Some will be looking out for the tiniest glimpse of the anointing (good luck with that) or the glint of the Great Star of Africa, the world’s largest diamond, in the head of the Sceptre.
Historians and theologians won’t know where to start. Royal-watchers will be waiting to see who steals the show. Prince Harry? Prince Louis? The page boys?
And then there is the music…
Everyone, surely, will be waiting for that extraordinary moment when St Edward’s Crown is lowered and the cry echoes around the Abbey: ‘God save the King!’
However you may be intending to watch, it will be a day we remember for a long time. But what to look out for and when?
King Charles pictured at the 2013 State Opening of Parliament. Royal-watchers will be waiting to see who steals the show of the coronoation. Prince Harry? Prince Louis? The page boys?
The Imperial State Crown, also known as the Crown of State , is what the monarch exchanges for St Edward’s Crown at the end of the coronation service
King Charles and the Queen will set off for the Abbey in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach
5am-6am
Anyone wanting to watch the procession with their own eyes will find that the best positions in Central London were taken by hardy campers who have been lining The Mall for days. The authorities are asking people not to arrive on the day before 6am, when viewing areas will open along the route. Steel gates control access to the processional area.
When the police decide the area is full, the gates will shut and people will be redirected to six public viewing areas, in Green Park, St James’s Park and Hyde Park. There are 57 all over Britain.
6am-7am
The first guests will already be making their way to Westminster Abbey, ready for the 7.15am opening of extensive ticket and security checks. If you are coming by Tube (St James’s Park is shut all day), listen out for an unusual ‘Mind the Gap’ message — recorded by the King.
7am-8am
The 2,200 ticketed guests will already be filling the Abbey. At 7.30am, BBC1 viewers will join Kirsty Young for the start of seven-and-a-half hours of non-stop coverage on both BBC1 and BBC2 (the latter with sign language).
8am-9am
The last non-VIP guests will be taking their seats, even though there are still hours to go before the service begins. All regular guests have been told to be seated by 9am.
Viewers will recognise some of the personal guests such as Ant and Dec or Lionel Richie, as well as the county representatives, the Lord-Lieutenants and a small cluster of MPs and peers drawn by lottery (with 50 seats for each chamber — and no plus ones).
At 8.30am, ITV viewers will join Tom Bradby and Julie Etchingham. Those along the route will effectively be locked in position as the processional route is declared ‘sterile’ from 9am onwards.
9am-10am
Street-lining troops are now taking up their positions and will all be in place by 9.40am. From 9.30am, TV viewers will start to see heads of state, prime ministers (and British former prime ministers) and junior foreign royalty take their seats.
Huw Edwards will be the BBC’s commentator inside the Abbey. ‘Very limited toilet facilities’ inside will shut at 10am and will not reopen until 1.30pm.
10am-11am
By now, everyone will be glued to the royal arrivals, especially that of the Dukes of Sussex and York. Last into the Abbey before Their Majesties will be the Prince and Princess of Wales with their two younger children. As a page to the King, Prince George will be lining up separately.
At precisely 10.20am, the King and Queen will set off for the Abbey in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach. The newest addition to the Royal Mews, it is a masterpiece of engineering by Australian coachmaker Jim Frecklington.
It is a travelling museum of our history, with everything from fragments of the Stone of Destiny to slivers of the climber’s ladder which helped the conquerors of Everest to the summit in 1953.
The crown on top is from HMS Victory and conceals a hidden ‘coachcam’ for a CCTV camera.
The journey to the Abbey, called the King’s Procession, will progress at a walk, with a much smaller following than the great cavalcade which follows later in the day. This is a reflection of the monarch arriving in humility, with the grandeur and splendour yet to come.
Clare Balding will take over the BBC commentary. At 10.53am precisely the coach arrives at the Abbey and the King and Queen Consort emerge to line up for the royal procession, assisted by their pages who will help carry their robes of state.
