King Charles III Coronation RECAP: King Charles crowned at Westminster Abbey
King was crowned, the bells of Westminster Abbey rang for two minutes and a fanfare was sounded.
A gun salute was also fired by The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, stationed at Horse Guards Parade.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdA 21-gun salute has sounded at Hillsborough Castle in Co Down, the royal residence in Northern Ireland, to mark the coronation of the King.


The cannons began to fire at the moment Charles was crowned, by reservists from the 206 (Ulster) Battery, part of the 105th Regiment Royal Artillery.
Hundreds of guests are watching the service on a screen within the grounds of the castle.
Thousands of people across Northern Ireland are following the ceremony from Westminster Abbey live on public screens including at Belfast City Hall, Ballymena, Larne, Carrickfergus, Bessbrook, Antrim, Jordanstown and Coleraine.
Coronation of King Charles - Live updates on Coronation Day
The doors of Westminster Abbey haveopened for the congregation with more than 2,200 people from 203 countries expected to attend.
Heads of state and representatives of overseas governments will arrive from 09:30, foreign royals from 10:25 and members of the British Royal Family from 10:35.
What time will we see the King?
The King will enter the abbey through the Great West Door at 10:53 wearing a red velvet robe of state.
The ceremony is due to begin at 11:00
Denise Maddox and her daughter Louise Maddox brought their touring caravan to London to ensure they could get up early for the coronation.
The pair scouted out the area on Friday night and took a 5am bus to get near Buckingham Palace.
Speaking on the Mall, Denise Maddox said: “I want to see the Gold State Coach. I wasn’t born for the Queen’s coronation and I don’t know if I will be here for William’s.
“I have come because I might never see it in my lifetime again. It’s something I have wanted to do since the Queen passed away.”
The pair bought a bottle of champagne at Christmas to mark the coronation and have brought cornflakes to eat and Union Jack hats with a King Charles picture on the top.


Anti-monarchy protesters demonstrate in London ahead of the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on Saturday.


There have been some early arrests according to reports.
Around 8.30am there were chants of “Not my king” from a group of anti-monarchists standing at the edge of Trafalgar Square.
They were met by boos and opposing chants of “God save the King”.
Supporters of campaign group Republic are standing in the middle of the crowd waiting for Charles and Camilla’s procession - wuth the Guardian reporting that the head of the group has been arrested.
Many of the campaigners are dressed in yellow waving placards with slogans including “king parasite” and “abolish the monarchy”.
They are shoulder to shoulder with royal supporters bedecked in Union flags, with one waving a banner carrying a photo of Diana, Princess of Wales.
Preparations were in full swing at Buckingham Palace as staff were seen adorning its famous balcony with red and gold draping ahead of the royal family’s appearance later.


Anti-monarchy campaign group Republic said its chief executive had been arrested along with five of his team.
It tweeted: “This morning, @GrahamSmith_ and 5 members of our team were arrested. Hundreds of placards were seized. Is this democracy? #NotMyKing #Coronation”
Some more on the arrests of anti-monarchy protesters - and if we will see more?
Republic activist Luke Whiting, 26, said: “Six Republic members have been arrested including the CEO as the demonstration was starting at the edge of Trafalgar Square.
“It is unclear why, potentially it is because one of them was carrying a megaphone.
“It is unclear exactly whether the police are using these new powers and whether they are misusing them to stop protest happening.”
This week, the Metropolitan Police announced they would have an “extremely low threshold” for protests during the coronation celebrations, and that demonstrators could expect “swift action”.


There were cheers when Ant and Dec entered Westminster Abbey ahead of the coronation according to our reporter on the scene Alison Campsie.
Lord Narendra Patel, Knight of the Thistle is in a green velvet robe with white ribbons on the shoulder.


Military personnel have begun lining the roads around Westminster Abbey.
They started to form into position just before 9.30am.
Celeb watch
There are a host of big names attending the coronation, with David and Victoria Beckhamset to attend,
TV presenters Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly have joined other celebrity guests including Dame Emma Thompson, Lord Lloyd-Webber, Dame Judi Dench and Stephen Fry at Westminster Abbey for the King’s coronation service.
The TV duo are attending in their capacity as goodwill ambassadors for the Prince’s Trust, a role they took up in 2021 after two decades working with the charity.
US singer Katy Perry, Australian musician Nick Cave, British Vogue’s editor-in-chief Edward Enninful, BBC director-general Tim Davie, actress Dame Joanna Lumley, TV host Jay Blades and singer Lionel Richie, who will perform at the coronation concert on Sunday, were also in attendance.
First Lady of the United States, Dr Jill Biden arriving ahead of the coronation ceremony of King Charles III and Queen Camilla at Westminster Abbey, central London.


The King and Queen have made their first appearance of coronation day – travelling the short distance from their Clarence House home for final preparations at Buckingham Palace.
Crowds in The Mall cheered as they caught sight of Charles and Camilla being driven in a state limousine between the royal residences.
They are due to leave the palace at 10.20am and travel in a procession to Westminster Abbey where first the King and then the Queen will be anointed and crowned by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby.
Church leaders from Scotland are to play their part in the coronation of the King on Saturday.
The Right Rev Dr Iain Greenshields will be representing the Church of Scotland, presenting Charles with his first gift, and the Most Rev Mark Strange, Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, will present the Sovereign’s Sceptre with Cross to the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Dr Greenshields said it was a “great honour and privilege” to be representing the church during the “very special moment in history”.
“I will play a part in service by presenting King Charles with a specially made Bible as his first gift, a tradition which has been part of every coronation since Mary II and William III in 1689,” the moderator of the Church of Scotland’s General Assembly said.
“The crown has very close ties with the Church of Scotland and signing an historic oath to uphold the Presbyterian system of Church governance in Scotland was His Majesty’s first act after being officially proclaimed King following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth last September.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.