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Coronation Celebration

Lordswood School joins the nation in celebrating the coronation of His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen Consort.

Did you know?

  1. Since 1601, there has only been one Coronation in the month of May.
  2. Westminster Abbey has been the setting for every Coronation since 1066. Before the Abbey was built, Coronations were carried out wherever was convenient, taking place in Bath, Oxford and Canterbury.
  3. His Majesty will be the fortieth Sovereign to be crowned at Westminster Abbey.
  4. For the first time since 1937, the coronation of King Charles III will include the crowing of a Queen Consort. Queen Elizabeth, wife of King George VI, was the last Queen Consort to be crowned.
  5. On Christmas Day 1066, William the Conqueror became the first monarch to be crowned at Westminster Abbey.
  6. The earliest English coronation that is recorded in detail, although not the first, is the crowning of the Anglo-Saxon King Edgar in Bath in 953 CE.
  7. The youngest ever monarch was Mary, Queen of Scots, who became Queen in 1542 when she was just six days old.
  8. For hundreds of years, the monarch stayed at the Tower of London two nights before the coronation. The day before the coronation, the monarch then processed through London to Westminster. This last happened in 1661 with Charles II.
  9. The original 14th century order of service, Liber Regalis, was written in Latin and descends directly from that of King Edgar at Bath in 973 CE. The Liber Regalis has provided the basis for every Coronation since.
  10. Handel’s coronation anthem Zadok The Priest has been played at every coronation since 1727.
  11. The King will be crowned in St Edward’s Chair, made in 1300 for Edward I and used at every Coronation since that time. It is permanently kept in Westminster Abbey.
  12. The St. Edward’s Crown, made in 1661, will be placed on the head of The King during the Coronation service. It weighs 4 pounds and 12 ounces, or about 2.2kg, and is made of solid gold.
  13. Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII’s second wife, was the only Queen Consort to be crowned with the original St Edward’s Crown. This took place on 1st June 1533.
  14. Edward the Confessor may have been the first monarch to assemble a regalia, or crown jewels. This has been replaced or altered over the succeeding centuries.
  15. The hollow gold orb, set with pearls, precious stones and a large amethyst beneath the cross, was made in 1661 and has been used in every coronation since then.
  16. The Sovereign’s Ring, also known as ‘The Wedding Ring of England’, was originally made in 1831 for William IV, and has a cross of Saint George in rubies against a blue background of a single sapphire.
  17. A “coronation spoon” has been used at every coronation since 1349 to anoint the monarch with a secret mixture of oils.
  18. In 1308, guests at the coronation feast of Edward II managed to drink 1,000 casks of wine.
  19. Queen Elizabeth II wasn’t the only one who occupied the Coronation Chair on 2nd June 1953. On the morning of her Coronation, a black cat called Matins was found sleeping on the chair in Westminster Abbey.
  20. Coronation Chicken was invented for the guests who were to be entertained, following Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation.
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