King Charles III coronation details revealed by Palace
The Coronation ceremony for the monarchs of England and Scotland first, Great Britain and ultimately the UK can be traced back more than 1,000 years. Despite its roots in medieval history, the Coronation still matters today, an expert stressed as the historic day nears.
One of the events that cemented a need for it in modern Britain was the abdication crisis, according to Dr George Gross, Visiting Research Fellow in Theology at King’s College London.
The decision by Edward VIII to abdicate in December 1936, less than one year after his accession to the throne and before his Coronation, in order to marry American socialite and divorcee Wallis Simpson shook the country and the Firm to the core and placed in the direct line of succession Princess Elizabeth.
Speaking about the significance the Coronation of King George VI acquired following the abdication of his elder brother, Dr Gross told Express.co.uk: “This absolutely helped cement this ceremony, because it marked a differentiation between Edward VIII and George VI.
“So there is the view that, even if it’s not technically the case, an uncrowned monarch is not fully a monarch in Britain, even though we have that ‘the King is dead, long live the King’ [saying].
King Charles’s Coronation will take place on May 6 (Image: GETTY)
The Queen was crowned in June 1953 (Image: GETTY)
“So whilst Charles is, of course, fully King at the moment, there is that feeling that to be fully king you need to be crowned.”
With his decision to relinquish his constitutional role, Edward VIII became free to marry Mrs Simpson – but lived a life in exile between the American continent and France.
He was given the title of Duke of Windsor and was allowed to return to Britain only on a few occasions throughout his life.
These did not include the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in June 1953.
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King Charles acceded to the throne on September 8 (Image: GETTY)
While the abdication crisis is a strong reason why the Coronation still matters today, Dr Gross listed more reasons in favour of the historic event taking place on May 6.
The public, he argued, still has an appetite for this type of services and events, carried out with the typically British pomp and ceremony.
He said: “I think the Queen’s funeral and the fascination with that from across the world, both for her as a remarkable sovereign but also for the whole ceremony and the way we do that, also showed the public remains interested, the viewing figures were extraordinarily high. People are clearly interested, that’s also why these events are still taking place.”
Moreover, the service itself held at Westminster Abbey includes the oath, which Dr Gross described as the “contractual moment” between the public and the sovereign.
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King Edward VIII abdicated in December 1936 (Image: GETTY)
Dr Gross called the service the moment during which the sovereign “marries” the country, explaining: “In a sense, when the previous monarch dies and the new monarch becomes King or Queen, they get effectively engaged with the country.
“You can almost see the Coronation service as the marriage, the formalisation of that relationship.”
He added: “We still have judges and other figures who still swear oaths, that’s the bit that binds the monarch, and there is a crucial moment in the service during which the audience is asked if they recognise the monarch as their sovereign.
“Of course no audience has ever replied no in history, but nevertheless they are still asked, and this is a big moment in this service which marks a difference with Coronations of tsars in Russia in former history; our audience is asked, so that’s the contractual nature.”
King Charles delivered his first address as the monarch on September 9 (Image: GETTY)
Dr Gross also touched upon the cost of living crisis still raging in the UK and how it can coexist with a lavish service for a monarch.
He recalled this isn’t the first Coronation in modern history to be held at a time of financial struggle, citing the service which crowned King George and Queen Elizabeth in 1937 as an example. That event, he said, took place during the Great Depression.
He added: “I think one has to be very sensitive to it, and I think they will be, it needs to be done very carefully, but that’s not a reason for not having a ceremony.
“And of course it can be a huge financial benefit, there is huge gain to be made, it’s going to put Britain on show.”
Dr Gross is leading with Dr David Crankshaw, Lecturer in the History of Early Modern Christianity at King’s, research on the “British Coronations Project c.973–present”, a comprehensive analysis of what these events reveal about our past, our present and about ourselves.
