The Location

Coronations in England for nearly 1,000 years have been held at Westminster Abbey. It was William the Conqueror who relocated the coronation to Westminster Abbey for his ceremony in 1066 as he wanted to be crowned close to the burial place of his predecessor, Edward the Confessor, to secure his right to rule as well as being close to the centre of government at Westminster Palace. His successors followed suit, which cemented the Abbey’s role in coronations from then on. However, St Peter’s Abbey (later Gloucester Cathedral) hosted a rushed coronation for Henry III in 1216 to lock in his claim to the throne before he enjoyed a full ceremony at Westminster in 1220.

Before 1066, coronations took place in a number of locations, depending on where the centre of government or royal court was based at that time. Old Minster in Winchester was the location of Edward the Confessor’s coronation, for instance, in 1042. That building was demolished and replaced by Winchester Cathedral in 1093. Edgar the Peaceful was crowned at Bath Abbey in Somerset in 973 and Canterbury Cathedral was the site for the coronation of King Harthnacnut in 1040. Meanwhile, in Scotland, before the crowns of England and Scotland were unified, coronations took place at Scone Abbey for 13 monarchs between 1124 and 1651.

In Westminster, the coronation takes place right at the centre of the Abbey, sitting in the intersection of the cross-shaped building with the coronation chair placed facing the High Altar. This area is called the Coronation Theatre and its most striking feature is the Cosmati Pavement. This mosaic floor was designed and constructed at the request of Henry III in 1268 as part of his rebuild of the Abbey. Its abstract design was unique for the era.

The coronation of william III and Marty II was the only joint coronation at Westminster Abbey