King Charles III’s coronation plans have been unveiled.
Buckingham Palace revealed the date of the crowning ceremony for the new King on Tuesday, announcing that the event will take place Saturday, May 6, 2023, at Westminster Abbey in London, where British monarchs have been crowned for the last 900 years.
The date is earlier than widely speculated — many believed that King Charles would pick June 2 as a tribute to the day whenQueen Elizabethhad her coronation in 1953.
“The Coronation will reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry,” Buckingham Palace said.
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King Charles III.Hugo Burnand-Pool/Getty
“Charles became King Charles the moment his mother died, but the coronation is to do with the job and being the monarch in the eyes of all the people,” royal historian Robert Lacey tells PEOPLE of the upcoming service.
King Charles' coronation will be shorter and simpler than the late Queen’s ceremony of 1953, PEOPLE understands.
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While 8,000 people packed into stands forQueen Elizabeth’s three-hour coronation in 1953, her son willreportedly trim the guest listto Westminster Abbey’s actual capacity of 2,000 for an hour-long ceremony.
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Though Charles has allegedly nixed someancient ritualsto meet the modern world, Lacey expects that the new sovereign will still emphasize the religious significance of the coronation ritual, which is, at heart, a spiritual service.
“I would imagine the coronation ceremony will have much more interfaith quality to it,” the historian adds, pointing to the King’s deep interest in interfaith relations.
Though Elizabeth became Queen following her father’s death on Feb. 6, 1952, her coronation was not held until 16 months later. On June 3, 1953, Queen Elizabeth wasformally crownedat Westminster Abbey in a grand ceremony that drew 27 million television viewers — understandably so, as the first coronation ever to be broadcast. Her husband,Prince Philip, was instrumental in organizing the investiture as chair of the Coronation Committee and pushed for it to be televised as a way to bring the monarchy to the masses.
Prince Philip bows to his wife, Queen Elizabeth, at her Coronation in 1953.Fox Photos/Getty Images
The three-hour ceremony commenced before guests including then-Prime Minister Winston Churchill, representatives from 129 countries, members of other royal families and the future King. Charles, who was just 4 at the time, watched as his mother solemnly took the Coronation Oath, making him the first heir apparent of a Queen to attend a coronation.
The Queen Mother, Prince Charles and Princess Margaret.Topical Press Agency/Getty Images
The Archbishop of Canterbury bequeathed the new Queen withSt. Edward’s Crown. Other pieces of the Coronation Regalia were also used during the ritual, including the Sovereign’s Sceptre with Cross, the Sovereign’s Orb and the Coronation Spoon.
Unlike previous coronations,Queen Elizabethwas the only person crowned.Prince Philip, then 31, was not a King Consort like the Queen Mother had been aQueen Consort— instead, the proper title for the husband of a ruling monarch is “Prince Consort.” However, following the Archbishop of Canterbury, Philip was the first person to pay homage to the new monarch.
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Queen Elizabeth in her Coronation carriage.Fox Photos/Getty Images
Departing Westminster Abbey, the Queen swapped the nearly 5-lb. St. Edward’s Crown for theImperial State Crown, lighter at 3 lb. Her gilded carriage took a winding route from the Abbey to Buckingham Palace, allowing for the maximum amount of people to get a glimpse of the new monarch.
During the radio broadcast of her coronation speech, the Queen pledged her lifelong devotion to the people of the Commonwealth.
“The ceremonies you have seen today are ancient, and some of their origins are veiled in the mists of the past,” Elizabeth said. “But their spirit and their meaning shine through the ages never, perhaps, more brightly than now. I have in sincerity pledged myself to your service, as so many of you are pledged to mine. Throughout all my life and with all my heart I shall strive to be worthy of your trust.”
Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty
The exciting day ended with the traditional appearance of the royal family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace. A Royal Air Force flypast flew over the Mall, despite rain clouds.
After the sun went down,fireworks lit up the London skyover the Thames.
source: people.com
