Penny Mordaunt said she wanted to offer a powerful message to girls and young women with her ceremonial role in the King’s Coronation.
And the Tory MP hoped to make a statement in the same way that former Commons Speaker Betty Boothroyd did for her generation.
As Lord President of the Council, Ms Mordaunt bore the Sword of State and presented the Jewelled Sword of Offering to Charles – the first time it had been done by a woman.
The 50-year-old, who is also the Leader of the House, sparked huge interest on social media by wearing a custom-made teal outfit with a matching cape and headband with gold feather embroidery.
Ms Mordaunt tells Kirsty Wark on BBC Two documentary Lives Well Lived she had received hundreds of pictures of herself from May’s historic Westminster Abbey ceremony.
“I think sometimes the power of an image, seeing a woman doing a particular role and being strong, has a huge impact on the aspirations of young women,” she said.
The Portsmouth North MP also spoke about the impact “confident and grounded” Baroness Boothroyd, the first female Speaker of the House of Commons, had on young women.
She died in February, aged 93.
“She taught us to make every day count and it didn’t matter if you were Conservative, Liberal Democrat, SNP or Labour,” said
Ms Mordaunt.
“She was a megastar. We’d come away either laughing or she’d given us a fantastic piece of advice.”
● Lives Well Lived, BBC Two, Saturday, 7pm
