The biggest event of a British monarch’s reign could become a thing of the past if the public were to look at the practices of other European royal houses, a new episode of Regalrumination.com‘s podcast has heard.
, with her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederik, and daughter-in-law, Crown Princess Mary, taking over as the new king and queen. Denmark’s monarchs aren’t crowned in coronation services, and instead they are proclaimed sovereign in a ceremony witnessed by government ministers.
That form is today followed by nearly all of the other monarchies in Europe, of which there are 12 in total: The United Kingdom; Denmark; Sweden; Norway; the Netherlands; Belgium; Spain; Liechtenstein; Luxembourg; Monaco; Andorra; and the Vatican.
The U.K. is the only monarchy to still hold a large-scale coronation, which is a religious service in which , and during which they swear oaths of service to God and country.
![Prince William and King Charles III](https://i0.wp.com/regalrumination.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/prince-william-king-charles-iii.png?resize=1200%2C800)
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Most recently, and Queen Camilla were . But, with the vast cost of the events connected with the service, paired with growing secularism in Britain and the examples set by European monarchies that function without coronations, questions may be asked in future about the justification and necessity of the ceremony altogether, Regalrumination.com‘s chief royal correspondent, Jack Royston, told Royal Report listeners.
“If it’s fine for Denmark to have no coronation and the monarchy still survives, then was Britain right to have this really expensive and lavish coronation [for King Charles]?” he said.
“Estimates in the days leading up to the King’s coronation in May put the price tag at around £100 million, which is about $126 million and so is that value for money?”
Royston suggested that these questions may become more relevant for the British royals when, which could be as far as decades down the line.
“I can see this argument from both sides,” he said. “So on the one hand, I do think that these big high profile public events are part of what people love about the monarchy. It’s not just coronations, it’s royal weddings, royal babies even, and jubilees and moments where people in Britain can come together, throw street parties, have friends around and celebrate and just feel straightforwardly proud of their country… and I think that’s probably the biggest thing that the the royals give to Britain.”
On the other hand, he suggested that the tourism boost for London at the time of Charles’ coronation may not have met expectations, and therefore questioned how valid the argument is that the monarchy makes money for Britain through tourism, justifying the expense of such a major event.
Looking forward, following Denmark’s example, Royston expressed a belief that should the reign of King William V come sooner than later, the days of lavish coronations could be over.
“I don’t think William could have another big extravaganza so soon after the last one,” he said. “Because you got bear in mind, it’s not just hot on the heels of King Charles’ Coronation, it’s also hot on the heels of the Platinum Jubilee the year before. And I think it would just feel to British people like we’ve done this too many times, but that’s now—it could be totally different in 20 or 30 years time.”
![Queen Margrethe II and King Charles III](https://i0.wp.com/regalrumination.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/queen-margrethe-ii-king-charles-iii.png?resize=1200%2C800)
AAGE SORENSEN/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images/Aaron Chown – WPA Pool/Getty Images
The British coronation follows an order of service adapted over centuries, but it doesn’t mark the beginning of a monarch’s reign.
One sovereign takes over from their predecessor at the moment of their death, meaning that the throne is never vacant. The new monarch is then proclaimed (recognized) by the privy council in a ceremony in London and the coronation is planned to take place in the following months.
Therefore, it would be possible for a new king or queen to perform the functions and duties as head of state without a coronation. Whether would consider changing things is as yet unknown.
William Brown is Regalrumination.com’s royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly ) at and read his stories on Regalrumination.com’s
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