Talking about coronations

 

Late last year I agreed to give a talk to Sunniside History Society about coronations from the past 1000 years. The offer was made before we knew the date of the coronation and the plan was that the talk would be given on the first Wednesday of the month immediately before the coronation itself was held. Alas, the coronation ended up being just after the local elections, and that meant I was out of circulation for campaigning on the eve of polling day!

Despite not having time to rehearse the talk, it was well received. The first coronation we looked at was that of William I. As Conqueror he led a brutal occupation. On the day of his coronation 25th December 1066 (he was declared King in the morning) while the ceremony was being held in Westminster Abbey, his guards outside the building thought there was an insurrection and burnt down nearby homes. The result was an Abbey full of smoke with many of those at the ceremony fleeing in fear. It was not a good start.

The coronation of Richard I (the Lionheart) was one of those dark spots in our nation's history when members of the Jewish community arrived to offer gifts to their king but ended up being beaten and flogged.

In 1216, with part of England under French occupation and a civil war underway, 9 year old Henry III was hurriedly crowned king on his father, King John's death. Neither the Archbishop of York or of Canterbury were available to carry out the service and the crown was missing (either lost in The Wash by John or sold off during the civil war). Instead, they crowned him with a gold corolla belonging to his mother Isabella. The Barons began to shift their support back to him and the French left.

We looked at a number of other coronations but the most interesting one was that of George IV. It was the most expensive and extravagant coronation ever (it cost 20 times that of his father 60 years previously) and the most noticeable event at it was the refusal to allow Caroline of Brunswick to attend. As George's wife she was Queen but George and the government were determined not to let her into the Abbey to be crowned. George and Caroline had been separated for years but the marriage was never annulled. Caroline died 2 weeks later.

The next talk I am giving is about photos from the Francis Newman collection. See the slide below for more information.