30 Unseen Images From The King’s Coronation

1. The King departing the Palace

Image Source/ The Guardian

The first images we have of King Charles and Queen Camilla departing Buckingham Palace and making their way to Westminster Abbey. They travelled in a very fancy carriage pulled by royal horses and all decked out in gold. Not to mention their fancy coronation clothes that we will get a closer look at later.

2. Prince Andrew waving to the crowd

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Prince Andrew might be waving to the crowd as he travels through London, but I'm not sure the crowd will be waving back at him. Definitely one of the most unpopular members of the royal family, he travels to the Abbey with his daughter Princess Eugenie.

3. The royal moment!

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Obviously the most iconic part of the whole day is when King Charles is actually 

crowned with a real life crown! Here is the moment itself if you happened to miss it on the day. He was first presented with many royal trophies, including a heavy looking orb, but the final piece of the puzzle is when the crown comes to rest on his head.

4. Queen Camilla is up next

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In a much shorter ceremony (to everyone's relief), Queen Camilla was also crowned with a similar looking hat. The crowns must have been very heavy as neither of them kept them on for long and apparently this is the only time they will be worn! They don't have to wear them to work every day!

5. Prince William's blessing

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Probably one of the most touching moments of the whole ceremony. Prince William declared his allegiance to the King, his father, in front of the whole crowd at Westminster and everyone watching at home too. With a kiss on his cheek, you could see the emotion on King Charles' face and I'll bet a few at home shed a tear too.

6. The Outlaws

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Pictured here are two of probably the most talked about members of the royal family in recent years. Prince Andrew and Harry have made the tabloid headlines for a variety of scandals. Harry attended the coronation without Meghan or the kids, a matter which the newspapers were quick to speculate on.

7. A smoking ceremony in Sydney

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All the way in Sydney, Australia, a traditional smoking ceremony took place, led by indigenous people. They performed this ritual at a tree-planting ceremony which took place at the Government House in Sydney. If you didn't know, the King is also monarch in Australia too.

8. Protestors making a stand

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There was A LOT 

of protests in London over the coronation weekend. Believe it or not, they weren't widely covered by the mainstream media so you might be seeing these pictures for the first time. Most protestors carried signs and banners with the words 'Not My King'.

9. Rainy England

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For those not familiar with the UK, it rains... A LOT. 

And in true British style, the rain delivered on this momentous weekend. This didn't put the crowds off though. They still turned out in their thousands decked out with ponchos and umbrellas to keep dry.

10. Prince Louie telling us what he thinks of the ceremony

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Arguably the most iconic of the royal children, Prince Louie is always entertaining at these events. If he isn't messing about on the balcony with his siblings, he is letting us know what he thought of the two hour long coronation ceremony. It was a long watch for us at home, so imagine how it was sitting through it in person!

11. Prime Ministers Assemble

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Former UK Prime Ministers got a whole section to themselves for the coronation! There's Liz Truss, Boris Johnson, David Cameron, Theresa May, Gordon Brown and Tony Blair, plus all their partners! Of course, current PM Rishi Sunak took on a larger role and I'm sure these lot watched on enviously.

12. Louie yawning... again

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Sitting in the front row was the next King and Queen, plus their royal children, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louie. Their eldest child, Prince George, was of course taking part in the ceremony. Here Louie is again, letting us know exactly what he thinks of his Grandfather's coronation ceremony.

13. An almighty sword

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Penny Mordaunt, an MP and Leader of the House of Commons in the UK, got the prestigious honour of carrying the Sword of State for the ceremony. She never cracked a smile once but I imagine she was too busy making sure she didn't drop it as it looks like one heavy

sword!

14. Grandfather and Grandson

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Prince George took on an almighty role of assisting his grandfather as a Page during the coronation. He helped him with his robe and was present by his side throughout the duration. I can imagine this was quite a special moment for George and a look to his 

future, as he will likely be the one sat on the throne one day.

15. Not forgetting the climate protestors

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Over the coronation weekend, people were not just protesting their feelings towards the monarchy. There were also protests about climate change. Given the amount of press and media in London, they thought it would be a good time to get some air time. Although, for this guy it seems his protest might have ended a little earlier than planned...

16. Lionel Ritchie working the crowd

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Name a better person to attend the coronation? The legend that is Lionel Ritchie was there on King Charles' special day. Amongst a lot of other celebs. I wonder if Charles was in charge of the guest list? I would love to know how many celebs called in special favours to get their names on that list...