11am-12 noon
The service opens with the traditional sound of the scholars of Westminster School, high in the triforium, shouting/singing ‘Vivat Rex’ and ‘Vivat Regina’. For the first time, they include female voices since the school now has a co-educational sixth-form.
We hear the soaring I Was Glad by Sir Hubert Parry (one of the King’s favourite composers) as the vast procession streams through the Abbey. Britain old and new is here in force. Following the junior heralds (pursuivants) in their tabards, come the orders of chivalry and gallantry.
Next come the quarterings of the Royal Arms (look out for the young Duke of Westminster in this bit) and the Royal Standard, carried by Francis Dymoke, the Hereditary King’s Champion, whose family have been part of every coronation since William the Conqueror.
Next up come the clergy, the heralds and the procession of the regalia. The latter has virtually emptied the Jewel House of the Tower of London.
Its keeper, Brigadier Andrew Jackson, carries the ring, perhaps the smallest element in a priceless parade of crowns, sceptres, swords, armills and spurs.
The Great Officers of State are all here — and, for the first time, a woman will be among them: Penny Mordaunt, Lord President of the Council and bearer of the Sword of State. Here too are women bishops, officiating at a Coronation for the first time.
At precisely 10.20am, the King and Queen will set off for the Abbey in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach
The King reaches his Chair of Estate, the first of three thrones he will use during the service. And the first voice we hear will be that of a child.
Chorister Sam Strachan of the Choir of the Chapel Royal will welcome the King on behalf of everyone, to which the King replies: ‘I come not to be served but to serve.’ It is one of a few new elements introduced to a service rooted in rituals laid down in the 10th and 14th centuries, plus elements of the Old Testament.
The service then follows the time-honoured rituals of the Recognition and the Oath. Listen out for an additional oath promising an ‘environment in which people of all faiths and beliefs may live freely’ — articulating the King’s long-held view that a monarch should be a defender of ‘faiths’.
A lesson read by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is followed by something we have not seen at a Coronation for many reigns: a sermon by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
12 noon-1pm
Depending on the length of Justin Welby’s address, we will be hitting the great anointing moment at around noon. By now, the King has moved to his second – and principal – Throne, St Edward’s Chair, facing the altar. Here is the one part of the entire proceedings off-limits to everyone, even members of the Royal Family.
Soldiers from each regiment of the Household Division step forward carrying a special screen – embroidered with the names of every country of the Commonwealth – to shield the moment when the Archbishop dabs holy oil on the King’s head, chest and arms. This is a moment between the King and the Almighty.
Next, comes the investiture as members of different communities and Christian denominations present the King with the regalia, piece by piece.
Finally, the moment has come. Addressing the ultimate monarch, ‘King of Kings, Lord of Lords’, the Archbishop lifts up St Edward’s Crown and crowns Charles III.
The Abbey erupts with God Save The King. From Horse Guards to the Tower of London, to saluting stations around the nation, in Gibraltar and on ships at sea, 21-gun salutes will be fired simultaneously. The bells of the Abbey ring.
The King is then enthroned, moving to his third seat of the day, the Throne Chair. Here, he receives a much-shortened homage — just the Archbishop and the Prince of Wales.
At which point, we are all invited to join in. This is the bit that has aroused hours of needless squawking. If you don’t want to pledge allegiance in front of family and friends, make a cup of tea.
Next comes the anointing of Queen Camilla – a scaled-back version but one which will be on camera – and her crowning. Listen out for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s magnificent new anthem, Make A Joyful Noise. The couple then retire backstage to the Chapel of St Edward to remove their crowns for Holy Communion.
Finally, they retire again and emerge in their Robes of Estate. Look for all the gold embroidered gardening imagery on the Queen’s train.
Royal Kremlinologists will now be scanning the rear of the royal party for any signs of a rapprochement as the Duke of Sussex walks down the aisle before heading for home.
