New details about King Charles III's coronation have been revealed by Buckingham Palace.
It's the first coronation in the royal family since 1953 when Queen Elizabeth II was officially crowned — and just the second coronation to be televised.
Here are the key things we know (and the things we don't) about how it will unfold.
When and where is King Charles's coronation?
Buckingham Palace has announced that the coronation of King Charles III will be held on May 6, 2023.
It will be held at Westminster Abbey — the same place as:
- The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh's wedding
- The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's wedding
- The Princess Royal's wedding
- Queen Elizabeth II's funeral
- Diana, Princess of Wales's funeral
- Every coronation since 1066 (38 of them, to be exact)
Lots of people speculated the coronation would take place on June 2, which would coincide with the 70th anniversary of the coronation of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, but the decision was made to hold it earlier.
Because the coronation has been scheduled for a Saturday, it's unlikely there will be an extra public holiday (or bank holiday) for the occasion.
An interesting fact — King Charles's coronation will be on the same day as his grandson Archie's fourth birthday — the oldest son of Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
Who will be there?
If the guest list for the King's coronation is similar to his mother's, we can expect to see representatives from the Houses of Parliament, prime ministers, religious leaders and representatives from other Commonwealth countries.
University College London's Constitution Unit says the government will ultimately be in control of who's on the guest list and who isn't — not King Charles (although he can have some input).
Because it's been so long since the Queen's coronation, and so much has changed, we're not sure yet how much tradition the rest of the royal family will stick to.
For example, it's not clear just yet whether Prince William, the heir to the throne, will play a specific role on the day.
King Charles was only four years old at the time of his mother's coronation — he was at the ceremony but did not play a major role in any of the formalities.
Princess Anne was only two years old and didn't attend her mother's coronation because she was too young, and the Queen's third and fourth children, Andrew and Edward, weren't born yet.
It's also not confirmed whether Prince Harry, King Charles's youngest son and fifth in line to the throne, will be involved.
What happens on the day?
The Palace says more details will be revealed closer to the date, but that the coronation will "reflect the monarch's role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry".
We know that the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, will minister the ceremony.
King Charles will take the coronation oath and there are religious rituals to be carried out.
The Queen's coronation oath went like this:
Archbishop: Will you solemnly promise and swear to govern the Peoples of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon, and of your Possessions and the other Territories to any of them belonging or pertaining, according to their respective laws and customs?
Queen: I solemnly promise so to do.
Archbishop: Will you to your power cause Law and Justice, in Mercy, to be executed in all your judgements?
Queen: I will.
Archbishop: Will you to the utmost of your power maintain the Laws of God and the true profession of the Gospel? Will you to the utmost of your power maintain in the United Kingdom the Protestant Reformed Religion established by law? Will you maintain and preserve inviolably the settlement of the Church of England, and the doctrine, worship, discipline, and government thereof, as by law established in England? And will you preserve unto the Bishops and Clergy of England, and to the Churches there committed to their charge, all such rights and privileges, as by law do or shall appertain to them or any of them?
Queen: I will.
The wording might change for the King's coronation — it has varied across the generations of the royal family.
How will it be different from Queen Elizabeth II's coronation?
It's expected to be a lot shorter, for a start.
King Charles has reportedly requested a more scaled-back affair than previous coronations out of concern that it could seem out of touch with people across the UK battling a serious cost-of-living crisis.
Core elements of coronations gone by are expected to be included, but skipping certain rituals is expected to reduce the time of the ceremony from three hours (the length of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation) to about one hour.
Another key difference is the crowning of the Queen Consort.
Prince Philip was not crowned or anointed at the Queen's coronation ceremony, but Camilla will be crowned on the same day as King Charles.
It's not an identical process — the ceremonial side of Camilla's crowning is set to be shorter and simpler than her husband's.
What happens afterwards?
Well, we're not entirely sure what the short-term timeline looks like.
After Queen Elizabeth II's coronation, she appeared on the Buckingham Palace balcony with her family.
She also famously made a speech to the public that was broadcast around the world:
"I have in sincerity pledged myself to your service, as so many of you are pledged to mine. Throughout all my life and with all my heart I shall strive to be worthy of your trust."
There's no confirmation at this stage of how or when we'll hear from King Charles or Camilla immediately after the coronation.
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