King Charles III was crowned Saturday at London’s Westminster Abbey, in a lavish ceremony filled with the pomp and pageantry of a ceremony steeped in 1,000 years of tradition.
In a history-making moment in front of the hundreds in the congregation, and millions watching worldwide, the Archbishop of Canterbury slowly placed the 360-year-old bejewelled St. Edward’s Crown on King Charles’ head as he sat on a 14th century throne.
Fanfare sounded and the congregation shouted “God save the King!” as Charles became the 40th reigning sovereign to be crowned at the Abbey, after being presented with symbolic regalia, including the golden orb and jewel-encrusted sceptres.
Charles, 74, automatically succeeded his mother as new sovereign upon her death last year, but the coronation is a ceremony at which the monarch symbolically receives the crown.
The traditional Anglican ceremony also saw the King swear oaths to govern justly and uphold the Church of England, of which he is considered the Supreme Head.
Then he was hidden from view by a screen for the most sacred part of the ceremony, the anointing, during which the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby used holy oil consecrated in Jerusalem to anoint the King on his hands, head, and chest.
During the formal two-hour service, Charles' second wife Camilla, 75, was also anointed, crowned and enthroned.
The service was attended by more than 2,200 guests that included dignitaries such as heads of state, members of the Royal Family, foreign royals, charity workers, and celebrities.
Among them were Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Gov.-Gen Mary Simon, French President Emmanuel Macron, U.S. First Lady Jill Biden, and celebrities such as Katy Perry, Emma Thompson, Maggie Smith, Lionel Richie and Judi Dench.
Also in the Abbey were the heir to the throne and his family, Charles’ eldest son Prince William and his wife Kate, and their three children.
Near the end of the coronation, William, 40, knelt before his father, pledging loyalty to the King as his “liege man of life and limb,” and kissed him on the cheek.
However, there was no formal role for Charles’ younger son, Prince Harry, who attended but arrived alone.
Harry, who has been making headlines for his public falling out with his family, sat in the third row behind working members of the Royal Family. His wife Meghan and their children remained at home in California. His older child Archie turns four on Saturday.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, leaves Westminster Abbey following King Charles III and Queen Camilla coronation ceremony in London, Saturday, May 6, 2023. (Toby Melville, Pool via AP)
Prince Andrew, Charles’ brother, who was forced to quit royal duties because of his friendship with late U.S. financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, also sat in the third row.
Neither Harry nor Andrew appeared on the Buckingham Palace balcony to wave to the crowds.
After the service, the King and Queen departed in the four-tonne Gold State Coach built for George III on their way back to the Palace in a procession of 4,000 military personnel from 39 nations.
A royal salute followed, as well as three cheers from the thousands of assembled service personnel, and then there was a scaled-down flypast from military aircraft as the newly crowned King and Queen waved from the Buckingham Palace balcony to the sea of people below.
Despite the ancient undertones of the coronation rite, there were some new additions to the service, in an effort to present a forward-looking institution at a time the monarchy is attempting to appear relevant in an increasingly fractured Britain.
In keeping with the theme of respecting the past while moving forward, the liturgy included “new and revised elements and texts that reflect this theme of serving others, as well as recognising and celebrating the vibrant diversity of our nation today,” said a Lambeth Palace spokesperson.
King Charles also sought to have a less extravagant coronation than that of his mother’s in 1953, with a shorter ceremony, a smaller guest list, and a procession that wrapped up more quickly.
Some of the new additions to reflect a more modern monarchy included:
â™” Female clergy took part in the ceremony for the first time.
â™” Representatives and leaders from other faiths actively participated, including those of Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh traditions.
♔ Gospel singers, handpicked from the Freedom Choir, performed a new composition “Alleluia.” The choir had previously sang Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me” at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding five years ago.
♔ After William pledged loyalty to the King, the Archbishop invited the congregation to swear “true allegiance” to the monarch. He also invited those watching at home to pay homage, too, although that part of the liturgy was toned down after it was criticized for being tone-deaf. Instead, the Archbishop said the homage was an invitation rather than an expectation and anyone watching could either have a moment of private reflection or say “God save the King.”
Outside Buckingham Palace, the tens of thousands of well-wishers ignored the pouring rain to congregate on the streets in time for the Royal Family to make their balcony appearance. Many of the royal fans had camped out for days in advance, under tarps, and tents, seeking to be on the front lines of history.
"When I was a young girl, I was able to watch (the coronation of) Queen Elizabeth on television in Hartford, Connecticut, at a friend's house because we had no TV," retired U.S. teacher Peggy Jane Laver, 79, told Reuters. "So I'm thrilled to be here for the coronation in person."
As the King and Queen appeared on the balcony to greet the sea of people that had gathered outside the palace, the more minimal flypast saw the Royal Air Force aerobatic team zoom overhead, leaving behind a trail of red, white and blue.
King Charles III and Queen Camilla, right, appear from the balcony of Buckingham Palace with members of the royal family including Prince William, third from left, following their coronation ceremony, in London, Saturday, May 6, 2023.(Marc Aspland/Pool Photo via AP)
“No other country could put on such a dazzling display,” Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in a tweet, adding that it “is not just a spectacle.”
Once the day wrapped up outside the Palace, however, some frustration boiled over as people attempted to leave the area, but were prevented from doing so by the blockades as the crowds slowly and deliberately were asked to exit from specific departure points.
“Let us out, let us out, let us out,” members of the crowd in the middle of the Mall boulevard started chanting to the police on site, with one woman yelling that she feared she would be crushed, calling for medical attention.
While the Mall was filled with those celebrating the King, there were also those who gathered not to honour the monarchy but to demonstrate against it.
Some anti-monarchy protesters saw “Operation Golden Orb” as an opportunity to protest the monarchy -- and the multimillion-pound coronation -- during a cost-of-living crisis in Britain that has seen some people struggle to pay cover their food and energy bills.
On Saturday, hundreds of republicans protested under the banners “Not My King,” and a handful of them were arrested.
Protesters hold placards as people gather for the coronation of Britain's King Charles III at Westminster Abbey in central London, Saturday, May 6, 2023. (Piroschka van de Wouw/Pool via AP)
The anti-monarchy group, Republic, which insisted it would continue to hold demonstrations Saturday despite the new anti-protest laws that were pushed through just before the coronation, said six of their members were arrested, including their chief executive.
More than a dozen members of the environmental group Just Stop Oil were also arrested, The Associated Press reported.
The arrests sparked criticism from Human Rights Watch, which likened the detentions to “something you would expect to see in Moscow, not London.”
Ahead of the coronation, the Metropolitan Police Force said Saturday would be the city’s largest one-day mobilization of officers in decades.
The Royal Family has garnered major international attention for everything from the death of Queen Elizabeth II, to royal weddings, births, and now the coronation of the 40th sovereign.
But polls have suggested a decline in support for the royals, not just in the U.K. but also in Canada, with more than half of those surveyed suggesting it’s time to reconsider our ties with the monarchy, or more than half of those surveyed by another firm saying they don’t support recognizing Charles as King.
Neil Edward, 72, a retired salesman who travelled from southwest England to watch, told Reuters that he felt a mixture of pride and nostalgia, along with a bit of sadness that the coronation might be the last big royal event he attends.
"Without them, I don't know how we would come together to celebrate big events like this," he said.
With reports from The Associated Press and Reuters
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