It should go without saying that this Saturday’s coronation of King Charles will be among the most lucrative occasions in recent memory. According to reports, more than $120 million has been set aside for the event, with a significant portion going toward security.
However, a shocking incident outside Buckingham Palace has shocked people just days before the big day.
According to reports, a man reportedly threw objects onto the grounds of Buckingham Palace while yelling that he intended to kill King Charles. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but the story generated enough media attention to make headlines around the globe.
The Palace has now spoken out on social media in response to the incident.
In the UK, a monarch will be crowned this weekend for the first time since 1953. King Charles and Queen Camilla will be crowned at Westminster Abbey on Saturday, May 6. The weekend’s schedule is unsurprisingly extremely busy.
How did he get so close, you might ask.
Time, procession, route, and ceremony details for the coronation of King Charles.
The royals will leave Buckingham Palace and make their way in procession to Westminster Abbey on the day of the coronation at 11 a.m. Additional members of the Royal Family will then join on the way back to the palace from the Abbey.
The royals will participate in the procession and walk down The Mall, a famous street. Before arriving at the Abbey for the ceremony and returning to Buckingham Palace, they will then pass by Trafalgar sq\., Whitehall, and Parliament Street.
The procession’s route was much longer for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth in 1953. The luxury of their travel plans, however, is something that neither King Charles nor Queen Camilla will compromise on. According to reports, the couple will travel to Westminster Abbey in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach and then return to Buckingham Palace on the 260-year-old Gold State Coach.
Senior members of the Royal Family are the only ones permitted to participate in the procession. Prince Louis, Princess Louis, and Prince George, the three children of Prince William and Kate Middleton, will thus be present at a significant royal event for the first time. Louis, as you may recall, was deemed too young to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth last year.
A concert celebrating the coronation will take place at Windsor Castle the day after it. Performers include Take That, Lionel Richie, and Katy Perry (all without Robbie Williams).
A “coronation choir” composed of a variety of community choirs and amateur singers from all over the UK, including refugee choirs, NHS choirs, LGBTQ+ singing ensembles, and deaf signing choirs, is also on the schedule.
The cost of King Charles’ coronation is unknown.
A ticket ballot will be used to select 10,000 attendees for the event. Volunteers from organizations connected to King Charles and Queen Camilla will also attend the live performance.
The rest of the royal family, including Charles and Camilla, is eagerly anticipating the big event. Though neither Buckingham Palace nor Downing Street have provided a precise price, British media outlets have speculated that the coronation will cost about $120 million.
The total cost of the coronation is reportedly twice as much as that of Queen Elizabeth’s 1953 coronation. The main reason for the cost increase has been cited as increased security.
According to a recent YouGov poll, only 32% of respondents agreed that the government should pay for the coronation, so what does the general public really think about the coronation’s high cost? Some people think the royal family should foot the bill themselves, especially in light of a recent Guardian investigation that put King Charles’ wealth at an astounding £1.8 billion (roughly $2.2 billion).
As previously mentioned, there will be strict security at the coronation. There will be a huge crowd in the streets along the route from Buckingham Palace. Numerous additional celebrations for Charles’ accession to the throne will take place over the weekend.
To ensure everyone’s safety, the police and British military have carefully planned the coronation weekend. As part of what is expected to be the largest security operation in British history, a record 11,500 police will be working the coronation.
Security services have been preparing for months in anticipation of the ceremony, which is expected to draw about 100 heads of state. To maintain order at the event, thousands of military personnel will also be present in addition to the police.
Very conscious of the challenge we are up against.
One of the most important security operations the nation has ever planned is the coronation, according to security minister Tom Tugendhat, speaking to The Times Radio.
To put it mildly, “the police are all over it,” he said, adding that our intelligence and other security forces are well aware of the challenge we are up against.
According to Sky News, the following military gear and armor will be used to provide security on the historic coronation day:.
Several armed response vehicles will be on standby, and tactical firearm units with submachine guns and pistols will be patrolling. Additionally, spotters and specialized police officers armed with snipers will be stationed on various sites and rooftops.
To identify potential terrorist suspects and criminals who might try to blend in with the crowd, facial recognition technology will be used for the first time. At transport hubs, sniffer dogs will also make sporadic checks for explosives, and police will patrol on horses.
A double layer of control barriers is planned to make it impossible, if not impossible, for any would-be attacker to reach King Charles during the procession. Hostile vehicle barriers have been placed to prevent potential terrorists from driving into the crowd.
Military and law enforcement personnel will be present, but not just on the ground. According to Sky, three helicopters from the Essex-based Metropolitan Police Air Support Unit will be flying in the sky along with other aircraft.
There has been no specific threat to the event, according to information provided by Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan of the London Metropolitan Police as of Wednesday, according to Reuters.
As King Charles is crowned, demonstrations are anticipated.
The Metropolitan police are preparing for both potential threats and the very real possibility of protests. People have yelled that the monarchy should be abolished and even thrown eggs at King Charles in the years since he assumed the throne following Queen Elizabeth’s death.
The coronation, which draws attention from around the globe, naturally makes for the ideal location to hold a protest, especially one that is intended to be anti-monarchical. A new law was passed earlier this week to give police more authority to handle protesters.
Anyone committing crimes in the name of protest is something we will not tolerate, according to Deputy Assistant Commissioner Adelekan.
“We’ll respond quickly to intervene and make sure that people who are simply trying to enjoy the coronation and going about their daily lives aren’t disturbed”.
Republic, an anti-monarchy group, is still planning to hold a protest in spite of said new laws. They allegedly received a letter from the Home Office informing them of the police’s new, increased authority. The group has asserted that it “could be interpreted as intimidation”.
Even though London’s security is the highest it has ever been as the coronation draws near, an incident earlier this week raised some concerns about the possibility of catastrophe on the big day.
On Tuesday at around 7 p.m. local time, a man was arrested by police after he reportedly threw shotgun shells into the Buckingham Palace grounds.
Buckingham Palace’s 6-word threat to “kill the King”.
I’m going to kill the king, the person yelled, brandishing a knife. ”.
He had reached his 30s. He’s been around the last few nights shouting, “I’m going to kill the King!” one witness told The Sun. “The police charged at him as soon as he dropped the bag to the ground. Get down on the floor, they were screaming at him. ’”.
There is no doubt that such an occurrence could make the king and queen anxious about the coronation, even though King Charles and Queen Camilla weren’t at Buckingham Palace when the incident took place. Charles and Camilla’s official Instagram account posted a statement the day following the man’s arrest.
We can infer from the few words exchanged that they won’t be devoting any additional effort to a lone man attempting to ruin their big moment. Prior to the coronation, they posted a picture of military personnel participating in a nighttime rehearsal.
Three days until… Coronation, the caption stated. ”.
The suspect in question was also carrying a bag, which he left by the entrance to the palace grounds. According to The Mirror, it contained passports, a phone, credit cards, and a laptop case. There was also a copy of the book The Happiness Advantage, which discusses how to “enhance individual achievement” through the use of positive psychology.
The bag was intentionally set ablaze by police.
The man was detained on suspicion of having a dangerous weapon. Scotland Yard handled the commotion as a singular mental health incident rather than one involving terrorism.
How was he permitted to get that close?
The Metropolitan Police issued a statement saying that “specialists attended and, following an assessment, a controlled explosion was conducted as a precaution”.
Police have taken the man into custody after officers worked quickly to detain him. Both gunshots and injuries have not been reported. More research is being done”.
