Palace confirms coronation time with 21st century addition

Amid the pomp and historic coronation regalia, including the use of a 12th century coronation spoon, Charles adds coronation emoji.

King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for the Easter Mattins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle. Picture: AFP.

Buckingham Palace has confirmed the coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla will begin at 8pm AEST (11am in London) on Saturday May 6 but the festivities will begin before that with a procession from the Palace to Westminster Abbey.

Hundreds of thousands of spectators are expected to cram into central London for a vantage point to watch the coronation procession to the Abbey, and then following the coronation, witness a much larger procession back to Buckingham Palace.

The Earl Marshal is responsible for planning and organising the Coronation.

Here, he explains what each element of the procession will look like.

🔗 https://t.co/yfbXJEEV2d

[6/6] pic.twitter.com/mFj2TweiKq

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) April 9, 2023

Armed Forces personnel from Australia and other Commonwealth nations and the British Overseas Territories, and the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom, will form a guard alongside The Sovereign’s Bodyguard and Royal Watermen along the route and also form part of the procession.

The return procession will feature the newly crowned King and Queen sitting inside the State Gold Coach, commissioned in 1760. The coach, used at every coronation since William IV in 1831, will be drawn by eight Windsor Greys and, due to its weight of four tonnes, will travel at walking pace.

Seating set up ahead of the King's coronation at Horse Guards Parade. Picture: Getty Images.

Other senior royals, including the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children, including Prince George, who is one of eight page boys for the coronation, are expected to travel behind.

Amid all of the pomp and historic Coronation regalia, including the use of the coronation spoon, a silver-gilt object from the 12th century, King Charles has approved a very modern addition to the heavyweight proceedings: a Coronation emoji.

A special emoji for the Coronation has gone live today! The emoji, based on St Edward’s Crown, will appear when any of the following hashtags are used: #Coronation#CoronationConcert#TheBigHelpout#CoronationWeekend#CoronationBigLunchpic.twitter.com/ueHOpkNn6M

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) April 9, 2023

The emoji depicts St Edward’s Crown, the crown which will be used by King Charles III and has been worn by all monarchs since King Charles II had it made in 1661 as a replacement for the medieval crown melted down during the English civil war.

During the coronation, various sacred coronation regalia will be used to symbolise the service and responsibilities of the monarch and will include two silver gilt oak Maces from the 17th century, the Sword of State, symbolising Royal authority; the Sword of Temporal Justice, signifying the Monarch’s role as Head of the Armed Forces, the Sword of Spiritual Justice, signifying the Monarch as Defender of the Faith, and the Sword of Mercy or Curtana, which has a blunted tip, symbolising the Sovereign’s mercy and the 1661 golden St Edward’s Staff, with its steel spike.

King Charles III plates for sale ahead of his coronation. Picture: Getty Images.

There are also gold spurs, the Sovereign’s Orb, and two gold Armills bracelets “sincerity and wisdom”.

The Chrism oil with which The King and The Queen Consort will be anointed, was consecrated in The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem in March, and is held within the golden eagle Ampulla, The Sovereign’s Ring is composed of a sapphire with a ruby cross set in diamonds. The Queen’s ring is a ruby in gold and was made for the Coronation of King William IV.

Camilla has chosen a modified Queen Mary’s Crown for the Coronation, which will have the contentious Koh-i-noor diamond removed and replaced with some of the jewels of the late Queen Elizabeth including the Cullinan III, IV and V diamonds.