony, Charles and Camilla set off in the 4-ton golden royal carriage built for George III, the last British colonial monarch in the United States, back to Buckingham Palace in a mile-long procession of 4,000 soldiers from 39 nations in ceremonial uniform.
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