Everything about Coronation totally explained
A
coronation is a ceremony marking the investment of a
monarch with regal power through, amongst other symbolic acts, the placement of a
crown or
coronet upon his or her head. Where the monarch is
anointed, the
ritual may have religious significance. Coronation remains the norm for the formal installation of the monarch of the
Commonwealth Realms.
Formerly, in many
kingdoms and
empires, the coronation was a highly solemn ceremony in which anointing with
holy oil, followed by ratification as the proper occupant of the
throne, were important parts. This is still the case in the
United Kingdom, one of the few nations that continues formal coronations to this day, and was true for the historical monarchies of France, and many other former kingdoms and
empires.
The term 'coronation' is sometimes used in a semi-ironic sense to refer to uncontested party leadership elections, with all potential party leaders choosing to back a single candidate or stay silent rather than stand in an election they're likely to lose
(External Link
). This typically happens where there has been a protracted behind-the-scenes attempt to remove the outgoing leader, leading to a significant amount of time to discover who has the most party support before the election proper.
In Antiquity
The Shahs of the Achaemenid
Persian Empire were crowned with the
diadem by a high priest of the
Zoroastrian religion.
The Roman Emperors, traditionally acclaimed either by the senate or by a
legion speaking for the armies as a whole, were confirmed by the other body, without a coronation. The Eastern diadem was introduced by Diocletian. In theory, the Imperial crown should be imposed by a representative of those who conferred the sovereign authority that it symbolized; and, in the 4th century, the
Prefect Sallustius Secundus crowned
Valentinian I (in whose election he'd taken the prominent part). But the Emperor seems to have felt some hesitation in receiving the diadem from the hands of a subject, and the selection for the office was likely to cause jealousy. Yet, a formality was necessary. In the 5th century the difficulty was overcome in an ingenious and tactful way. The duty of coronation was assigned to the
Patriarch of Constantinople, possibly at the coronation of
Marcian (AD 450), but certainly at the coronation of his successor
Leo (457).
Since the feudal age
A coronation following the Byzantine formula was instigated with the coronation of King
Clovis of the Franks at Rheims (497), in which a dove was made to descend with an ampoule of oil, with which the king was anointed. All succeeding kings of France were anointed — with the same oil, miraculously resupplied — and crowned at Rheims.
Coronations are often centuries-old
ceremonies with a great many formal and solemn
traditions. Usually the climax of the coronation ceremony is the monarch's recital of an
oath, followed by a religious leader placing a
crown on the monarch's head. Some monarchs have crowned themselves: this was the custom of the
Shahs in Iran, the
Tsars of
Russia and
self-proclaimed monarchs like the
Bonaparte Emperors of the French.
The crown isn't the only item bestowed on a sovereign at his or her coronation. Usually there's an
orb and
sceptre and — depending on the country — other items from the
crown jewels, all highly charged with historic, religious, and territorial symbolism.
The ceremony usually takes place in the premier
cathedral or most holy
basilica of a country, often in the present or former monarchical and/or ecclesiastical capital. In the United Kingdom, the
coronation ceremony takes place in
Westminster Abbey, with the monarch seated on the ancient
St. Edward's Chair, or Coronation chair, (which includes the
Stone of Scone). The French monarchs were crowned at
Notre-Dame de Reims.
A coronation ceremony is generally religious in character, because from the earliest times it was believed that monarchs were chosen by God, in accordance with the
Divine Right of Kings; hence, the crown was bestowed by God himself. Many sovereigns are still proclaimed Monarch "by the grace of God". Historically this fact was used as a defence of
absolute monarchy.
Additionally, in
Japan the Emperor was believed to be a descendant of
Amaterasu the sun goddess. Hence, the concept of monarch, coronation, and God are often inexorably linked.
A monarch succeeding by right (for example hereditarily) doesn't have to undergo the ceremony of coronation to ascend the throne and execute the duties of the office. King
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, for example, didn't reign long enough for a coronation ceremony to occur before he
abdicated, yet he was unquestionably the King of the United Kingdom and Emperor of
India during his brief
reign. This is because in Great Britain, the law stipulates that the moment one monarch dies, the new monarch assumes the throne, so that there's no time at which the throne is vacant.
The British Monarch is usually proclaimed in an outdoor ceremony at
St. James's Palace within hours of the death of his predecessor. In France, the new monarch ascended the throne when the coffin of the previous monarch descended into the vault at
Saint Denis Basilica, and the
Duke of
Uzes proclaimed '
Le Roi est mort, vive le Roi' (
French: 'The [old] king is dead; long live the [new] King!')
From 1305 to 1963 the
Popes were crowned with the
Papal Tiara in a coronation ceremony in
St. Peter's Basilica in
Rome. Following the decision of the last crowned Pope,
Paul VI, to lay the Papal tiara on the high
altar of the basilica as a symbol of humility, the next three popes declined to wear it, and thus had a ceremony of
papal inauguration rather than coronation, as the placing of a crown or coronet of some description upon the head is a requisite of a coronation ceremony. While
John Paul I,
John Paul II (who also completely abandoned the use of the
sedia gestatoria, a portable throne) and
Benedict XVI opted for an inauguration instead of an old-fashioned coronation, a future pope can, in theory, opt for the coronation ceremony.
Many European monarchies have dispensed with the ceremony of coronation altogether. In Norway, the coronation was abolished in 1908 and the king was thereafter only required by law to go through the taking of the oath in the
Storting, but when
Olav V was to be crowned in 1958 he still wanted the church's blessing for his reign and the benediction was introduced. This ceremony is much simpler than the previous coronation, but continues the element of blessing and the
Crown of Norway is displayed on the high altar rather than placed on the king's head.
King Harald V and
Queen Sonja of Norway received the benediction in 1991 and although the ceremony isn't required it's expected to be used by future monarchs as well.
Queen Beatrix of the
Netherlands had an oath-taking and induction ceremony rather than a coronation; and in
Sweden, no king has been crowned since
Oscar II in 1873. In Spain, although the crown is present and evident at the ceremony it's never actually placed on the monarch's head. Today's coronations of
constitutional monarchs are more akin to political
inaugurations. Belgium actually never had a crown (except as a 'virtual' heraldic emblem), the formal installation is a solemn oath on the constitution in parliament, symbolic of the restricted rule of the king under the then cutting-edge constitution of 1831.
Among the last grand coronation ceremonies the world saw were those of Shah
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran in 1967 and that of the
Central African Republic's president
Bokassa in 1977. Furthermore, grand ceremonial is still customary in some South East Asian monarchies, notably for the King of
Thailand, the Sultan of
Brunei and King of
Malaysia, where every five years one of the constitutional state monarchs (Sultans and one Raja) is crowned
Yang di-Pertuan Agong (Paramount Ruler), for example elective head of state of the federation. The eventual successor to
Queen Elizabeth II, be it
Prince Charles or
Prince William, will almost certainly have a grand coronation, in keeping with British Imperial tradition, and because he may at the same time receive the title of Head of the Commonwealth (subject to agreement of the member states of the Commonwealth).
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