The royal event of the year is less than a month away: the coronation ceremony of King Charles III. at Westminster Abbey on May 6th. The palace has now published new details on the day of the coronation and announced, among other things, that two different carriages will be used.
The son of the late Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022) and his wife Camilla, who is already listed as Queen Camilla on the official invitation to the coronation ceremony, will initially use the so-called “Diamond Jubilee State Coach”. This is the most modern carriage of the Royals, which was built for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012 and was first used in the summer of 2014. The main part is made of aluminum and the carriage has, among other things, stabilizers to prevent it from rolling.
On the morning of May 6th, Charles and Camilla will take part in a less lavish procession from Buckingham Palace along The Mall, through the Admiralty Arch, across Trafalgar Square and on along Whitehall and the Make Parliament Street Westminster Abbey. They will be accompanied by the Sovereign’s Escort of the Household Cavalry.
The coronation is to be followed by another procession, which will take the reverse route back to Buckingham Palace – and will include soldiers from the British military and forces from across the Commonwealth. For this purpose, King Charles III. and Queen Camilla board the “Gold State Coach”, the absolute gem among the royal carriages. The carriage was first used by King George III. (1738-1820) and has been used at every coronation since that of William IV (1765-1837) in 1831. The Earl Marshal, Edward William Fitzalan-Howard, who is in charge of planning the coronation, says in a short clip that this second procession will be “huge”, “with all the pomp that Britain can muster”.
A traditional performance by the royal family is then expected on the balcony of Buckingham Palace. A music concert and light show is scheduled at Windsor Castle on Sunday 7 May. On May 8th, the British have an additional public holiday with events honoring people who do voluntary work.
A new emoji is also being used on Twitter as part of the coronation. The emoji is modeled after the British Edwardian crown and should now appear on the short message service when one of five hashtags is used – including
