The Imperial Robe (also Robe of Estate [1] or Imperial State Robe [1] ) is a robe used in the Coronation of the British monarch. It is donned in the final stages of the ceremony for the procession of the monarch from Westminster Abbey to the waiting Gold State Coach. These Robes were last seen at the Coronation of Charles III and Camilla, with King Charles III wearing the Imperial Robe of George VI, [2] and Queen Camilla having a new robe made for her.
The robe is donned at the end of the coronation when, after being crowned and receiving homage the monarch proceeds to the shrine and tomb of Saint Edward the Confessor. Here the regalia are removed and the Robe Royal and Stole Royal taken off. The monarch is enrobed with the Imperial Robe and processes out of the Abbey whilst wearing the Imperial State Crown and carrying the Orb and Sceptre with Cross. [3] During the Coronation the monarch is enrobed by the Lord Great Chamberlain who is assisted by the Groom of the Robes and the Master of the Robes or Mistress of the Robes. [3] The monarch enters the Gold State Coach to return to Buckingham Palace where their coronation day concludes with a balcony appearance to the waiting public. [1]
The Imperial Robe of George V was made of purple silk velvet embroidered in gold. [4] [5] After adjustments by Ede & Ravenscroft, the Imperial Robe of George VI was used by his grandson, Charles III, for his coronation in 2023. [4]
Most robes used in the coronation ceremony, with the exception of the historic Robe Royal and Supertunica, are made new for each monarch. Elizabeth II considered reusing her father's Imperial Robe but instead decided to commission a new one, in line with tradition. [6]
There was concern that in post-war austerity Britain that sufficient material would not be found to make the robe but supplies of raw silk were sourced from the silk farm of Lady Zoe Hart Dyke in Lullingstone, Kent. The silk was woven into velvet on a hand loom. [6] Elizabeth's Imperial Robe is 6.5 metres (21 ft) long and weighs 15 pounds (6.8 kg). It is of purple velvet trimmed with ermine. [7] It is decorated with embroidery featuring 18 types of gold thread, seed pearls, crystals and coloured silks. [6] [8] The designs include national and Commonwealth symbols and crowns; the principal design is a border of wheat ears, symbolising plenty, and olive branches, symbolising peace. [8] The embroidery took a team of 12 people 3,500 hours to make between March and May 1953. [6]
The Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom, originally the Crown Jewels of England, are a collection of royal ceremonial objects kept in the Jewel House at the Tower of London, which include the coronation regalia and vestments worn by British monarchs.
St Edward's Crown is the centrepiece of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom. Named after Saint Edward the Confessor, versions of it have traditionally been used to crown English and British monarchs at their coronations since the 13th century.
The Imperial State Crown is one of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom and symbolises the sovereignty of the British monarch. It has existed in various forms since the 15th century. The 1937 version is worn by a new monarch for the first time in the royal procession following their coronation and subsequently used at State Openings of Parliament. The crown is adorned with 2,901 precious stones, including the Cullinan II diamond, St Edward's Sapphire, the Stuart Sapphire, and the Black Prince's Ruby.
The Honours of Scotland, informally known as the Scottish Crown Jewels, are the regalia that were worn by Scottish monarchs at their coronation. Kept in the Crown Room in Edinburgh Castle, they date from the 15th and 16th centuries, and are the oldest surviving set of crown jewels in the British Isles.
The coronation of the monarch of the United Kingdom is an initiation ceremony in which they are formally invested with regalia and crowned at Westminster Abbey. It corresponds to the coronations that formerly took place in other European monarchies, which have all abandoned coronations in favour of inauguration or enthronement ceremonies. A coronation is a symbolic formality and does not signify the official beginning of the monarch's reign; de jure and de facto their reign commences from the moment of the preceding monarch's death or abdication, maintaining legal continuity of the monarchy.
The colobium sindonis is a simple sleeveless white linen shift worn by British monarchs during part of the coronation service. It symbolises divesting oneself of all worldly vanity and standing bare before God. The monarch is continually robed and disrobed during the ceremony, according to ancient custom.
The Coronation Chair, also known as St Edward's Chair or King Edward's Chair, is an ancient wooden chair on which British monarchs sit when they are invested with regalia and crowned at their coronations. It was commissioned in 1296 by King Edward I to contain the coronation stone of Scotland—known as the Stone of Destiny—which had been captured from the Scots. The chair was named after Edward the Confessor and for centuries it was kept in his shrine at Westminster Abbey.
