Marking the coronation ceremony of the British King Charles III, the King and along with his consort Queen Camilla was crowned by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby in a lavish coronation ceremony in London on Saturday.
Amidst a special function organized in ancient rite at the coronation ceremony held Saturday May 6 in a service at Westminster Abbey in London the 360-year-old St Edward’s Crown placed on the monarch’s head as he sat upon a 14th-century throne in Westminster Abbey.
The first Coronation service for nearly 70 years garnered global attention where the King was anointed with holy oil from Jerusalem and swore the oath before the Archbishop of Canterbury.
The king, who succeeded his mother when she died last September, was earlier presented with an array of historical regalia from golden orbs and bejewelled swords to a sceptre holding the world’s largest colourless cut diamond.
He became the 40th reigning sovereign to be crowned at Westminster Abbey, Britain’s coronation church since 1066.
In a ceremony attended by more than 100 heads of state among over 2,300 guests including US First Lady Jill Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, eight current and former British prime ministers, and celebrities, including Judi Dench, Emma Thompson and Lionel Richie.from the world, the trumpets sounded inside the medieval abbey and the congregation shouted “God save the king!”
The royal couple were cheered by tens of thousands of people gathered around the procession route from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey despite the rain.
Following the coronation, shortly after, Britain’s King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort travel in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey back to Buckingham Palace.
A gospel choir performed a newly composed “Alleluia,” and, for the first time, female clergy took part in the ceremony. It was also the first to include representatives of the Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, and Sikh faiths.
For 1,000 years and more, British monarchs have been crowned in grandiose ceremonies that confirm their right to rule. Charles is the 40th sovereign to be crowned in the abbey — and, at 74, the oldest.
The British royal family including heir to the throne Prince William, his wife Kate Middleton and their three children were all in attendance. Prince Harry attended alone without his wife Meghan and their children who remained in the US.
A 21-gun salute sounded at Hillsborough Castle in Co Down, the royal residence in Northern Ireland, to mark the coronation. The cannons were fired at the moment King Charles was crowned, by reservists from the 206 (Ulster) Battery, part of the 105th Regiment Royal Artillery.
The crown was made for Charles’s great-grandmother, Queen Mary, for George V’s coronation in 1911.
Congratulations
Meanwhile, Britain’s King Charles III and Queen Camilla were congratulated by top world leaders on their coronation.
They have also called for mutual ‘cooperation’ and ‘peace’ on the occasion of the coronation.
The leaders expressed goodwill towards the enduring friendship between the countries, work for stability and mutual benefit and proof of the enduring power of the British monarchy.
