Crowning of King Charles III

Britain's King Charles III was crowned at Westminster Abbey in London on Saturday, attended by world leaders and dignitaries. He was anointed with oil from the Mount of Olives and presented with the Sovereign's Orb and Scepter, gold spurs and bracelets, and five swords. The ceremony was attended by US First Lady Jill Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as well as dignitaries from throughout the British Commonwealth and royals from around the world. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak read from the Bible, while all of the UK’s living former prime ministers were in attendance. Before Charles and Queen Consort Camilla left the abbey, the King switched the ceremonial crown out for the Imperial State Crown, which he will wear at future occasions.

The royals proceeded to Buckingham Palace, as crowds lining the route waved and cheered. The ceremony of the inauguration of Charles as King of the United Kingdom was attended by four people on suspicion of conspiracy to cause public nuisance and three on suspicion of possessing articles to cause criminal damage. An anti-monarchy group was arrested and hundreds of placards seized by police. Britain is now much less ethnically and religiously homogeneous than it was in the 1950s, with ethnic minorities now accounting for 15% of the population. The procession into Westminster Abbey included Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and Jewish leaders, and Prime Minister Sunak was the first non-Christian prime minister to read from the Bible.