Even better than an TV’s The Crown: The episode of real thing!
But it’s so fragile even the Queen can’t touch it... just one of the startling facts on a day of pomp and ceremony
THE Scottish parliament is not yet a quarter of a century old but it has a royal heritage that dates back centuries.
And all those years of pomp and pageantry were on glorious display as the Crown of Scotland made its way to parliament, to be placed before the Queen of the United Kingdom.
The Queen’s official opening of each new parliament has become one of the great traditions of Scottish public life – much like the summer garden parties she throws at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
So yesterday, as the crown was removed from Edinburgh Castle for the first time in five years, there was plenty of colour to brighten up the city’s grey autumnal sky.
The gold crown was received by the Duke of Hamilton and Brandon at the castle, then made its way to the parliament, accompanied by the Pipes and Drums of The
Royal Highland Fusiliers.
The crown entered Holyrood via Queensberry House
– a historic building now part of the complex. It was escorted into the house courtyard by the Lord Lyon King of Arms, Officers of Arms, the Royal Company of Arch
‘Checked and ready for its starring moment’
ers – a ceremonial body that has acted as the sovereign’s bodyguard in Scotland since King George IV’s trip in 1822 – and six young people chosen from youth organisations.
Despite playing such an important role, the priceless artefact was only away from its usual home for a matter of hours – and even the Queen did not touch it.
Only a small team of trained staff at Historic Environment Scotland (HES) ever handle the ‘incredibly fragile’ crown, and only then with protective gloves.
The last person to actually wear it was King Charles II, at his coronation at Scone in 1651.
The gold crown is part of the Honours of Scotland, the oldest surviving crown jewels in the British Isles.
Remodelled for King James V in 1540, it is encrusted with 22 gemstones, 20 precious stones and 68
Scottish pearls. Kept on display in the Crown Room at Edinburgh Castle, it usually only leaves for the opening of the Scottish parliament every five years.
Once it was cleaned and polished every year, but is now only given ‘a light buffing’ before official duties.
This year, preparations took place well in advance to reduce any risk of Covid-19 transmission.
A brass ‘dummy’ crown weighing the same – 3lb 1 oz – was created this year for use in rehearsals, replacing the doughnut-shaped sandbag used previously.
The crown was signed over to the Duke of Hamilton, 43, Scotland’s foremost noble, by the Commissioners of the Regalia at Edinburgh Castle in a short ceremony. The Duke carried it into the debating chamber on a velvet cushion and placed it on a cloth of gold on a table in front of the Queen.
Untouched throughout the ceremony, it was later delivered back to Edinburgh Castle and inspected before being put back on display.
Kathy Richmond, head of collections and applied conservation at HES, said: ‘The crown is checked in advance of the ceremony, to ensure it is in good condition and ready for its starring moment.
‘It is processed down to parliament and it is back on display before the end of the day for visitors at Edinburgh Castle to enjoy.’
Like the crown, Scotland’s mace was also brought into the Holyrood chamber yesterday, and placed on its own table, between the Queen and MSPs. The words engraved on the mace are the qualities the people hoped for in their parliamentarians.
As the Queen pointed out, those words are: ‘Wisdom, Justice, Compassion and Integrity.’
The mace, a permanent feature in the debating chamber, was a gift from the Queen at the first opening ceremony in July 1999.
However, its roots go even further back – the gold on the mace was panned in the streams and rivers of Scotland. The inlaid gold band is supposed to represent the relationship between the parliament, its people and the land.
The other words engraved on it are: ‘There shall be a Scottish Parliament – The Scotland Act 1998.’