20 Fascinating Facts About Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation
Today marks 68 years since Queen Elizabeth II was crowned.
On June 2, 1953, a 27-year-old Elizabeth Windsor was crowned Queen of Englandat Westminster Abbey in London. The historic event not only involved a transition of monarchs, but revolutionized the media as the first televised coronation. Those who binged the The Crown will be familiar with how the service unfolded, but might not know that Jackie Kennedy made the guest list or which crown jewels the Queen wore. Here, discover the 20 most interesting facts about the Queen’s coronation, in honor of the event’s 68th anniversary.
1. Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation was on June 2, 1953 in Westminster Abbey, making her the 39th Sovereign to be crowned there.
2. Queen Elizabeth II was the first Sovereign to accede to the throne while abroad in over 200 years—she was in Kenya at the time her father died, making her next in line for the throne. She had techically been Queen for over a year before she was officially crowned.
3. The all-white coronation bouquet is composed of orchids from Wales and England, lilies-of-the-valley from England, stephanotis from Scotland, and carnations from Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man.
4. British fashion designer Norman Hartnell designed the Queen’s coronation dress, a white satin gown with silver and gold embroidery.
5. Queen Elizabeth II’s grandmother Queen Mary was the first Queen to see a grandchild ascend to the throne—however, she passed away before Queen Elizabeth’s coronation.
6. The coronation service lasted almost three hours.
7. The service is composed of six parts: the recognition, the oath, the anointing, the investiture, the enthronement, and the homage.
8. Over 8,000 guests were present at the Queen’s coronation.
9. The coronation chair, St. Edward’s chair, was made in 1300 for Edward I and has been used in every coronation since.
10. Queen Elizabeth II was crowned with The St. Edward’s Crown, made in 1661 of solid gold with rubies, amethysts, sapphires, garnet, topazes and tourmalines. It also features a royal purple velvet cap.
11. The Queen was also crowned with the Sovereign’s Orb, also made in 1661. The piece of regalia is made of gold, nine emeralds, 18 rubies, nine sapphires, 365 diamonds, 375 pearls, one amethyst and one glass stone, according to The Crown Chronicles.
12. Queen Elizabeth II was also bestowed with The Wedding Ring of England during the coronation ceremony. The bauble is placed on the fourth finger of the Sovereign during the ceremony.
13. The Sovereign’s sceptre, offered to the Queen at the coronation, features a 530.2 carat diamond, the world’s largest top quality cut white diamond.
14. The event made broadcasting history as the first televised service, made accessible by BBC.
15. Out of the 36 million people in the U.K., 27 million watched the coronation on television.
16. The event sparked international interest, with representatives from over 129 nations were present at the coronation.
17. First lady Jacqueline Bouvier (now known as Jackie Kennedy) was present at the coronation, working as a journalist for the Washington Times-Herald.
18. Now a popular sandwich filling, Coronation chicken was invented as a refreshment for foreign guests at the event. The dish is composed of cold chicken in a curry powder and mayonnaise cream sauce.
19. After the coronation, the Queen wore the Imperial State Crown and the Purple Robe of Estate on her way back to Buckingham Palace. The robe, embroirdered with the cipher of the Queen, wheat ears, and olive brances, took 3,500 hours to make.
20. Nearly 30,000 men were part of the procession back to Buckingham Palace, mainly from the Army, along with the Navy, police officers, troops, and more.
