King CharlesEverything you need to know about King Charles III.
The Coronation Procession at the coronation of Charles III and Camilla, London, 6 May 2023
The Coronation Procession, London, 6 May 2023 — photograph by Katie Chan (CC BY-SA 4.0).

The Coronation

6 May 2023, Westminster Abbey — the first coronation in seventy years, and the fortieth monarch crowned in that church.

The day

On the morning of Saturday 6 May 2023, Charles III and Queen Camilla traveled from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach for the King’s Procession, returning after the service in the Gold State Coach for the Coronation Procession — a 1.3-mile route lined with thousands of military personnel and watched, the palace estimated, by hundreds of millions worldwide.

Inside the Abbey, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, led a two-hour Anglican service — the first coronation liturgy in English to include contributions from other faiths, and the first to feature a Gospel choir and female bishops in prominent roles.

The ceremony’s spine

The coronation follows a fixed liturgical shape, unchanged in essentials for a thousand years:

  1. The Recognition — the King presented to the people (“Sirs, I here present unto you King Charles, your undoubted King”), with the first-ever multilingual acclamation.
  2. The Oath — Charles swore to govern according to law, execute justice with mercy, and maintain the Protestant religion.
  3. The Anointing — the holiest moment: the King, screened from view, anointed with chrism oil consecrated in Jerusalem, on hands, breast, and head.
  4. The Investiture — presentation of the regalia: the orb, sceptres, and finally St Edward’s Crown, placed on his head at the moment of crowning.
  5. The Enthroning and Homage — the King enthroned; the Prince of Wales knelt and pledged allegiance (the “Homage of the People,” inviting the public to swear allegiance, was a new and debated addition).
  6. The Queen’s crowning — Camilla was anointed and crowned with Queen Mary’s Crown.

The regalia

Guests and absences

Some 2,200 guests filled the Abbey — a fraction of the 8,000 at Elizabeth II’s coronation, reflecting both the smaller modern Abbey capacity planning and a deliberate slimming-down. Foreign monarchs attended (unusually for British coronations), alongside the prime minister, faith leaders, charity representatives, and — notably — Prince Harry, who attended alone and departed promptly.

Cost and controversy

The government never published an official total; reported estimates ranged from £50 million to over £100 million, split between the palace (from the Sovereign Grant) and the government (security). Republican protesters were arrested under new public-order legislation on the day — arrests the police later said they regretted — and the “Homage of the People” divided opinion. Supporters called the service a dignified modernization; critics called it an expensive anachronism. Both views are on the record.

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