Buckingham Palace has announced that the coronation of King Charles III will take place next year.
The coronation ceremony – which is a symbolic start to memorialise Charles’ reign – will commence on May 6, 2023 and will take place at Westminster Abbey, as per British royal tradition.
The coronation is taking place at the same location where the funeral service for Queen Elizabeth II was held in late September.
While the palace is yet to announce the explicit details of the ceremony, it is expected to include fewer guests and a shorter service than Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, which lasted nearly three hours.
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who delivered the heartfelt sermon at the Queen’s funeral, will also conduct Charles’ coronation service.
“The Coronation will reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry,” Buckingham Palace revealed in a statement.
Although the wait may seem long to royal fans, it is normal for the coronation to take place several months following King Charles’ ascension to the throne.
King Charles ascended to the throne immediately after his mother’s Queen Elizabeth’s passing on September 8. It is the first coronation in nearly 70 years as the late Queen was crowned in June 1953.
At the coronation, the Archbishop will bestow the St Edward’s crown on Charles’ head. The crown is solid gold and is adorned with 444 coloured gemstones including sapphires, rubies and garnets.
It is yet to be announced where King Charles will reside during his reign, but it is expected he and his wife Camilla will leave their current residence at Clarence House and move into Buckingham Palace.
The palace also revealed Camilla will be officially crowned Queen Consort next year alongside her husband Charles, but it is expected to be a more simple service.
When Princess Diana branded Camilla as “the third person” in her marriage, she became known as “evil Camilla” by the British press.
But following the former Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s divorce, Camilla has been dedicated to rebuilding her public identity to suit that of a senior working royal.