17. Kier chatting away to the Lloyd Webbers

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Kier Starmer, leader of the Labour Party, was obviously in attendance. Here he can be seen chatting with Andrew Lloyd Webber and his wife, Madeleine, who make up just part of a well known guest list. Here they are at Westminster Abbey awaiting the arrival of the King.

18. Dame Joanna arrives

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Dame Joanna Lumley was an obvious guest at the King's coronation ceremony. She has met the royal family on numerous occasions because of her extensive charity work. A firm favourite of the public too, she looks very excited to be a part of this special day!

19. Three ladies from Toronto enjoying the party

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People from all over the world flew into London to celebrate King Charles' Coronation. These three ladies came all the way from Toronto, Canada to join the party. A once in a life time opportunity for a lot of people! What a privilege to come and enjoy and what stories they will have to share when they get home.

20. The Scots aren't a fan

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It wasn't just London that was home to protestors over the weekend. In Edinburgh, Scotland there was an anti-monarchist rally on Calton Hill during the course of the coronation weekend. They protested peacefully but wanted their opinions known that they did not support the new King.

21. The iconic balcony moment

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And here we have the most photographed balcony in the world. King Charles and Queen Camilla made their appearance here after the coronation ceremony wearing the fancy state crowns. They had all the working members of the royal family present with them for this special moment.

22. Charles saying hello to the crowd

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People actually camped out in the British rain in the days leading up to the coronation! Here you can see King Charles meeting and greeting the crowds that had gathered along The Mall. This was the day before the coronation and the whole area was already filled! I hope all the campers thought it was worth it!

23. A long night of rehearsals

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As you can probably imagine, the rehearsals for the whole coronation went on for weeks before hand. The procession in particular, due to all the different groups needing organising, were very gruelling. You can see them hear rehearsing late into the night to make sure everything was perfect on the day.

24. An unbelievable garden party

Image Source/ The Court Jeweller

The Royals kicked off the coronation weekend in style with a huge garden party at Buckingham Palace. Luckily, the weather held out on this occasion and in attendance was not just the royal family, but people from all walks of life and those heavily involved in charity. Apparently the food was exquisite!

25. The Red Arrows

Image Source/ Sky News

Although the typical British weather may have toned down the overhead performance, the Red Arrows still made a great show for the crowd. While the new King and Queen stood on the balcony, the air show took place overhead. The best bit was the new crowns weighing so heavily on their heads that they couldn't lift them up to see the show!

26. I can't believe it!

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Someone seriously needs to get Prince Louie his own show or something. The little Prince certainly hasn't been taught to hide his emotions yet. This is his face while he was watching the Red Arrows fly overhead. I think he might have been quite impressed!

27. In all his glory

Image Source/ Sky News

And here he is, King Charles with every royal ornament there is. Wearing the state crown, he holds the orb and sceptre and tries to navigate the walk from chair to chair without dropping any of them! Luckily the crown was wedged pretty tightly on his head to stop it from falling off.

28. A sweet moment

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A stolen moment between the King and Queen on what can only be the most intense day of their lives. As the two put their heads together, all decked out in the state crowns, I wonder what they are talking about. Maybe how much their necks are aching! Or how hot they are under those fur gowns!

29. Arriving by train

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What better way to get around London? You can see the King's Guard navigating their way through a central London station making sure they won't be late for the big day! Given half the roads around the Mall were shut, they didn't have much choice but to take the tube this time!

30. A near miss

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What better way to enter the King's coronation than by falling into it! Katy Perry was just one of many celebrities in attendance, but clearly the British weather got the better of her shoes and she nearly ended up on the floor! Luckily she managed to catch herself before that outfit was ruined.

31. The King leaving Buckingham Palace

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With all the red uniform of the King's Guard, it's not often you see a striking blue color of a procession of royal horses! The stops were truly pulled out for the king and queen's carriage as they left the palace, escorted by beautiful white horses and no shortage of guard.

32. The procession arrives back at the palace

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With so much on the schedule happening away at the palace, you sometimes forget that they actually have to do a loop and make their way back once the king is crowned, of course! The entire procession had to make its way back to the palace for the next part of the day.

33. You can get a sneak peak of the carriage through the window!

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It's all well and good seeing the amazing carriage once it's outside the palace gates, but it's interesting to see it tucked up inside through the glass window, getting ready to go! You can just about spy the white horses at the front and the shape of the gold as a guardsman watches on.