The Austrian Crown Jewels are the regalia and vestments worn by the Holy Roman Emperor, and later by the Emperor of Austria, during the coronation ceremony and other state functions. The term refers to the following objects: the crowns, sceptres, orbs, swords, rings, crosses, holy relics and royal robes, as well as several other objects connected with the ceremony. The collection dates from the 10th to the 19th centuries, and it reflects more than a thousand years of European history. It is kept in the Imperial Treasury at the Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria.
The Gold State Coach is an enclosed, eight-horse-drawn carriage used by the British royal family. Commissioned in 1760 by Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings for King George III, and designed by Sir William Chambers, it was built in the London workshops of Samuel Butler. It was commissioned for £7,562. It was built for George III's coronation in 1761, but was not ready in time; it was completed in 1762.
The Crown of Scotland is the centrepiece of the Honours of Scotland. It is the crown that was used at the coronation of the monarchs of Scotland, and it is the oldest surviving crown in the British Isles and among the oldest in Europe.
Typical of British heraldry, a cap of maintenance, known in heraldic language as a chapeau gules turned up ermine, is a ceremonial cap of crimson velvet lined with ermine, which is worn or carried by certain persons as a sign of nobility or special honour. It is worn with the high part to the fore, and the tapering tail behind. It may substitute for the torse in the heraldic achievement of a person of special honour granted the privilege by the monarch. It thus appears in such cases on top of the helm and below the crest. It does not, however, feature in the present royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, which shows the royal crest upon the royal crown, itself upon the royal helmet.
The coronation of Elizabeth II as queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. She acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, being proclaimed queen by her privy and executive councils shortly afterwards. The coronation was held more than one year later because of the tradition of allowing an appropriate length of time to pass after a monarch dies. It also gave the planning committees adequate time to make preparations for the ceremony. During the service, Elizabeth took an oath, was anointed with holy oil, was invested with robes and regalia, and was crowned Queen of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon.
Queen Elizabeth II's coronation took place on 2 June 1953. Ordered in October 1952, her gown took eight months of research, design, workmanship, and intricate embroidery to complete. It featured the floral emblems of the countries of the United Kingdom and those of the other states within the Commonwealth of Nations, including the English Tudor rose, Scots thistle, Welsh leek, Irish shamrock, Canadian maple leaf, Australian wattle, New Zealand silver fern, South African protea, Indian lotus flower for India, the Lotus flower of Ceylon, and Pakistan's wheat, cotton, and jute.
Several Swedish coronation robes from the 16th to the 19th century are preserved at The Royal Armoury in Stockholm, Sweden. The youngest one, Oscar II's coronation robe from 1873, is in the Treasury at Stockholm Palace.
The coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as king and queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, took place on Saturday, 6 May 2023, at Westminster Abbey. Charles acceded to the throne on 8 September 2022 upon the death of his mother, Elizabeth II.
The Robe of State is a robe worn by the British monarch on state occasions. A monarch typically has a robe made for their coronation and reuses it when attending the State Opening of Parliament at the start of each legislative session. Traditionally the robes have an ermine cape with a long train made of crimson coloured velvet, trimmed in gold lace and lined with ermine.
A Supertunica is a robe worn by a British monarch at their coronation. It is donned shortly after the Anointing ceremony for the vesting of the Spurs, Sword of Offering and the Armills. Afterwards the Stole Royal and Robe Royal are worn on top of the Supertunica for the crowning of the monarch. The Supertunica, Stole and Robe are replaced with the Imperial Robe for the final procession from Westminster Abbey.
The Stole Royal is an item of regalia used during the coronation of a British monarch, similar to the stoles worn as vestments by clergymen. It is donned after the anointing of the monarch and is worn throughout the crowning, receiving of homage and conclusion of the communion. The Stole Royal is removed, with other garments, before the procession from Westminster Abbey for which the Imperial Robe is worn.
The Robe Royal is a robe worn by the British monarch when they are crowned at their coronation. It is donned just before the monarch is invested with the Orb, Ring and Sceptres. It is worn during the crowning and paying of homage. The Robe Royal used is one originally created for the 1821 coronation of George IV.
The coronation glove is a single white glove worn on the right hand by the British monarch during part of their coronation. It is donned after they are invested with the Sovereign's Ring and remains in place during the crowning ceremony. The glove is removed prior to the taking of homage from the bishops and peers of the realm. Presenting the glove to the monarch was a right associated with the Manor of Worksop and in the past the gloves have been embroidered with the arms of the owner of that manor. In 1953 the Court of Claims ruled that the Henry Pelham-Clinton-Hope, 9th Duke of Newcastle had lost the right by passing the manor to a limited company. At the 1953 coronation the glove, now embroidered with the royal cypher, was presented to the monarch by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
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