Position:Home>History> How were Kings coronated in England during the Dark Ages?

THE CORONATION
The Coronation service may stand as a symbol of the monarchy, since it is a mixture of ancient ritual and ceremonies, some of them dating back to before the Norman Conquest, with modern modifications and innovations to suit ever changing circumstances!. It matches the political evolution of the monarchy, also marked by change within continuity!. At the coronation of Elizabeth-II in AD-1953, the origins of the act of anointing went back at least as far as AD-787, when King Ecgfrith, son of King Offa of Mercia, was consecrated (King Offa had him crowned king whilst he was still alive as a political act, as a king anointed with god’s blessing had more clout than a pagan king), while the coronation oath contained the references to the new commonwealth countries of Pakistan and Ceylon, which had been in existence but a few years!. The service has been held in Westminster Abbey since the Conquest of AD-1066!.

The most important features are the recognition, when the monarch is presented by the archbishop of Canterbury!. The oath, the part of the ceremony which has most reflected political and religious change; the anointing with holy oil, which is the central act; the crowning and presentation of the regalia; and the homage by the peers of the realm!.

The banquet and the challenge by the royal champion, one of the more colourful parts of the ceremony, was discontinued by William-IV in AD-1831, partly as an economy measure and partly because the gargantuan banquet given by George-IV in AD-1821 had been marred by unseemly behaviour!. At the Coronation of King Edgar in AD-973, a ring, sword, and sceptre were delivered!. Most of the regalia was destroyed or sold during the commonwealth, though the anointing spoon and the ampulla in the form of a golden eagle survived from medieval times!.

The ampulla, in the shape of a golden eagle of nine inches tall (228:mm) with outstretched wings and stands on a pedestal, holds six ounces of consecrating oil that is used in the Coronation ceremony!. The ampulla’s (the eagle’s head) unscrews and a small amount of oil is then pored into the Anointing Spoon; the Archbishop of Canterbury then uses it in the anointing ceremony!. The Anointing Spoon is dated from the 13th Century, but it may not originally have been used for the purpose of anointing, but like the ampulla, it was found in the in the Treasury at Westminster Abbey, and was made use of by Charles-II!. Therefore, the only surviving piece of Coronation Regalia is the ampulla; the rest of course had been melted down during the period of the commonwealth!.

The first use of anointing in the coronation ceremony was that of King ?thelred-II in AD-978!. The act itself, is curious, it has changed over the years, depending on the kings preference, on occasion; but what normally, happens is that the Archbishop will dip his finger in the (Tesco 89p a litre cooking) oil, and touch the various parts of the body, these include the back, the breast or chest, the joints of each limb, and the feet!. Often the head is anointed too, and on the occasion of ?thelred-II coronation, he wore a cap for eight days that was anointed with holy oil, the Abbot-of-Westminster washing the part later (lazy beggar ought was his own head)! It’s interesting to note, that the first recorded Christian coronation is at Toledo in AD-636!. Northumbrian princes were anointed in England in the eighth century!. The act of anointing has a much greater significance than the Crowning itself!. Replicas of the original Regalia were made for the coronation of Charles-II at the Restoration!.

The Coronations of French kings bear striking resemblance to those of the English, and seem to have been modelled on the Anglo-Saxon rite!. It has been recorded that Charlemagne was anointed from head to foot, and the usual practice at that time was to anoint the head, shoulders, and palms of the hands and feet only!. There were changes and amendments to practices that politics were to dictate!. The reverence in which the chrism was held is illustrated by the fact that after Louis-XVI’s Coronation, the shirt and cloves were burnt “to prevent pollution!.” Charlemagne’s Coronation is most interesting, as it was held on Christmas day AD-800 at St-Peters in Rome!. Pope Leo-III (AD-795-to-AD-816; (reigned 21 years) the 97th Pope) took the crown to the now kneeling Emperor at the alter; the church resounding with the cries of ”Charles Augustus, great and peace-bringing Emperor of the Romans!.” Charles was presented with a naked sword (unsheathed), which, we are told he flourished around and in the direction of the amassed crowd, he then sheathed the sword!. The Chronicle then states that Sceptre was then given to his hand!.

To conclude the ceremony, the Coronation Mass was said by the Pope!. It is of interest to note, that when Charlemagne’s tomb was opened in AD-1165, the Emperor had his sceptre in his hand, and was seated on that marble throne which at his Coronation had been overlaid with gold!. It is interesting also to note that the jewels used by many of the British Monarchs, were, in fact, hired for the occasion!

