What happens before and after the coronation?
The horse-drawn Diamond Jubilee State Coach—comparatively brand-spankin’-new at only nine years old—will ferry Charles and Camilla to Westminster Abbey in what’s known as the King’s Procession, while they’ll return to Buckingham Palace afterward in the 261-year-old Gold State Coach, which has been used for every coronation since King William IV‘s in 1831.
For the return trip—which will be an “enormous procession,” according to coronation organizer Edward Fitzalan-Howard, the Duke of Norfolk—Charles will wear the Imperial State Crown, aka “the working crown,” which he’ll also don annually for the State Opening of Parliament. It boasts 2,868 diamonds, including the massive 317-carat Cullinan II, as well as the Black Prince Ruby in front and the Stuart Sapphire in back.
Upon the family’s return to the palace, senior royals and their kids-of-all-ages will greet the crowd from the same balcony that has been utilized for all the big photo ops—William and Kate’s post-wedding kiss, etc.—through the years.
On May 7, Windsor Castle will host the Coronation Concert, featuring headliners TBD, and May 8 has been declared a bank holiday.
The palace has described the coronation as designed to “reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry.”
