On May 6th, King Charles III will be officially crowned as King of England, the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth Realms. The ceremony will take place in London's Westminster Abbey, where English Kings and Queens have been crowned for 1000 years or more.
King Charles will sit on a throne that is more than 700 years old. He will be crowned by the Archbishop of Canterbury, with the "Saint Edward's Crown", a royal crown that has been used since the year 1320, and perhaps for more than 1,000 years. His wife Camilla will be crowned as Queen Camilla. She will wear a more modern crown, one that was made in 1911 for Queen Mary, the wife of King George V.
Although about 2,000 people will attend the ceremony, and this will be shown live on TV all over the world, Charles's coronation will be simpler and shorter than the last coronation, that of his mother "the Queen" in 1953. Times have changed, attitudes have changed, and the British monarchy has just changed considerably.
After the ceremony in Westminster Abbey, King Charles and Queen Camilla will ride in a carriage, pulled by horses, to Buckingham Palace. Following another tradition, they will then come out onto the balcony, to wave to the crowds below.
The Coronation on Saturday 6th May will be a great national day of festivities all over the UK and beyond. The festivities will continue all the weekend, and into Monday when there is a special national holiday. There will be flags all over the country, souvenirs and decorations in shops, monuments and public places, and street parties in cities, towns and villages.
Street parties are now a popular tradition in Britain. People who live on the same street, or in the same building, bring out tables and chairs, cakes and sandwiches, tea and other drinks, and enjoy a tea party together. Anyone can organise a street party. They now happen whenever there is a big national day of celebration. Street parties do not happen every year, since there is no "national day" in Britain! Britain does not have an Independence Day like the USA, nor an Eid as in Muslim countries, nor a 14th July like France… and nobody wants to organise an outdoor street party at Christmas or for the New Year!
During the weekend of 6th - 8th May, most people in Britain will be celebrating the Coronation, happy to have a new King. Some will not. Most people in Britain are happy with the monarchy, or accept it, but there are others who think that Britain should be a republic. They are in a minority, and in autumn 2022, even after the death of the Queen, two thirds of people in Britain were in favour of the monarchy.
What will happen next? That will depend very much on King Charles. He has said that he wants to modernise the British monarchy and make it more relevant to the 21st century. If he succeeds, the monarchy may continue for many years to come. If he fails, who knows what will happen?
Word guide
Crown -
an official
hat used by monarchs - realm: kingdom -
throne - a seat for kings, as in "Game
of Thrones" - bishop, archbishop : the top people in
a church -
attend: be present at - attitude: the
way people think about things -
considerably - a lot, in a big way - carriage: a
vehicle without a
motor - wave - make a sign with the hands and arms
- enjoy : have a
good time - Muslim - Islamic - monarch: a
king or a queen - a
minority: (much) less than half - two thirds:
67% - depend on: be a
result of - relevant to: appropriate for, suitable
for - fail: the
opposite of succeed.
Street parties are now a popular tradition in Britain....... Street parties every year, since there "national day" in Britain! Britain an Independence Day like the USA, an Eid as in Muslim countries a 14th July like France… and wants to organise a street party at Christmas or for the New Year!
the weekend of 6th - 8th May, people in Britain will be celebrating the Coronation, happy a new King. Some . Generally speaking, people in Britain are happy with the monarchy, or accept it, but there are who think that Britain be a republic. They are in a minority, and in autumn 2022, after the death of the Queen, two of people in Britain were in favour of the monarchy.