The coronation of King Charles III. (unsurpassed)
The coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla will be the triumph of solemnity, as anachronistic as it is seductive. Distilling the rules of a perfect coronation in London, the Liber Regalis has been kept in the library of Westminster Abbey for centuries. The Crown Jewels, St Edward’s Crown and Imperial Crown are passed down from dynasty to dynasty along with bracelets, spurs, rings and ritual scepters and are kept in the Tower of London. On May 6th Charles III. anointed in Jerusalem with consecrated oil, he will parade with the Welsh cross containing the relics of the crucifixion presented by Pope Francis to the king.But a sovereign is not always crowned with such an elaborate and holy rite. The coronation in London is like no other in Europe. There is no actual coronation ceremony in Sweden. And King Carl XVI. Gustaf of Sweden had to transfer the rest of the royal prerogatives to the Speaker of Parliament two years after his accession to the throne with the new Stockholm Constitution. In the Principality of Monaco, one speaks more of “enthronement”. In the Netherlands? First Queen Beatrice and then her son William Alexander were never crowned but installed as Heads of State under the vaults of a church, yes, but profaned. In addition, in the 1970s in Spain, King Juan Carlos had to request viaticum for his kingdom in a referendum in 1978 – after he had ascended the throne in 1975. The history of the most spectacular coronations is traced below.
(LaPresse) The Shah of Persia and Farah Diba – 1967
On October 26, 1967, Mohammad Reza was crowned Shah of Persia on the Peacock Throne in the splendor of the Great Hall of Golestan Palace. With a ceremony steeped in wealth, pomp and luxury: the chariot was ordered from Josef Klickmann in Vienna and shipped to Tehran. A coronation with an absolute novelty for Iran: A crown for the Shahbanou, Empress Farah Diba, who the Shah wanted could become regent in the event of her early death, with the heir to the throne, who is still small. So a crown was commissioned, the first in the country’s 2,500-year history, including for the Empress. To make it Van Cleef & Arpels. «I studied architecture in Paris and lived in the Cité universitaire south of the capital, there was a reception and I remember learning to bow. He, the Shah, asked me: “What are you studying in Paris?” – told us for Corriere, Farah Diba -. He was surprised when I said I studied architecture. At that time there were very few women architects, not only in Tehran; they were not very ordinary studies for a girl.’ After fleeing, on January 16, 1979, they shared exile in Egypt, Morocco, Bahamas, Mexico, USA, followed by a death sentence in absentia.
(RCS archives) Margrethe of Denmark – 1972
“Frederick IX. is dead. Long live Queen Margrethe II.! Hooray, hooray.” It was January 15, 1972, when Prime Minister Jens Otto Krag appeared on the balcony of the Royal Palace in Copenhagen to proclaim thirty-one-year-old Margrethe, the first Danish ruler in 600 years of history. Today she is the only one Queen of the world ruling a country and the new doyen since the death of Elizabeth II Post-war efforts to defend the country against Nazi Germany helped the popularity of the Danish monarchy.Then in 1953 the plebiscite had amended the law and open to women When the king died on January 14, 1971, the way was paved for the second Queen Margrethe in history: the first had ruled over a much larger kingdom at the end of the 13th century The announcement from the balcony of the royal palace. At his side on one side a member of the royal court, on the other side a member of the government.In a few moments Margrethe thus became queen and spoke to her people for the first time.
(Epa/A 2010 image portrays Queen Margrethe and her husband, Prince Consort Henrik, on the occasion of the celebrations of the sovereign’s 70th birthday) Carl XVI. Gustaf of Sweden – 1973
On September 19, 1973, Carl XVI. Gustaf of Sweden in uniform enters the throne room of Stockholm Palace to sit on the silver bench, dating from the time of Queen Christina in the 17th century, the great symbolic crown. All in all, a few minutes, the time to read the speech proclaiming him the new sovereign. And no crown lowered on his head. Just the view from the balcony of the building. An indispensable ritual, the crown jewels “silent observers of the moment”, placed on two cushions. Finally, King Carl XVI. When choosing his motto, Gustav immediately chose the path of simplicity: «For Sweden with the times».
(RCS Archives) Juan Carlos of Spain – 1975
One day in June 1969, when Juan Carlos left Madrid to visit his exiled parents in Portugal, General Franco (who had overthrown the Bourbons and had taken a liking to the young prince) announced that he would succeed him with royal prerogatives would appoint . And so, on November 22, 1975, Juan Carlos ascended the throne of Spain. After Alfonso XIII, the last king before Francoism, the Bourbons returned to represent the country: the beginning of the season of “Juancarlismo”, the economic boom of Madrid, a season whose historical memory is today tarnished by scandals and love affairs becomes King Emeritus.
(RCS archives) Beatrice of Holland – 1980
Beatrix of Holland became Queen on April 30, 1980 when her mother Juliana decided to abdicate. A well-considered choice by the Queen that opened many doors to novelty and modernity. And at the end of her life she confessed: “If I hadn’t been queen, I would have been a republican”. This gesture of abdication should enable his daughter Beatrice to take over the baton in the flower of energy. Beatrice? She was not crowned, but sworn in before a joint, public session of the two chambers of Parliament.
