The coronation of Charles III: 60 years in the making

When King Charles III and Queen Camilla process through London on the way to Westminster Abbey in the Golden State Coach to renditions of Handel’s Zadock, it will mark the culmination of decades of behind-the-scenes, meticulous planning.  

For Charles, the first monarch to ascend to the British throne in the 21st century, the coronation has presented a unique series of delicate roadblocks that have taken decades to overcome. 

For the last 25 years, plans have been underway to ensure the success of Charles' accession to the throne

Whilst we are long past the days when the country would go to war over rival claimants to the throne, Charles’ accession after 70 years still provoked tensions. Fears about his outspoken political views on environmentalism, his short fuse, or the failure of the British people to accept his wife as Queen were all very real challenges in the days following the late Queen’s death in September.  

Mindful of this, for at least the last quarter of a century, extensive planning and a savvy PR operation have been underway, to ensure the coronation is the ceremonial high point of his accession, drawing a line under all of these issues and bringing the country together in celebration. 

The Golden Orb committee has been meeting twice a year for the past two decades to play Charles' coronation

The plans for Charles’ Coronation are known by the codename Golden Orb. They are overseen by a committee chaired by Earl Marshall - the Duke of Norfolk. It is thought insensitive to discuss the coronation during the reign of a predecessor. However, the name of the committee was leaked in a government document in 2016 when it was left unredacted. 

The committee has been meeting twice a year since at least the early 2000s and its work coincided with other secret plans including Operation London Bridge, plans for Queen Elizabeth’s Death and funeral, and Operation Spring Tide for Charles’ accession to the throne. 

Charles nearly opted to name himself after his grandfather, George VI

In 2005, it was suggested Charles had already begun discussions about his regnal name, the name he would take as King. The decision is not as obvious as you might assume. 

There are many sensitives surrounding the name Charles.  

The first King Charles was put on trial by parliament and executed in 1649 and the second King Charles was famously a womaniser.   

When Charles II’s brother James II was also forced into exile in 1688, his descendants staged rebellions to win back the throne. One of them, Bonnie Prince Charlie, referred to himself as King Charles III. 

It was suggested that Charles might reign as King George VII in honour of his grandfather, the late Queen’s father. But in the end he adopted the name we’ve always known him by: Charles.  

And thus during the coronation service, the Archbishops will publicly confirm this by reciting the famous lines: 

‘Sirs, I here present unto you King Charles, your undoubted King, wherefore all you who are come this day to do your homage and service.’ 

Charles caused controversy when, rather than defending the faith of the Church of England, he wished to be a defender of all faiths

Whilst the crowning is the most famous part of the ceremony — when St Edward’s Crown is placed upon his head — it is the anointing by Holy oil, consecrated in Jerusalem, that is arguably the most important and solemn part of the ceremony. This will be a powerful statement affirming Charles’ traditional position as a divine monarch who rules for life.  

One of the British sovereign's many titles is Defender of the Faith - a title originally given to King Henry VIII by The Pope but reappropriated by Henry when he split with the Catholic Church and became the head of the Church of England. 

Media reports in 1994 suggested that Charles had aspirations to be a Defender of Faith rather than a Defender of the Faith to reflect modern multi-faith Britain. This would have been potentially problematic as during the Coronation ceremony the King must swear an oath to uphold the Protestant religion and to maintain," inviolably, the settlement of the Church of England."

However, In 2015 Charles’ clarified his remarks.  

"...it’s always seemed to me that, while at the same time being Defender of The Faith, you can also be protector of faiths… the Church has a duty to protect the free practice of all faiths in this country."

It is owing to the late Queen Elizabeth that Camilla will be known as Queen Consort, rather than HRH Princess Consort. Photo credit: Ben from LONDON

By far the biggest decision of Charles’ coronation and a subject of debate spanning 30 years is whether there would be one or two thrones at the Abbey. 

Following The King’s divorce from Diana in 1996 Charles had ambitions to marry Camilla Parker Bowles. He hired PR expert Mark Bolland to rehabilitate Camilla’s image and present her to the country as a future Queen. 

When tragedy struck in August 1997 and Diana was killed in a car crash, public opinion turned against Camilla. 

Charles and Camilla did not appear in public together until 1999 and when they finally married in 2005, the palace put out a statement declaring that Camilla would be known as HRH Princess Consort in the event that Charles ascends to the throne. 