34. The Princess of Wales is all smiles

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Among the guests of course were Prince William (now direct heir to the throne) and his wife, Kate Middleton. We're so used to seeing the princess in stylish dresses and coats (that follow royal protocol, of course) that it was interesting to see her in formal royal regalia!

35. The military from the Commonwealth nations

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Of course, the military in attendance for the king's big day wasn't just his own guard - there was also all the military from the commonwealth nations. The commonwealth is a collection of nations with allegiance to the king of queen of England - now King Charles.

36. Prince George and Princess Charlotte arrive too

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And it wasn't just King Charles and Queen Camilla getting towed around in style - the young Princess Charlotte and Prince George did, too. Charlotte looks very focused on something - maybe she's practising not getting the giggles? - while George looks like he's got the whole world on his shoulders. And he will, one day!

37. The queen leaves Westminster Abbey

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With so much focus on actually getting the king and queen to Westminster Abbey to become - well, king and queen - it's interesting to see their faces when they come out again. Camilla looks like she's taking her new role very, very seriously - and that crown must weigh a ton.

38. The regular police arrive, too!

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You might actually forget about the regular UK police when we're used to see the king's armed guards in all their regal reds. But of course the normal police have to walk the streets, too, and pay their respects for the procession. Mostly to keep an eye on those protestors...

39. It's a hard job!

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You've got to feel for the people involved in the procession, it must be a lot of pressure on you to sit up straight and make sure your horse follows your lead. This man looks like he's concentrating very hard on his role in it all, and looking as though he's watching his horse very closely!

40. An extra wave for the road!

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You'd think being king you'd be the first to enter a room, and the first to leave it, but it's quite intimate to see the king hanging back on the balcony to give the crowd one last final wave! Because of course he's the last person we want to see filtering off the balcony, so that was a nice of him.

41. Another heavy thing to carry

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There is so much that goes into a royal coronation, not least of all the crown of the king himself, and the Sword of State we saw earlier. It seems everywhere you turn there's another large and heavy object carried by someone just trying not to drop it! Good for him.

42. The normal routine continues

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Of course, despite the fact there's a HUGE coronation going on, someone still has to stay behind and guard the palace as per usual. The normal king's guard routine was still in full swing, with guards stationed outside the palace catching a break from the rain with some shelter at their post.

43. An umbrella for Harry

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Does he really deserve to be kept dry? You decide. All depends if you're a fan of him and Meghan or not! Either way, it looks like Prince Harry is pretty happy with the coronation - or with himself - as he leaves Westminster Abbey after his father is crowned king and gets into a car.

44. Tim Laurence arrives at the palace

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Sir Timothy Laurence is a retired naval officer and also the husband of Princess Anne, King Charles's sister - so just one of many important royal guests to arrive by carriage at the palace. Here you can see a sneak into the carriage as he arrives, appearing lost in thought. We don't blame him.

45. Crowds await the famous balcony wave

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This is only a tiny portion of the crowds of people waiting outside the gates of Buckingham Palace just for a glimpse of the newly crowned king and queen on that royal balcony. Many people seemed unperturbed by the great British weather - worth it for seeing a king!

46. Emma Thompson gives it a thumbs up

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If actress Emma Thompson approves of the coronation, then so do we! The actress arrived at Westminster Abbey wearing something she obviously got the memo for, in a deep hue of royal red the king's guard would be proud of! She was just one of many celeb guests.

47. Princess Anne arrives

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We saw husband Tim Laurence in the carriage but Princess Anne was hiding from view - here she is stepping out of the carriage with her husband, dressed in Royal Navy ceremonial uniform that she's often seen wearing at royal occasions. Princess Anne is the sister of King Charles.

48. The royal balcony from a different angle

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We're so used to close ups of the royals on the balcony waving at well-wishers down below, that it's not often we actually see this view of the balcony! If you'd never seen it from this far away before, is this how you imagined it? I think it's better to see close ups photos after if you want the detail!

49. And then there's the clean up

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So much time and effort put into a royal ceremony like the coronation, moving through the streets of London - and then you have the sheer amount of crowds gathering with the risk of litter-droppers being amongst them (though we hope not). So of course it takes a huge team of people to keep everything tidy!

50. The aftermath

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With the dull British skies, the lack of a crowd and the big lack of a dazzling king's crown, it all looks a bit lacklustre after the big event, doesn't it? The calm before the storm becomes more like the calm after the storm.. kind of feels like a ghost town here, doesn't it?