King's coronation: How will the military's involvement compare to the late Queen's?
From street liners to Royal bodyguards, musicians, and everything in between, the Armed Forces have always played a key role in state ceremonial events and providing the pomp and circumstance only the British military knows how.
Members of the UK's three armed services will have spent months and years preparing for such a big occasion.
Military personnel will already be preparing their uniforms, with every Master Tailor and senior officer and non-commissioned officer ensuring not so much as a tunic button is out of place.
Planners from across the military and civil service will also be rehearsing hard behind the scenes, synchronising each and every word of command and moving part of the procession.
What role will the military play in King Charles III's coronation and how will it compare with the late Queen's coronation in 1953?
Coronations have remained much the same for more than 1,000 years. This uniquely British ceremony is the only remaining event of its type in Europe.
However, Buckingham Palace hinted that King Charles' coronation will be a much smaller affair compared to his late mother's and that the huge event will still be "rooted in long-standing traditions", but will also "reflect the monarch's role today and look towards the future".
In previous ceremonies, the King or Queen has traditionally worn silk stockings and breeches. However, recent reports have claimed that King Charles will opt to wear his military uniform instead.
Great Britain and its military in 2023 is very different to that of 1953.
First off, military conscription was still a thing in 1953 and was retained in peacetime until 1963. More than 863,000 men were serving overseas in 1952 in bases in the Federal Republic of Germany, the Mediterranean, Egypt, Cyrenaica, the Persian Gulf, Aden, Hong Kong, the West Indies and Malaya. As at 1 January 2023, the total strength of the regular Armed Forces was 143,560 and set to decrease even further.
A total of 8,251 guests attended the Queen's coronation ceremony at Westminster Abbey and 129 nations and territories were officially represented at the 1953 coronation service. Buckingham Palace has confirmed 2,000 guests will form the congregation in Westminster Abbey on 6 June 2023.
How many personnel took part in Queen Elizabeth's coronation in 1953?
Close to 30,000 troops took part in the procession – 3,600 from the Royal Navy, 16,100 from the Army and 7,000 from the RAF, 2,000 from the Commonwealth and 500 from the 'Colonies'. There were also 6,700 reserve and administrative troops, while 1,000 officers and men of the Royal Military Police were bought in to assist the Metropolitan Police. A further 7,000 police were drawn in from around the country.
A Naval Review also took place at Spithead on 15 June 1953. It involved 190 vessels and more than 300 naval aircraft. The muster included one battleship, eight carriers, 12 cruisers, 20 destroyers, 40 frigates, 18 minesweepers, 30 submarines, and 62 other vessels.
The event on 15 July 1953 saw the biggest display of military air power that the United Kingdom has ever seen.
The Royal Air Force Review was laid on to celebrate Her Majesty The Queen's coronation, which had taken place just one month before.
Held at RAF Odiham in Hampshire, now a frontline helicopter base, 300 aircraft alone were lined up for a static display.
A staggering 600 more from the RAF and other Commonwealth air forces took to the skies that summer afternoon, with more than 50 different types of aircraft taking part, from Avro Ansons to De Havilland Venoms.
The number of military personnel taking part in 2023?
The Ministry of Defence confirmed that around 6,000 men and women of the UK Armed Forces will take part in the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on Saturday 6 May.
Soldiers, sailors and aviators from across the UK and Commonwealth will participate in two processions accompanying Their Majesties to and from Westminster Abbey.
Nearly 400 Armed Forces personnel from at least 35 Commonwealth countries will also be on parade to mark the historic moment.
Later on, more than 60 aircraft from the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force will conduct a flypast over The Mall in central London.
Gun salutes will sound, from military bases across the country and on Royal Navy ships, to mark the moment the King is crowned.
The weeks preceding the coronation have seen military personnel busy in rehearsals for a display of "pageantry, professionalism and pride" to honour their new Commander-in-Chief, King Charles III, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) said.
Military numbers compared and broken down
The Queen's coronation service began at 11:15 and lasted almost three hours.
Around 5,000 Armed Forces personnel will accompany their Sovereign King Charles from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey and back in two separate processions.
The first, the King's Procession, is the smaller of the two and will involve just under 200 personnel, around the Sovereign's Escort of The Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment.
Compared with the late Queen's five-mile procession route, King Charles' procession will cover 1.42 miles, travelling down The Mall to Trafalgar Square, before turning onto Whitehall and marching to Westminster Abbey. More than 1,000 servicemen and women from all three services will line the route.
The coronation procession will follow the same route back to Buckingham Palace from Westminster Abbey. It will involve nearly 4,000 personnel – the largest military operation of its kind for a generation, but much less than the near 30,000 procession troops in 1953.
Due to the vast number of personnel available in 1953, the route was lined throughout with the troops at 30inch (one pace) intervals. Troops are likely to be spaced much further apart during King Charles' coronation.
The MOD has said the military spectacle will represent the "diversity and traditions of the UK and Commonwealth Armed Forces".
The flypast will last for a total of six minutes.
The Royal Family will watch the tri-service aircraft from the balcony of Buckingham Palace, as they fly over The Mall in formation.
That formation will include aircraft that delivered support to Ukraine, protected Nato airspace, helped on disaster relief operations, tackled drug trafficking and countered terrorism in the Middle East and Africa, the MOD said.
It will involve aircraft ranging from the historic Spitfires of the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight to the joint RAF and Royal Navy-crewed state-of-the art F-35B Lightning II jets.
There will also be the RAF's new P-8A maritime patrol aircraft, 16 helicopters and the first flypast of the Royal Air Force's new Envoy IV CC1 airplane.
The world-famous RAF aerobatic display team, the Red Arrows, will also take part.
How many coronation medals were issued in 1953?
Records kept at The National Archives contain nominal rolls and category lists for all those issued commemorative medals to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
It was announced from 10 Downing Street in April 1953 that the Queen Elizabeth Coronation Medal would be awarded as a personal souvenir to selected persons throughout the Empire and Commonwealth including members of the Armed Forces, various Government ministers, public servants, officials and the police.
The medal was issued immediately after the coronation on 2 June 1953 and an approximate total of 138,214 medals were struck and issued.
Her Majesty's medal, crafted in silver and designed by Cecil Thomas, featured Queen Elizabeth II dressed in her ermine cloak.
On the reverse, the medal had an engraving of Her Majesty's Royal cypher, surrounded by the words: "QUEEN ELIZABETH II CROWNED 2nd JUNE 1953."
The medal also featured a dark red ribbon with two blue stripes running through the centre and two white contrasting stripes flanking the edges.
How many medals and who will be issued a coronation medal in 2023?
The Government says it was "considering options" for a coronation medal with just weeks to go until the coronation of King Charles III.
A spokesperson for DCMS (Department for Culture, Media and Sport) said: "As with other major state occasions we are considering options for a coronation medal.
"More detail will be announced in due course."
Who will provide the music during the coronation and procession?
Military bands used in the 1953 coronation included 20 military bands, in addition to the 24 bands marching in the processions.
The website of the Royal Corps of Army Music says that "through music, service bands are to sustain and develop the moral component of fighting power, support state ceremonial, and achieve influence in order to further defence and national interests".
There are currently 753 full-time and regular musicians in 22 bands from across the Royal Corps of Army Music – although some of the bands have now merged.
The Royal Air Force has three regular bands comprising approximately 170 musicians.
There are currently also five bands within the Royal Marines Band Service.
It is likely that bands from all three armed services will be represented during and after the coronation.
The day after the coronation, there will also be a coronation concert held on Windsor Castle's East Lawn, and it will feature a 74-piece orchestra made up of the Massed Bands of the Household Division.
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