King Charles III will be crowned on 6 May 2023 at Westminster Abbey in London with his wife Queen Consort Camilla in a ceremony “looking to the future”Buckingham Palace announced on Tuesday.
Eight months after the death of Queen Elizabeth II, who died on September 8 at the age of 96, the religious ceremony will be led as tradition dictates by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. Charles III, 73, will be “Anointed, Blessed and Sanctified” of the spiritual head of the Church of England, of which the monarch is supreme governor.
“The coronation will reflect the monarch’s role today and look to the future, while being rooted in the long tradition and pomp of the monarchy”Buckingham Palace said in a statement.
The oldest king to ascend the throne
The coronation of British monarchs has taken place for 900 years in Westminster Abbey. Since the Norman Conquest in 1066, the ceremony has almost always been performed by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Became Queen on 6 February 1952 on the death of her father George VI, Elizabeth II was crowned 16 months later. For the first time, the ceremony was televised and watched by 27 million Britons, for a population of 36 million at the time. It had lasted more than three hours in front of 8,251 guests.
In line with Charles’ desire for a strict monarchy, the ceremony was to be shorter, smaller and cheaper, but also more representative of the diversity of modern Britain. Queen Consort Camilla – a title intended by Elizabeth II for her son’s second wife – will also be crowned during the ceremony, which preparations are known as“Operation Golden Orb”.
Charles is the oldest king to ascend the throne in the history of the British monarchy, following the seven-decade reign of Elizabeth II, who celebrated her platinum jubilee last June. Charles III will finally receive his royal attributes, especially a scepter, then the crown, placed on his head by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
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