I know it’s not Tudor related but for all those interested in the British monarchy and Commonwealth, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned at Westminster Abbey on this day in 1953 making today her 60th anniversary or Diamond Jubilee.
You can find out more about her coronation at www.thediamondjubilee.org but here are some facts:
- The Queen travelled from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey in the beautiful Gold State which was commissioned by George III in 1762 and designed by designed by William Chambers (1723–96), It weighs almost four tonnes, measures more than seven metres in length, and requires eight horses to draw it. It is on display at the Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace and you can find out more about it at http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/exhibitions/the-queen039s-coronation-1953/the-gold-state-coach
- The Coronation ceremony has 6 basic phases: the recognition, the oath, the anointing, the crowning, the enthronement and the homage. You can find out more about it at http://www.thediamondjubilee.org/coronation-ceremony-and-regalia and you can read the Coronation Oath at http://www.thediamondjubilee.org/coronation-oath
- The Coronation ceremony has been taking place at Westminster Abbey for over 900 years. William the Conqueror was the first King to be crowned there in 1066.
- 37 coronations have taken place in Westminster Abbey since 1066.
- The monarch is usually crowned by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
- Queen Elizabeth II was twenty-seven years old at her coronation and is now eighty-seven years old.
- 27 million people watched the Coronation live on TV and 11 million listened to it on the radio.
- Elizabeth II is the second longest reigning monarch, behind Queen Victoria who reigned for 63 years.
@BritishMonarchy and @wabbey will be re-living the Coronation on Twitter throughout the day today.
Here is a video about Elizabeth II’s coronation with footage of the Coronation.
In the US press there is a lovely picture of her snapped just after she was crowned. There is a very touching expression on her face, in the sea of people surrounding her she is quite composed, save that expression. It combines relief with acknowledgement of new responsibilitites and perhaps a bit of prayer that she be equal to them.
Wouldn’t Henry flip out if he knew that the current royal family is descended from his sister Margaret and not himself? And that QUEENS, including his own daughters, have served the land as well as, if not better, in some cases, than the Kings?
Congratulations to Her Majesty, Elizabeth II! I hope she becomes the longest reigning monarch – she is one heck of a strong, classy lady.
This day is the anniversary of my becoming a devout Anglophile. I was eight years old and we were living in the San Francisco Bay area. I came home from school the afternoon of June 2 and my mother and a friend were watching the Coronation on television. I sat down to watch with them and fell deeply and irrevocably in love. I have followed the Queen very closely ever since-(I even have an original Coronation mug, can’t remember how I got it, but family and friends all knew that whenever they went anywhere that she was Queen, they were supposed to bring me stuff.) I even wrote a letter to her when I was in the sixth grade and received an answer from one of her ladies in waiting. Unfortunately, my parents put the case with all my scrapbooks and memorabilia in their crawlspace when I was in college and it got flooded. When I was a little older, I read a paragraph that said: ‘The story of how a small island off the coast of Europe became the mistress of a great Empire is a fascinating story.” I immediately knew I had to learn that story. In college, I discovered Elizabeth I, and that led me to her mother, Anne Boleyn. I love to talk about it, but most people aren’t interested. God save the Queen! I wish we had a unifying figure like that here. We could use it about now.
60 years too long. The monarchy is outmoded and out of touch with the real world. And there was not even a day off today! The Coronation was a wonderful affair, and to see it in colour must have been someting at the time.
But now it is time for the Queen to step down. This is a modern democracy and we do not need an old fashioned head of state, a completr waste of public money, mulling around in a huge palace that would be better given over as a hostle for the homeless. If we must have a Queen, she can live in a semi like the rest of us!
err…Elizabeth is the second longest reinging British monarch. Other countires have had as longer reinging rulers but are frequently not regconised due to the difference of local calander customs..
I was talking about Britain, sorry, I should have made it clearer.