3 Major Roles Prince William Could Play in King Charles’ Coronation Since He Doesn’t Have a Specified Part in the Ceremony
With all the talk about whether Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will attend the duke’s father King Charles III’s coronation, it’s almost forgotten that the monarch’s other son will be there and will play an integral role in the historic event. However, if you thought Prince William had a specific role set in the stone for the upcoming ceremony that’s not the case.
With no protocol to dictate the exact part the new Prince of Wales has in the coronation, here are three roles he could play in the royal affair.
Prince William could have a large role in planning the whole event
Dr. George Gross, Visiting Research Fellow in Theology at King’s College London, told Express: “There isn’t a set role for Prince of Wales to play during the coronation because there wasn’t always a Prince of Wales at the time of the coronation. Going back far enough in history there have been monarchs that weren’t even married at the time of their coronation.”
Prince Charles was only 4 years old when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, was crowned and wasn’t yet the Prince of Wales.
A coronation takes lots of planning and a whole committee is assembled to make sure everything is set and goes off without a hitch. It’s believed that king’s eldest son will have a say in all of that. The Telegraph previously reported that Prince William was expected to join those on the coronation committee and have an “active advisory position.”
Commentator and author Catherine Pepinster agreed that William will have a large part in the organization of the coronation.
“If you look back to 1953, there were effectively two committees, there was the lead committee and then the second committee which carried out the work that the first one wanted to happen,” she said. “The leading figure, the person who had the real clout in 1953, was the Duke of Edinburgh. I am wondering if we might see the new Prince of Wales, Prince William, taking a similar role this time. I suspect we will be seeing Prince William flexing his muscles here and he will be somebody who is pushing, I think, to see the coronation quite considerably modernized.”
The prince’s position in the procession
Dr. Gross added that William will most likely have a prominent role in the actual ceremony as well not just the planning of it.
He said: “So it’s not a written-in role, but I am sure he will have a prominent place” regarding his place in the procession and where he’ll be seated.
The Prince of Wales’ wife (formerly known as Kate Middleton) could have some small role in the event along with their three children as well. But the Princess of Wales is expected to watch the coronation from the same place in Westminster Abbey where the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret, and a then-young Prince Charles did on June 2, 1953.
Dr. Gross explained: “In 1953 [royal wives] sat in the royal box, that tend to be the tradition, and I suspect that will remain the same. There isn’t a formal role for them.”
William will pay homage to his father during the ceremony
Dr. Gross believes that it’s possible another role altogether that we haven’t seen before could be written in specially for the Prince of Wales saying: “They have flexibility, they could write something in to give him a greater role, but it’s not necessary there in the service.”
According to author and historian Dr. Tessa Dunlop, there is one role that most people expect to see from the heir apparent on that day.
She told The Mirror: “William, as heir to the throne, will reportedly pay homage to his father the king during the ceremony, which will see him kneel and pledge allegiance to Charles as well as touching the crown and kissing the monarch’s right cheek.”
