In 1953, when Queen Elizabeth was crowned Queen of Great Britain at the age of 25, the kingdom was predominantly Christian. Women were just beginning to join the workforce in large numbers, the colonies were just beginning to disintegrate, and the nation was working itself up from the damages of the second World War.
Today, when King Charles is crowned King of the United Kingdom, it is of a completely different, almost unrecognisable country. The coronation reflects much of that change.
For starters, the main political participants belong to different communities: Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is a practicing Hindu, the Home Secretary is a Buddhist and the First Minister of Scotland a Muslim. All of them played key roles in the coronation, reflecting a vastly changed Great Britain from the previous coronation.
There is much more representation of women in the coronation: from girls in the choir to women bishops and the Royal Sword carried by Penny Mordaunt, the leader of the House of Common.
The 17th century Sword of State is offered to the King as approval by the Parliament – the first time the role is being performed by a woman.
There are other nods to changing times, from environmental concerns to recognition of a painful past. The oil which is central to the anointing is vegan, without using whale and other animal sourced oils. It apparently consists of olive oil with fragrances of jasmine and sesame.
Most significantly, what is not going to be present in the coronation is the royal crown with the Kohinoor – the 105-carat diamond sourced from South Asia, which is said to bring bad luck to any male monarch.
Traditionally, the Queen Consort has worn the crown, but given that it is an emblem of colonial plunder, the organisers prudently chose to put it away from centre stage.
“It is, after all, a giant, sparkling reminder of imperial plunder that’s too sensitive to parade around”, according to NPR.
Other changes like a shorter route for the parade, the dressing down of the guests from grandiose royal attire to business suits for the non-working royals, and the inclusion of a diverse list of volunteers and workers from different parts of the world is a testament to how this royal coronation of the 21st century has been projected as one of modernity, inclusivity and commonality.
Sandhya Rao Mehta is Associate Professor in the Department of English Language and Literature, Sultan Qaboos University.
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