1pm-2pm
Coronation Procession time. The Gold State Coach, the gilded Georgian Cinderella-style monster, is at the Great West Door.
The Waleses, their children and the other working members of the family climb into three carriages behind — minus the Princess Royal. She will be on her horse with the other Household Division colonels.
At the moment the King and Queen start moving, the front of the parade will already be at the top of The Mall.
With every unit of the three Services, every Commonwealth realm and almost every Commonwealth nation represented, this procession will be a collector’s item.
Made up of eight groups, it features no less than 19 bands. The coach is expected at Buckingham Palace at 1.45pm, at which point the King and Queen proceed through to the West Terrace overlooking the lawn.
The entire parade, on reaching the Palace, will have formed up here for a royal salute.
2pm-3pm
The King and Queen must make haste for the opposite side of the Palace and the mandatory East Front balcony appearance — still, we hope, in robes and crowns.
That wing of the Palace is still a building site so they will need to tread warily. Shortly before 2.30pm, expect to see the curtain flicker and the door open. Out will come the royal party. The royal anoraks will be scrutinising the line-up to see who makes an appearance.
Finally — weather depending — it is the turn of the airborne arms of all three services, especially the RAF, led by three Juno helicopters and four more waves of rotary aircraft. Expect great excitement from the Wales children as Daddy’s old colleagues come by.
Next come the fixed-wing brigade led by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight — the mighty Lancaster and a pair of Spitfires and Hurricanes.
The fastest come last followed, of course, by the Red Arrows and their red, white and blue smoke. A final crowning moment to a truly crowning day.
Coronation order of service: Full list of hymns, music, prayers and readings revealed
The Procession of The King and Queen
PICTURED: Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury after delivering his Easter Sermon at Canterbury Cathedral on April 17, 2022
Following the choir, religious and Commonwealth leaders, Their Majesties will enter Westminster Abbey to the anthem I Was Glad, a version of Psalm 122 set to music by Sir Hubert Parry, the composer of Jerusalem. Parry’s setting contains the cry ‘Vivat Rex!’ (Long Live the King!) which will be proclaimed by scholars from Westminster School.
A Moment of Silent Prayer
The Royal Couple take a moment to reflect and pay homage to God.
Greeting and Introduction
The Archbishop of Canterbury welcomes the congregation with a blessing.
The Recognition
This is the first element of the traditional English Coronation Rite in which the congregation affirms support for the King by exclaiming: ‘God Save King Charles.’
The Presentation of the Holy Bible
A copy of the Bible is gifted to the King, symbolically setting the ‘word of God’ above all human laws. The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland will tell the King: ‘Here is Wisdom; This is the royal Law; These are the lively Oracles of God.’ This tradition dates back to the Coronation of William III and Mary II in 1689.
The Oaths
The Oaths are vows to support people of all faiths and beliefs. The Archbishop asks Charles III if he is willing to take the Oaths and to ‘promise and swear to govern’, to which the King will reply: ‘I solemnly promise so to do.’
As The King prepares to be anointed upon the Coronation Chair, he removes the Robes of State — signifying his humility in front of God. The Archbishop will anoint The King on his hands, breast and head. This sacred part of the ceremony will be held behind a screen and is not broadcast on TV
The King’s Prayer
The Monarch offers a specially composed prayer which draws inspiration from Galatians 5 and the much-loved hymn, I Vow To Thee My Country.
Collect
Another prayer, written especially for the Coronation, addressing the theme of loving service.
The Epistle
Colossians 1 9:17
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will read from the first chapter of the Epistle (which translates as ‘letter’) to the Colossians.
Gospel
Luke 4:16-21
The Gospel — derived from the Greek for ‘Good News’ — is St Luke’s account of Jesus at worship in the synagogue.
Sermon
This is an opportunity for The Archbishop to place the ceremony within a broader religious context, and explain how the themes of the celebration relate to both the public and the monarch.
