What is a coronation?

A coronation is an ancient religious ceremony where a new king or queen, known as the monarch, is crowned. Some parts of this ceremony haven't changed in a thousand years.

Coronations have been held in Westminster Abbey as far back as 1066. The service is almost always conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

During the coronation, the monarch sits on the coronation chair which is over 700 years old.

 

 

The first part of the ceremony is where the new monarch is presented to the people and swears an oath which is a promise to uphold the law and church.

Next is the anointing. Holy oil is used to make the sign of a cross on the monarch's forehead, hands and heart.

After this is the investing where the monarch is presented with the Royal Regalia, also known as the Crown Jewels. They are presented with a sword to represent the monarch’s role as Head of the Armed Forces, the orb which symbolises God’s power, a ring as a symbol of their marriage to the nation and two sceptres as a sign of kingly power and mercy.

Finally, the Archbishop places the St Edward’s Crown on the monarch's head. This is later exchanged for the Imperial State Crown at the end of the ceremony.

 

 

Did you know?

Queen Elizabeth II, became the ruler of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 1952 after the death of her father King George VI but she didn’t hold her official coronation until 2nd June 1953. It was a huge celebration which took over a year to plan and was the first one that was shown in full on television. Over 20 million people all around the world were able to gather round their TV sets to watch the event! You can see some film from the event below.

 

 

If you want to learn more, you can find lots of information about coronations on Westminster Abbey’s website here:

https://www.westminster-abbey.org/learning/coronations-for-young-people