King Charles III's coronation is going to be an event not seen in Britain for more than
70 years – but if the crown isn't careful, it could invite international controversy.
The details for King Charles III's coronation have finally been confirmed, and preparations
are underway for the event, which will be held on Saturday, May 6, 2023 at Westminster Abbey.
In the announcement for the occasion, the palace stated,
"The coronation will reflect the monarch's role today and look towards the future, while
being rooted in long-standing traditions and pageantry."
Sources have revealed that Charles' event will be different from the coronation of his
late mother, Queen Elizabeth II – which is only natural considering the decades that
have passed since then.
According to The Telegraph, the guest list will be capped at 2,000 people, compared to
the 8,000 that attended the Queen's coronation almost 70 years ago.
The ceremony — which will be conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury — will also
be much shorter for Charles, clocking in at just one hour, instead of three, according
to the Daily Mail.
William, Prince of Wales, will also play an important role in the coronation, and his
two older children, Prince George of Wales and Princess Charlotte of Wales, are both
expected to be in attendance.
Royal author Katie Nicholl wrote in Vanity Fair,
"The ceremony will likely highlight the line of succession, with William, Kate, and their
children featured more prominently than other members of the family."
Of course, Charles' wife, Camilla, queen consort, will also be crowned during the coronation.
But Camilla will have to choose the crown she wears to the coronation wisely — or
it could lead to an international controversy.
According to Page Six, the purple crown created for Elizabeth the Queen Mother to wear at
her coronation with husband King George VI in 1937 features the Koh-i-noor diamond, a
105-carat diamond that was stolen by the East India Company and given to Queen Victoria
in the 19th century.
The diamond's place in the crown — worth an estimated $1 billion — has led to tensions
between India and Great Britain.
After the death of Queen Elizabeth II, some would like to see the stone returned to India.
A source told the Daily Mail,
"The original plan was for the queen consort to be crowned with the late Queen Mother's
crown when her husband acceded to the throne.
But times have changed and His Majesty ... is acutely sensitive to these issues, as are
his advisors.
There are serious political sensitivities and significant nervousness around them, particularly
regarding India."
"It used to be ours.
And it's one more thing that used to be ours that the British have now purloined as a result
of their conquest of our country."
As a result, the stone in the crown might be replaced with another selection from the
Crown Jewels, or Camilla could wear another option to the coronation.
Buckingham Palace has not commented on the matter yet.
If Camilla, queen consort, doesn't wear the controversial crown at the coronation, she
will have plenty of other jewels to choose from.
Not only are there the Crown Jewels — worth an estimated $4 billion — but the late Queen
Elizabeth also had a vast personal collection of jewelry, which included 34 pairs of earrings,
15 rings, and 98 brooches, according to the Daily Mail.
Sources have revealed that Camilla and Princess Catherine will probably inherit the bulk of
Elizabeth's collection.
As editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine Ingrid Seward told the Daily Mail, the queen likely
designated who should get which pieces long before her death at the age of 96.
She also added that Camilla will likely need a large collection of jewels at hand in order
to support her in her constitutional role.
There are two pieces of the late monarch's jewelry that no one will inherit — her wedding
band and a pair of pearl earrings — because Queen Elizabeth was buried wearing both.