Live The Coronation: 60th Anniversary Service

where astonishingly almost every moniker in our history has been

crowned. Nearly 1000 years of our history represented here. I am

standing in the centre of the Abbey, where Queen Elizabeth II was

crowned 60 years ago and she is coming back today to celebrate that

coronation. Something extraordinary has happened here this morning, two

of the regalia used in the Coronation have been brought here to

the abbey under close guard to be placed on the high altar for the

duration of the service. Two very significant parts of the regalia. On

the right, the golden eagle with his wings outstretched carrying the

sacred oil with which the Queen was anointed. Then, the great Saint

Edward 's crown, solid gold encrusted with Jools, heavy weighing

five lbs. These two crucial objects, one representing her

commitment to God, and the other her commitment to her people, both of

which will be celebrated here this beloved, was actually designed to

form a theatre for the coronation of kings and queens by Henry the third,

designed so that as many people as possible could see the Coronation.

The abbey itself dates back to Edward the confessor, who began the

church in 1045 and who in his death in 1066 was buried here. His tomb

has place of honour behind the high altar. It was once decorated with

mosaic and gold which gleamed in the candlelight, and around him the

tombs of other monarchs. In the Abbey there are over 3000 people

buried, memorials to politicians and statesmen and artists and poets. A

congregation has been arriving here for the past half hour or so,

gathered from all the corners of the UK, chosen by the Queen's

representatives in the country, the Lords lieu tenant. People from

public life who have given public service, members of the armed forces

and others. The Royal family will be here, 25 members of the Royal family

joining the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh who was unwell yesterday

it is said will come here this morning, determined not to miss the

service. Sitting in the thrones you can see on the left. There will be

the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess

of Cambridge, and Prince Henry of Wales and other members of the Royal

family. In 1953, nearly 2 million people came here to London to watch

the spectacular Coronation procession and to get a glimpse of

the new Queen and millions more saw the service for the first time live

on television. But the most privileged people were the 8000 who

were here in the abbey itself, and for them it is an excitement they

could never forget. My most vivid memory is going back 15, 16 months

to that morning in February, 1952, when we heard the minute bell going

on the tower, and heard that this terribly sad thing, that the king

had died. Suddenly it hit us... Coronation, wow! We were the last

ones to have this experience, thank goodness, but I have never forgotten

that, realising we were going to have a coronation. I felt amazed

because to begin with we didn't know we would be maids of honour, we

thought the Queen would have pages to carry her tray so we were

thrilled when we were chosen. thrilled when we were chosen.

a tremendous atmosphere in London. Everywhere you went, people were

walking and wondering. It was tremendously vivid. Because of the

war, everything was very depressing, my father was a regular

soldier and my uncle was killed, almost everybody had lost somebody,

but suddenly everybody seemed so happy and that is what I remember

most. Prior to the Coronation, it was not just the choir rehearsing,

it was anybody who had anything to do with the service including the

code two -- coaches. One of them was the Coronation coach, pulled by its

lovely white horses. I certainly remember going out to give lumps of

sugar to the horses, and I think, James, did you go and sit in the

Coronation coach? I think we did. You speak for yourself, I was not a

naughty boy. And the Coronation chair itself, but we don't admit to

that. Many of those people who were there 60 years ago have been invited

back, and Sophie Raworth is with two of them. I am a few feet away from

where the Queen will take her place shortly and I am with Julian James

and James Mathewson. Good morning. Julian, your role 60 years ago?

was the junior page to Viscount Cunningham, and he had to carry the

Crown with which the Queen was crowned. The only trouble was that

my co-page felt unwell in the rehearsal, but all went well.

a photograph of you carrying, in front of the Queen. How much do you

remember of that day? I remember forming for the procession and we

had to face Her Majesty before we started off, and she looked so

Serena and so majestic and that is a moment I will never forget. You were

only 14 years old. James Mathewson, you had a big role, you were 21 and

involved in the organisation. secretary to the Garter King of Arms

and I was there in the rehearsals, and my job on the day was forming

processions in the annex and leading the Duke of Gloucester and Earl

Mountbatten in at the last minute because they arrived with the Queen.

Did you meet the Queen? She attended quite a few rehearsals. Yes, she

came seven or eight times, and on the second occasion the Earl

Marshall chose me to stand in for the bishop and bath of Wales on the

Queen's left-hand side, her junior supporter, and I stood beside her

for an hour and a half. I let the Duchess of Norfolk tell the Queen

what to do because she stood in for the Queen when the Queen wasn't

here. Julian, you were 14 years old, were you nervous on the day? I just

remembered being panic struck by the thought I might need to go to the

toilet at the wrong moment! But all was well. What is it likes to be

back here today? Wonderful. We feel very honoured to be here. What about

you, James? It is lovely to see some of the people I met so long ago, 60

years has flown, but it takes me back to one of the most wonderful

days in my life. Wonderful to see you here, enjoy the ceremony. One of

the most memorable parts of the Coronation service, everybody

agrees, was the music that was played. It was meant to send a

shiver down the spine, and in 1953 nearly 400 choristers from different

churches and cathedrals rehearsed together and came here to sing,

accompanied by the organ, by trumpets, and a huge orchestra.