This was an unprecedented situation: legally, all former wives of British and English Kings had been known as Queen. Never-the-less, it appeared to settle the issue, mindful of the sensitivities towards Diana. 

In 2018, however, this statement was removed from The Clarence House website. In 2020 Charles’ office insisted that Camilla would still be known as Princess Consort when he came to the throne.  

In the end, it fell to the late Queen Elizabeth to clear up the issue when she issued a statement on her own accession day in 2022 declaring her "sincere wish" that Camilla be styled Queen Consort.  

Privately, it is believed Charles has long lobbied for Camilla to be Queen, even re-writing his coronation vows before this announcement to include a reference to her in what has been termed Operation QC - Queen Camilla - by the press. 

King Edgar was the first crowned king of England in 973

The Coronation Ceremony dates back over 1,000 years and emulates tradition in Europe in which the church had great sway over affairs of state. 

The first crowned King of all England was Edgar, that took place on Whitsunday in 973 at Bath Abbey. A plan for that coronation devised by Saint Dunstan survives.  

By the time of the publication of the Liber Regalis or Royal Book in 1382 for the coronation of Richard II’s consort, Queen Anne, the ceremony had been updated to include more of a role for nobles as well as the church. 

Since the coronation of  Harald II in 1066, all monarchs have been crowned in the Abbey. 

The coronation chair in which monarchs are crowned was introduced in 1296 during the reign of King Edward I. 

St Edward’s Crown which is traditionally used to crown the monarch was created for the coronation of Charles II, following the Restoration in 1660. It is based on an original used to crown St Edward the Confessor that was melted down during the Interregnum.  

Over time the service has expanded and contracted to fit with the times. George IV’s ceremony was predictably lavish and ostentatious. William IV had to be persuaded to have one at all and the services of the early 20th century including that of Edward VIII and Alexandra focused more on the pageantry to reflect the might of British Empire which was then at it’s peak.  

The coronation of Elizabeth II was the first to be televised in its entirety. 70 years on, the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla will include a bigger role for other faiths and will be shorter, mindful of the cost of living crisis.  

In 2022 Charles took centre stage when filling in for the late Queen Elizabeth at the state opening of parliament

1960s - Preparations begin for Operation London Bridge, the secret plans for the funeral and death of Elizabeth II, and the accession of her heir, Charles.  

1969 - Charles is invested as Prince of Wales at a ceremony in Caernarfon Castle, aged 20.  

1981 - Marries Lady Diana Spencer in a ceremony at St Paul’s Cathedral  

1982 - Fathers an heir of his own, Prince William of Wales, securing the future of the throne 

1994 -  Media speculation over his plans to be Defender of Faith rather than Defender of the Faith when he ascends to the throne  

1996 - Following revelations that he committed adultery with Camilla Parker Bowles, Diana and Charles formally divorce  

1997 - Diana is tragically killed in a car crash in Paris. Media and public opinion of Camilla is hostile  

1999 - Charles and Camilla are seen in public for the first time paving the way for her formal acceptance into the royal family  

2000s - Planning for Operation Golden Orb - Charles’ Coronation - intensifies as the Queen celebrates her Golden Jubilee  

2005 - Marries long-term partner Camilla Parker Bowles. Clarence House announces she will be styled as HRH The Princess Consort upon Charles’ accession to the throne  

2010s - Takes over more responsibilities from Queen Elizabeth and begins holding weekly practice meetings with prime ministers to prepare for his role as sovereign  

2018 - At a Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, leaders agree that Charles should succeed Elizabeth II as Head of the Commonwealth 

2022 - Charles is now centre stage. He fills in for the late Queen during her Platinum Jubilee, at the state opening of parliament, and during the royal maundy service as she suffers from mobility issues 

6 Feb 2022 - The late Queen declares it her "sincere wish" that Camilla be known as Queen Consort when Charles takes the throne paving the way for her to be crowned beside him at the Abbey 

8th Sept 2022 - Queen Elizabeth II dies at Balmoral aged 96 setting in place Operations London Bridge, Spring Tide, and Unicorn to mark national mourning and transition 

6th May 2023 - The culmination of decades of work, Charles III and Camilla will be crowned King and Queen of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth Realms in a smaller, simpler ceremony 

Harry Verity is an author and history journalist. His debut crime thriller The Talk Show is available now (Bloodhound Books, £8.99)

Read more: Vintage Reader's Digest 1953: Preparing to Crown a Queen

Read more: King Charles III: What to expect from his reign

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