Coronation 2023: King Charles to swap royal robes for simple white shirt during anointment ceremony

The King’s anointing ceremony will be shielded from public view

The moment King Charles III is anointed during his coronation on 6 May will be one of “stillness and simplicity”, the Archbishop of Canterbury has said.

In his foreword for the official coronation souvenir programme, Justin Welby said the sacred ceremony will be “the only part of the ceremony the public will not see”.

He wrote of the “magnificence and pomp” of the historic occasion – Britain’s first coronation since that of the late Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 – but added: “In the midst of this glorious spectacle is a moment of stillness and simplicity.

Welby also revealed that during the mysterious anointing ceremony, the King will swap his “robes of status and honour” for a simple white shirt.

This signifies the monarch as coming before God as a servant “in the full knowledge that the task is difficult and he needs help”.

“In the full knowledge that, even as King, he is one of the people and that even if he has a particular role to fulfil, he shares in our human frailties and vulnerabilities,” the archbishop continued.

It also marks the moment that “the King is set apart for service: service of the people of this country and service of God. This is why at this moment he will exchange robes of status and honour for a simple white shirt.”

His Majesty will follow in his mother’s footsteps in blocking the anointing ceremony from public view.

King Charles, previously the Prince of Wales, greets the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby in 2013. The monarch will be anointed by the Archbishop during the coronation ceremony on 6 May 2023 (Getty Images)

Although Queen Elizabeth’s coronation was the first ever to be televised, she sat under a canopy that was held above her by four Knights of the Garter that shielded her from the cameras when the moment of the anointing arrived.

Welby described how coronations “often carry with them the hopes and prayers of nations for peace, justice and the common good”.

The 84-page official souvenir costs £20 and went on sale on Monday (17 April). It features a family portrait of Charles and Camilla, the now-Prince and Princess of Wales and their children, and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

It comes after Buckingham Palace confirmed that Prince Harry will attend the ceremony, but his wife Meghan Markle will remain in California with their two children.

A percentage of the sales of the souvenir programme will be divided between the Royal Collection Trust and SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity.

Additional reporting by PA