REVEALED: The full secrets of King13 Charles’s slimmed down Coronation
Ceremony cut from four hours to just over one – while guest list will be slashed to 2,000 Lords may ditch ermine robes and wear suits instead Ancient rituals axed – but Gold State Coach will be used for the procession
KING CHARLES’S cut-down Coronation is set to last little more than an hour, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. The service at Westminster Abbey next year will have fewer arcane rituals and be significantly shorter than the 1953 ceremony when Queen Elizabeth was crowned. King Charles is understood to want his Coronation to set the tone for a streamlined and modern monarchy, while retaining some of the pomp and majesty that stunned the world during the Queen’s lying-in-state and funeral ceremonies.
The MoS can reveal that under a blueprint known as Operation Golden Orb: l The Coronation ceremony is set to be dramatically cut in length from more than three hours to just over an hour; l The guest list for the ceremony is likely to be slashed from 8,000 to 2,000, with hundreds of nobles and parliamentarians missing out; l Discussions have been held about a more relaxed
dress code, with peers possibly allowed to wear lounge suits instead of ceremonial robes; l Ancient and time-consuming rituals – including presenting the monarch with gold ingots – will be axed to save time; l Prince William is likely to play an important role in helping to plan the ceremony.
The Queen’s Coronation was based largely on that of her father, King George VI, in 1937, which in turn was modelled on that of King George V in 1911.
But Palace insiders say the Duke of Norfolk, who as Earl Marshal is masterminding the Coronation, has been tasked with preparing a simpler, shorter and more diverse ceremony that reflects modern Britain.
‘The King has stripped back a lot of the Coronation in recognition that the world has changed in the past 70 years,’ one well-placed source said last night.
In 1953, some 8,000 peers and commoners spent more than three hours crammed into the Abbey on makeshift benches and improvised gantries. In contrast,
Charles’s Coronation is expected to last little more than an hour, with only 2,000 guests and dignitaries.
Among those set to miss out will be MPs and peers who are likely to be told that they cannot be guaranteed a place.
It will be more religiously and culturally diverse. While the 1953 Coronation required the Queen to make various outfit changes, a source said: ‘King Charles is unlikely to do the same and the language will be adapted so as to be understandable to a more modern audience.’
Some key rituals will be retained, including the anointing of the monarch, who will swear to be the ‘defender of the faith’, not ‘defender of faith’ as previously speculated. The 1762 Gold State Coach, which was refurbished at great expense for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, will also once again be part of the Coronation procession.
Other lengthy traditions are likely to be axed. In the final weeks of 1952, the ancient Court of Claims was set up in Westminster to assess which members of the gentry had the right to perform certain roles.
Over a period of several weeks the court, led by senior judges in England and Scotland, heard 21 claims.
The Earl of Shrewsbury was appointed to carry a white wand as a symbol of his office, while the Dean of Westminster was allowed to instruct the Queen in the rites and ceremonies. Winston Churchill, then Prime Minister and Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, a ceremonial position dating back to the 12th Century, presented claims from various barons of the ports to carry the canopy over the head of the Queen.
The MoS understands that the Court of Claims is set to be scrapped in the run-up to the ceremony, likely to be in the summer.
The traditional presentation of gold to the monarch is also likely to disappear. In 1952, it was reported that ‘an ingot or wedge of gold of a pound weight’ was presented to the monarch by the Lord Great Chamberlain before being placed upon the altar. A source said: ‘In an age where people are feeling the pinch, this is not going to happen.’
Velvet chairs made especially for the 1953 Coronation are likely to be replaced by standard seating.
Diplomats and other male guests invited to the 1953 Coronation were instructed that ‘knee breeches’ were in order, while women were advised to wear headgear, preferably tiaras.
The dress code next year will be less prescriptive.
Discussions had taken place on relaxing the requirement for peers to wear so-called coronation robes. A cloak of crimson velvet, the rank of the peer is indicated by rows of ermine – a stoat’s white winter fur and black tail end – on
the cape. Lieutenant Colonel Anthony Mather, who started the plan for King Charles’s Coronation – which has since been updated – told The Mail on Sunday: ‘No Coronation robes. Give them to a museum where they belong. It’s not going to be a tweed jacket and pair of jeans – but morning suit or lounge suit.’
Other experts speculated that peers could don their ermine-trimmed parliamentary robes instead.
Outlining how the guest list will be reduced, Lt Col Mather added: ‘‘There are about 700 peers, well they won’t all be there,’ he said. ‘The same with MPs: they won’t all be present because he’s not being crowned for them. He’s being crowned for the people.’
Seventy years ago, Prince Philip was instrumental in chairing the Privy Council Coronation Committee that oversaw many of the ceremonial arrangements for the big day.
A great moderniser, he agreed that the service should be televised. This time, as heir to the throne, Prince William is expected to play an important role on the committee.
Meanwhile, as The Mail on Sunday revealed in February, Camilla will be crowned Queen Consort alongside her husband.
The Duke of Norfolk declined to comment.