It’s the first to take place on a Saturday since 1902
King Charles III’s coronation will be held on Saturday 6th May 2023, Buckingham Palace has announced.
Camilla, Queen Consort, will also be crowned at the same time during the historic event, which is the first to take place in nearly 70 years following the late Queen’s long reign.
Charles ascended to the throne following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, on the 8th September. It marks the formal investiture of a monarch’s regal power.
The ceremony will “reflect the monarch’s role today”, according to a statement from Buckingham Palace. It also said the coronation will “look towards the future while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry.”
Charles will be 74 at the time of the ceremony, the oldest a new monarch has ever been crowned.
Why was 6th May chosen as the coronation date?
Some initial reports suggested King Charles’ coronation would be held around the same date as his mother’s 1953 coronation, which took place on Tuesday 2nd June – but an earlier date has been chosen.
6th May was reportedly chosen in consultation with the government, the Church of England and the Royal Household.
Although Buckingham Palace has not announced the exact reason for the May 6th date, there are some symbolic references to family members.
Firstly, the coronation of George VI, the King’s grandfather, was in May.
6th May is also the birthday of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s son Archie, the King’s grandson, who will be turning four on the day.
It’s also the same date as the late Queen’s sister, Princess Margaret’s wedding anniversary.
Will there be a bank holiday?
Usually, coronations have been held on weekdays. As King Charles III’s will be on a Saturday, it’s currently unclear if there will be a bank holiday day for the event.
May already has two bank holidays. The first is Monday 1st May 2023, and the second is Monday 29th May – although bank holiday days have been moved previously inline with Royal events.
This year, May’s second bank holiday was moved to Thursday 2nd June to extend the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, where the bank holiday day was Friday 3rd June.
Where will the coronation be held?
The ceremony will take place at Westminster Abbey and will be conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, following tradition. Since 1066, the ceremony has almost always been carried out by the Archbishop.
However, breaking with tradition, this is the first time that the ceremony will take place on a weekend, since Edward VI’s in 1902.
During the ceremony – which has the codename Operation Golden Orb – the King will be anointed with holy oil, receive the orb, coronation ring and sceptre, be blessed and then consecrated by the Archbishop. Monarchs traditionally sit in the 14th-century King Edward’s Chair, and he will be crowned with the St Edward’s crown.
Camilla will also be anointed and crowned, as was the Queen Mother when she was crowned Queen in 1937.
Who is invited to the King’s Coronation?
The palace hasn’t comment further on the size of the event, amid reports the King would prefer a toned-down affair with reduced costs, considering the cost of living crisis. There have also been suggestions of it lasting just one hour, with around 2,000 dignitaries in attendance, compared to the three-hour-long ceremony and 8,000 signatures at Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation.
The late Queen’s coronation took place on 2nd June 1953, and was the first to be televised which was a move encouraged by Prince Philip, in order to help modernise the Royal Family and ensure popularity with the public remained. It was deemed to be a success after attracting a record-breaking number of viewers from across the world. Charles was also at the event watching, aged just four.
The Duke of Norfolk, who as earl marshal is responsible for organising the ceremony. Hr has reportedly been tasked with making it a simpler, shorter and more diverse ceremony that reflects modern Britain, according to the Mail on Sunday. “The King has stripped back a lot of the coronation in recognition that the world has changed in the past 70 years,” a source told the paper.
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A Vale Traditionalist 
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