(RCS archives) Harald of Norway – 1991
King Harald of Norway, who studied at Oxford and the Military Academy in Oslo, became sovereign in June 1991 after the death of his father Olav V. Sitting next to his wife on the throne, the commoner Sonja Sommerlat married against all conventions. King Harald became the official ruler. Nidaros Cathedral in Trodheim, since 1449 with the coronation of King Charles I the historic coronation cathedral in Norway. A coronation of sacred value, to Harald, like Charles’s in London, hers. At the King’s express wish, they were welcomed into the church by Archbishops Finn Wagle and Andreas Aarflot, who knelt before the altar to receive the Archbishop’s blessing, who laid his right hand on them. A religious rite and an institutional moment together. However, much sparser than in London.
(RCS archives) Albert of Belgium – 1993
In 1993 even Queen Elizabeth II came to Brussels for the state funeral of King Baudouin and normally does not travel to Gotha for funerals. And while royals and heads of state paid tribute to the king’s death, the relay race was being prepared with Albert II and Italy’s Queen Paola, née Ruffo di Calabria. Their fairytale wedding on July 2, 1959 made Italy dream of the Dolce Vita. After the death of his older brother Baldwin, the youngest Albert, until then Prince of Liège, took over the baton and was sworn in before the assembled Chambers of Parliament on August 9, 1993. Sixth sovereign of the Belgians.
(Afp) Albert of Monaco – 2005
A principality where “virtue and money must be permanently united”, a “model city-state”: Alberto, the son of Grace and Ranieri, became sovereign prince and pronounced these words in July 2005 at the age of 47. Three months after the funeral of Rainier III. consecrated a solemn Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, presided over by the Archbishop of Monaco, Bernard Barsi, Ranieri’s second son, the new ruler of the small state. Not a coronation, but an enthronement. The mayor symbolically presented him with the keys to the city in front of his fellow citizens, who cheered Albert II with “Long life for Prince Albert”. And in response, he wanted to throw a big party with music and fireworks “for the Monegasques, their relatives and their children: a kind of communion with the population” until late in the evening. The emotional moment when the prince, surrounded by his sisters Carolina and Stephanie, listened to the Archbishop’s blessing in the cathedral where Grace and Ranieri said yes: “We have a duty to gather around the one who now leads the Principality.” . The rebellious and adored Stephanie then took her brother’s hand and he squeezed Caroline’s as well, who couldn’t hold back or hide the tears. Only the first part of the enthronement: the following November 19, on the occasion of the feast of San Ranieri, the institutional moment when heads of state and kings were invited to the Rocher.
(RCS Archives) Wilhelm Alexander of Holland – 2013
When Beatrice’s son William Alexander took over the baton from his mother, who at the age of 75 (now that of the new King Charles in London) decided to step down, the new king took his oath of office on 30 April 2013 in the Nieuwe Kerk, a desecrated church. He did not swear to God, but in front of Parliament and promised to respect him. On the shoulders the royal cloak of velvet and ermine, but no crown on the head. At his side the Argentinian Maxima with the tiara. Among the guests were Kofi Annan and the laurel princes Charles and Camilla, the kings of Spain, Norway and Sweden, Albert of Monaco and Naruhito, then heir to the throne of the chrysanthemum. A water procession of 200 royal ships, dressed in the color of the Nassau oranges, orange and facing the balcony – without crowns, tiaras and royal jewels. Just the embrace of the crowd and the three daughters, including little Catharina Amalia, heir to the throne as of that day and who will now (alongside her grandmother Beatrice) make her debut in London at King Charles’ coronation reception. Here is the very unholy and very pragmatic ritual of the Dutch royal family.
(EPA) Philip of Belgium – 2013
In 2013, after a service of thanksgiving for the twenty-year reign of his father Albert II (who decided to abdicate due to the scandal surrounding his illegitimate daughter), the new King Philip appeared on the balcony of the Royal Palace in Brussels, flanked by his wife Mathilde. Between cannon shots, trumpet fanfares and a solemn but fast ritual. No foreign heads of state or royals invited. The focus of the coronation day was the speech in the country’s three official languages: Dutch, French and German, between Flemish and Walloon, a reminder of the country’s divided soul. So much so that, for constitutionalist Vernon Bogdanor, the king is the only unifying element in the country. It is no coincidence that he is King of the Belgians and not of Belgium.
(Getty Images) Felipe VI. of Spain – 2014
“Long live the king, long live the king!” The acclamation welcomed the new King on June 19, 2014. “Here I stand before the Cortes Generales to take the oath required by our Constitution and be proclaimed King of Spain”. Felipe VI, son of Juan Carlos, took the floor in June 2014 at the time of the official transfer of power. “I begin my reign with a deep sense of the honor that comes with taking the crown,” Felipe said, but no crown landed on his head. It stayed in front of him on a red pillow. He had arrived at Parliament with his wife Letizia and their two daughters. King Juan Carlos, who had abdicated at midnight, then presented the red sash of the Commander-in-Chief to Felipe.
(Getty Images)