Coronation date revealed for King Charles and the Queen Consort
It will be scaled back from previous coronations
The date for the King’s coronation has been announced, with the Queen Consort being crowned alongside Charles, Buckingham Palace has announced.
The ceremony will take place in Westminster Abbey on Saturday 6th May next year, eight months after the death of Queen Elizabeth.
The Palace said the ceremony will be “rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry” but also “reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future”.
Charles III will be anointed with holy oil, receive the orb, coronation ring and sceptre, be crowned with the majestic St Edward’s Crown and blessed during the historic ceremony.
Camilla will also be anointed with holy oil and crowned, just like the Queen Mother was when she was crowned Queen in 1937.
Announcement from Buckingham Palace
The Palace said: “Buckingham Palace is pleased to announce that the coronation of His Majesty The King will take place on Saturday 6th May 2023.
“The coronation ceremony will take place at Westminster Abbey, London, and will be conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
“The ceremony will see His Majesty King Charles III crowned alongside the Queen Consort.
“The coronation will reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry.”
Scaled back from previous coronations
It is understood that the ceremony will include the same core elements of the traditional service, which has retained a similar structure for more than 1,000 years, while also recognising the spirit of our times.
Charles’s coronation is expected to be on a smaller scale and shorter, with suggestions that it could last just one hour rather than over three.
It is expected to be more inclusive of multi-faith Britain than past coronations but will be an Anglican service.
Guest numbers will be reduced from 8,000 to around 2,000, with peers expected to wear suits and dresses instead of ceremonial robes, and a number of rituals, such as the presentation of gold ingots, axed.
Coronations have not traditionally been held on a weekend, with the late Queen’s taking place on a Tuesday. It has not yet been confirmed whether there will be any arrangements for a bank holiday.
Operation Golden Orb
Charles is expected to sign a proclamation formally declaring the date of the coronation at a meeting of the Privy Council later this year.
Plans for the major event are known by the codename Operation Golden Orb, which sets out the blueprint for the service and the pageantry surrounding it.
Charles will be anointed by the Archbishop and take his oath to “maintain and preserve inviolably the settlement of the Church of England, and the doctrine worship, discipline, and government thereof, as the law established in England”.
Camilla becomes Queen
The Queen Consort will be crowned and take her place on a throne as part of the coronation ceremony.
Elizabeth II delivered a masterstroke on the eve of her Platinum Jubilee in February 2022 when she endorsed the then-Duchess of Cornwall to be known as Queen Consort when the time came.
Royal aides insisted, when she married Charles, that Camilla did not want to be queen and said originally that she “intended” to be known instead as Princess Consort – the first in British history – when Charles acceded to the throne.
The wife of a king automatically becomes a Queen and only a change in legislation would prevent her from doing so, but there had been much controversy over whether Camilla would use the title, being Charles’s former mistress who became his spouse.
The royal website used to declare: “A Queen Consort is crowned with the King, in a similar but simpler ceremony.”
But, following Charles’s marriage to Camilla, it added the get-out clause “unless decided otherwise”.
The funeral of Queen Elizabeth II
The State Gun Carriage carries the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard with the Imperial State Crown and the Sovereign's orb and sceptre, as it leaves Westminster Hall for the State Funeral at Westminster Abbey
King Charles III, the Princess Royal, the Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex walk behind the coffin as it moves to Westminster Abbey
The State Gun Carriage carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II
Members of the clergy wait for the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II to arrive at Westminster Abbey
King Charles III salutes the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II as it is carried into Westminster Abbey
King Charles III and the Queen Consort in front of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II during her State Funeral
(front row) King Charles III, the Queen Consort, the Princess Royal, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke of York, the Earl of Wessex, the Countess of Wessex, (second row) the Duke of Sussex, the Duchess of Sussex, Princess Beatrice, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Lady Louise Windsor, and (third row) Samuel Chatto, Arthur Chatto, Lady Sarah Chatto and Daniel Chatto in front of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II
Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby speaking during the State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II
An aerial view of The Queen's coffin as the procession after Her Majesty's funeral makes its way through London
Her Majesty The Queen's coffin during the procession after her funeral in London
The Queen's coffin being pulled along The Mall during the procession after Her Majesty's funeral
Buckingham Palace staff pay their respects as the Queen's coffin and procession pass by following Her Majesty's funeral
The State Gun Carriage carries the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard with the Imperial State Crown and the Sovereign's orb and sceptre, in the Ceremonial Procession following her State Funeral at Westminster Abbey.
The Royal family watch as the funeral procession reaches Wellington Arch and Queen Elizabeth II's coffin is transferred from the gun carriage to the state hearse
The Queen's coffin reaches Wellington Arch ahead of the journey to Windsor
The funeral moves to Windsor
The Queen's coffin and funeral procession arriving at Windsor
Crowds gather by the famous Long Walk at Windsor for The Queen's funeral procession
King Charles lll leads The Queen's funeral procession as it arrives at Windsor
The Queen's fell pony, Emma, standing by Her Majesty's funeral procession as it arrives at Windsor
The Royal family at the Queen's Committal service at St George's chapel in Windsor
Arriving at the funeral
Prince George enters Westminster Abbey
The Queen consort, Princess of Wales, Prince George and Princess Charlotte arrive at Queen Elizabeth's funeral
Funeral Guests
Former Prime Ministers, Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, arrive at Westminster Abbey ahead of The Queen's funeral.
Prime Minister Liz Truss arriving at Westminster Abbey for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth ll
US President Joe Biden walks through Westminster Abbey to take his seat at The Queen's funeral.
The Dean of Westminster, David Hoyle, greets US President Joe Biden and Jill Biden ahead of the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife arriving at Westminster Abbey for The Queen's funeral
Guests begin to arrive for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, held at Westminster Abbey in London.
Ahead of the Funeral
A quiet and still Buckingham Palace ahead of Her Majesty The Queen's state funeral in London
Guests arriving and taking their seats at Westminster Abbey ahead of the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
Crowds gathering in central London ahead of the funeral of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth ll
Police officers in central London ahead of the funeral of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth ll
Orders of Service on seats ahead of the funeral of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, at Westminster Abbey
Before the funeral
On the eve of her funeral, the royal family released a previously unseen photo of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth ll, that was taken to mark the Monarch's Platinum Jubilee.
Before the funeral the Queen lay in state in Westminster Hall. Thousand of people queued day and night to walk past the coffin and pay their respects.
King Charles, The Princess Royal, The Duke of York and The Earl of Wessex stood vigil around the coffin for a spell on on of the days.
On Saturday 17th September, The Queen's grandchildren, led by Prince William, held a vigil around their grandmother's coffin during her lying-in-state at Westminster Hall.
On Friday 16th September, King Charles lll led a vigil of The Queen's children around their mother's coffin lying-in-state at Westminster Hall
Queen Elizabeth II
There can be little doubt the biggest story of 2022 was the loss of the UK's longest-serving monarch, her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The Royal family confirmed the sad news on the evening of 8th September.
Huge numbers of tributes were paid to the late Queen as the country entered into a period of mourning. The new King paid tribute to his 'dear mama' in his first specch as monarch.
Queen Elizabeth II's coffin, draped in the Royal Standard, was carried on a horse-drawn gun carriage during the ceremonial procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, London, where Her Majesty lay in state.
As the Queen died at Balmoral in Scotland, her coffin had to be brought back to London, with the RAF flying her back.
After her death, the Queen lay at rest in St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh for a day so that people could pay their respects.
King Charles and his siblings stood vigil in the Cathedral.