CORONATION RITUAL

Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 27055, 2 June 1953, Page 5 (Supplement)

CORONATION RITUAL

Religious Ceremony Of Great Antiquity PRIME IMPORTANCE OF THE BIBLE

[By CHRISTOPHER BRADBY, of the Church Information Board)

It is possible to look on the Coronation of Britain’s Sovereign as simply a magnificent spectacle, where the service in London’s Westminster Abbey glitters as the brightest moment in a rich pageant.

To do this, however, and to look no further, is to miss the real meaning of the whole event. It is, of course, a magnificent spectacle, where colour, music, setting, tradition, and many other strands-are interwoven to make up the brilliant pattern. But it is, first and foremost, a religious ceremony; the Sovereign is hallowed and set apart by the Church; the most solemn promises are made; and through prayer and the celebration of Holy Communion, the guidance of God is

sought for the Sovereign to be given strength to live up to his or her duties.

The service, then, is deeply religious. It has two other qualities that make its appeal so compelling: it is symbolic (thus appealing at once to the imagination), and it stands for continuity, for though innovations are introduced to meet changing circumstances, the framework of the service has changed little through the centuries.

“Vivat Elizabetha” As Queen Elizabeth II walks in procession through the nave of Westminster Abbey for her Coronation on June 2, the singing of the anthem will be punctuated by shouts of “Vivat Elizabetha” by the

Westminster scholars, who traditionally are the first to give greeting. With this cry echoing and re-echoing through the Abbey, the young Queen will move to what is known as the “theatre,” the wide space where choir stalls, transepts and sanctuary meet. Here, facing the altar, is set the ancient Coronation Chair; behind it, on a dais, will be the Thrcjne. while nearby will be a Chair of State, beside which the Queen will stand while the Archbishop of Canterbury presents her to the four quarters of the compass with the words “Sirs, I here present unto you Queen Elizabeth, your undoubted Queen, wherefore all you who are come this day to do your homage and service, are you willing to do the same?”

Hie congregation, representing all the peoples of the Queen, having signified their willingness with the shout of “God Save Queen Elizabeth,” the Archbishop will administer the Oath to the Queen, who, having answered, will go to the altar, and, with her hand on the Bible, say “The things which I have here before promised, I will perform and keep.” She will then kiss the Bible and sign her name on the Coronation Roll.

The prime importance of the Bible will be emphasised when the Dean of Westminster hands it to the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scot- ft land while the Archbishop commends it as “the most valuable thing that this world affords.” The Moderator, handing it to the Queen, will add “Here is wisdom; this is the royal law; these are the lively oracles of God.” Then will -begin the Communion Ser-

vice, in which is incorporated the solemn moment of the Anointing. The Queen will sit in St. Edward’s Chair (known also as the Coronation Chair), over which four Knights of the Order of the Garter hold a canopy, while the Dean brings the Ampulla (a gold vessel, shaped like rm eagle), pours from it the consecrated oil into the Spoon and the Archbishop anoints her. Presentation of Regalia The Dean will then bring two garnients of ancient ceremonial, in which the Queen is arrayed and seated again in St. Edward’s Chair. One by one the regalia, those ensigns of royal office, will be. brought to her; first will come the Spurs, a reminder of the ancient orders of chivalry. The Queen having touched them, they will be returned to the altar .by the Lord Great Chamberlain, and the Archbishop of Canterbury will present the Sword, saying “With this sword do justice, stop the growth of iniquity, protect the Holy Church of God ...” The Queen will stand to take the sword, which she will then carry to the altar and offer.

Next, the Coronation Bracelets, known as the Armills, will be placed upon the Queen’s wrists and she will be invested with the Royal Robe, made of cloth of gold. When she is again seated, the Orb with the Cross will be placed on her right hand with the words “and when you see this Orb thus set under the Cross, remember that the whole world is subject to the power and empire of Christ our Redeemer." The Orb having been returned to the altar, then comes the investiture with a jewelled ring, placed on the fourth finger of the Queen’s right hand, and the delivery of two sceptres—

the Sceptre with the Cross, or Royal Sceptre described as “the ensign of kingly power and justice,” and the Rod with the Dove, described as “the rod of equity and mercy.”

Then will come the culminating point of the ceremony, the crowning. The Archbishop will say a prayer with St. Edward’s Crown in his hand, then he will place it upon the head of Queen Elizabeth 11. As he does so, the trumpets will sound and a great shout of “God Save the Queen” will rise from the Assembly.

Act of Homage Acclaimed, anointed and crowned, the Queen will be enthroned, being “lifted up” into the throne set in the middle of the raised dais so that all may see, and the Archbishop, on behalf of all the other bishops, will swear “.to be faithful and true.” Homage will then be paid by the Royal Dukes, headed by the Duke of Edinburgh, and by spokesmen for each order of nobility in turn —the Dukes, the Marquesses, the Earls, the Viscounts and the Barons.

Following this, the deeper underlying note will be reintroduced with the service of Holy Communion, in which, divested of her Sceptre and Crown, and accompanied by her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, Queen Elizabeth will partake of the Sacrament before the altar.

The solemn ceremony concluded, the joyful sound of the “Te Deum” will swell out, followed by a fanfare of trumpets and the singing of the National Anthem. The newly-crowned Queen win retire to

St. Edward’s Chapel, reappearing wearing a robe of purple velvet and the Imperial Crown and carrying in her right hand the Sceptre with the Cross, in her left the Qrb. The procession will form up and majestically make its way down the full length of the Abbey to the west end, whence Queen Elizabeth II will drive in state through the streets of London to show herself to her people.