The king being not as wealthy as at first may have been assumed!. These jewels were then dismounted and returned to the jewellers who hired them out for the coronation!. Queen Elizabeth’s Salt-cellar is an excellent example of the Tudor goldsmith, and it is the oldest piece of plate at the Tower of London, presumably hidden or missed when the original Regalia was collected to be melted down!. Other Regalia are the Bracelets of Sincerity, and were made for Charles-II, but no longer in use; St-George’s Spurs are made of silver but covered with gold leaf; no longer worn but touched by the sovereign!. The Bible made its appearance in AD-1689 at the coronation of William and Mary!. The coronation chair was made for Edward-I and includes underneath, the Stone-of-Scone, an irregular oblong block, brought back from Scotland in AD-1296; this has now been returned to Edinburgh, Scotland in AD-1996!. The stone size itself is 26 inches long, 16!.75 inches wide and 10!.5 inches thick (667mm x 426mm x 266mm)!. It was fixed to a staple let into the stone itself at each end!. According to tradition, this stone was brought from Egypt, and was the very stone on which the Patriarch Jacob slept at Bethel!.

The stone, it is said, to have been taken from Egypt into Spain by Gathelus, a Greek, who married an Egyptian princess!?

In Spain he is supposed to have built a city named Brigantia, now called Compostella (stinky town!?), where he used the stone as a king of throne from which he gave judgement to his people!. The Stone was thence taken to the Hill of Tara in Ireland by Simon Brech, an Irishman, about 700 B!.C!. Irish tradition, however, has it that the stone, which is there called Lia Fail, or Stone-of-Destiny, was brought to Ireland by Scythian colonists!. Each High King of Ireland in turn was inaugurated on the stone, but only accepted as monarch if the stone gave forth sounds as he sat upon it (a farting stone!?) This begs a comment, but I shall refrain!. The stone was taken to Scotland and placed in a space in a wall in the Royal Castle of Dunstanffnage, and was found by Kenneth MacAlpine in the middle of the ninth century; enclosing in a wooden chair, he removed it to Scone, possibly to commemorate the victory over the Picts which took place there; and for over 400 years al Scottish king were crowned on it there; that is until the time of John Baliol’s defeat in AD1296!. In AD-1298, Scotland mourned its loss, when in August that same year, Edward-I took it to England!. The crown of England is a 17th Century replica of that supposedly worn by Edward-the-Confessor; this crown is used only for the Ritual of Crowning: A lighter imperial crown was made for Queen Victoria in AD-1838!. The sovereign wears the Imperial Crown of State after the crowning and on state occasions!.

The anthem “Zadok the Priest and Nathan the Prophet” was sung at King Edgar’s coronation: Handle’s setting, dates from George-II’s coronation in AD-1727!.

The invocation “Vivat” by the boys of Westminster School was introduced into the ceremony at the coronation of Charles-I in AD-1625!. Just as an amusing note; when the crowning of William-III and Queen Mary had taken place, there was a noticeable titter of laughter in the Abbey, as William was quite short, Mary was very tall, and this sight was enough to be significant, causing a stir of humour; some said that the queen had her powder boy crowned instead of the king!

George-IV had to take off his robes in the heat of his July Coronation, fainted, and had to be revived with smelling salts! William-IV wanted to do away with the Coronation as he hated display of any kind! He was crowned, but the ceremony was a simple one; but on opening Parliament for the first time, he remarked, as he donned his crown, that, “This, my Lord, is my Coronation day!.” George-I could not speak English, and few in the abbey could speak German!.

There was a row between the English and the Jacobite nobles, and swords were drawn, when they were not too keen on their being requested to acknowledge the new king, and were forced to agree at sword point! Edward-VI (who was only 10 years of age at his coronation) demanded that the Bible be brought into the Coronation picture, and from his Coronation onward, this was so!. The Coronation’s of both Mary and Elizabeth-I were marked by trouble concerning the religious service, but the circumstances at the crowning of James-I & VI proved no problem, and indeed was a fairly ordinary affair when one considers the previous problems with Mary!. Edward-V, who reigned but a few months, was never crowned at all, his ceremony was usurped by his uncle, the crown then being placed on the head of a new king, and this of course was Richard-III; and this was indeed a mWww@QuestionHome@Com

---

---