Of course, history was made: Charles ascended the throne after the queen’s death. But coronation sanctifies a king’s right to rule and adopts a national celebration aimed at binding sovereignty to the people.
If Elizabeth’s coronation was one of the world’s first mass media events, with black and white images broadcast globally by the BBC, it was the first coronation of the digital age, shared by audiences on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook.
“I’m just curious,” said Zoë Boyce, 24, as she waited in a blanket with a friend, Sarah Chappell, 23. Ms. Boyce insisted she was “not a huge fan” of the recipe. monarchy, but said, “I think you can appreciate it without supporting it.”
“It’s just one day in history, isn’t it?” Ms Chappell added.
There are notes that don’t get along. Hours before the ceremony began, police arrested the head of Britain’s most famous republican movement, Graham Smith, and others who had planned a protest in Trafalgar Square, along the route of Procession.
Mr. Smith said last week that anti-monarchy protesters would chant and wave placards that read, “Not my King,” but would not disrupt the proceedings. However, the police, armed with a controversial new law allowing them to crack down on protests, rounded up Mr. Smith and others, long before Charles showed up.
As news of the arrest spread, other protesters resolutely gathered outside the blockaded area around Trafalgar Square.