Together they lifted the roof. Today we will hear some of that coronation

music, most spectacularly the anthem played as the Queen arrived at the

abbey. I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me. It breaks off in the middle

for the great shout from the scholars of Westminster School. Long

live Queen Elizabeth! Sophie now looks back at that music with the

master of the choristers. I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me has gone into

the repertoire of choristers, it is sung all over the world. It is about

going into the House of Lords, a very appropriate piece for any grand

entrance or any occasion in church. -- going into the house of the

Lord. What made it particular was the incorporation of the

acclamations shouted to the pneumonic by the Queen's scholars of

Westminster School and the idea was that they would have occurred as the

monarch entered the choir of the abbey. So this is Parry taking

originally what was more or less a shout, and acclamation, and writing

it into his piece. The scholars will sing those to welcome the Queen

today, the first time that has coronation music was Doctor William

Mackay, the organist and master of the choristers here at the abbey.

One of his duties was to decide who would be in the choir and

orchestra. 480 performers from all around the globe. These are the dots

confirming they have attended every single rehearsal and there were no

exceptions. In fact two professional musicians were excluded on

Coronation Day because they had to miss one rehearsal for a performance

at the Royal Festival Hall. For the lucky ones who made the grade, it

was a unique occasion, still well remembered 60 years later. We were

perched high on the specially constructed banks of seating and

somebody else was sitting in our places in the choir stalls. Much

better dressed! They had great finery, we just had normal ropes.

But we have something in our ropes that was not usual and that was the

supply of food which was supposed to last for a long day. I think we had

ham sandwiches and barley sugars and an apple. Most of us polished bows

off within the first few minutes. Amongst the pageantry, it was for

many the music that made the music that made today so special. It was

this massive sound. It wasn't just the Abbey choir, on the other side

there was St Paul's and the other choirs as well, and the funfair to I

Was Glad. The trumpeters put some welly behind it, didn't they?

wonderful moments, the beginning of Zadok The Priest, when the choir

smashes in with that. The music was hailed as a triumph and later that

year William Mackay was knighted. There was one further honour, after

his death his ashes were buried in the cloister near to the song

school. Here in the abbey with me is James Wilkinson, an honorary Steward

today but 60 years ago he was 11 years old and part of the Abbey

choir. What are your memories of the day? It was a great day. The most

important impact it made on me was the colour, because it was the first

time the BBC had been in the Abbey. The television lights lit everything

beautifully, the gold and blue carpets and the crimson mantles of

the peers and peeresses. There were lots of Indian ma maharajahs with

their jewels on, a fantastic site. And there were a huge number of

performers weren't there? The Choir was 450 strong. They consisted

mainly of the Abbey Choir and St Palm's crag Choir and the Chapel

Royal Choir and representatives from other organisations, cathedrals and

so on from around the country. the music on the day played such an

important part and again it is going to play an important role today, and

today there is new music helped by you and the Choir? One of the

Coronation Choir from St Paul's, a chap called Peter Chapman wrote the

music for this service. We tried to track down as many chorist

choristers as we could find, and we found about 100. They were invited

to contribute to this fund to commission the anthem. Many of them

did, so we have this wonderful new anthem today by Bob Chilcot. And it

has never been heard before has it? No, it is the first performance. It

is quite grand, fairly modern but not too discordant. It will be a

marvellous addition to the service. What does it mean to you to be here?

It is a great moment, a sense of deja vu. The Abbey isn't as full as

it was then. There were 2,000 people here today but on the day itself

there were 8,000 people. They transformed the inside of the Abbey,

building extra stands and so on, so it was a much big bigger

congregation then. Thank you very much. And sitting in the

congregation are some of those choristers and Bob Chilcot, the

composer of this special anthem, The King Shall Rejoice in thy strength,

which has been written for this service today paid for by those

choristers and the choristers themselves will be sitting there.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire is there. We'll hear the music later on. There

are 2,000 people expected here this morning, quite unlike the

Coronation, when the congregation was over 8,000. Ptolemy Dean is the

surveyor of the fabric, the man in charge of maintaining the building,

has been looking through the archive to see how the huge congregation was

squeezed in here. In order to accommodate the sheer number of

people that had to come to the Coronation they built a series of

grandstands and closed the Abbey for five months. I have here some of the

original plans and documents which showed what they did. I love this,

classic 1950s type script, the place of crowning. And they commissioned

the head of the Royal Academy schools, Henry Rushbury RA, the task

of making the Abbey suitable for the Coronation. His watercolours are

lovely, pictures ofcratsmen working away. In fact 500 people worked on

the transformation. To protect delicate parts of the Abbey they

covered the floor with three inches of wood and boxed in statues and

sculptures. Then they could start on the massive grandstands. This is the

Nave, which had an enormous gallery cascading down from the west window.

The seats on the side aisles rising right up to the heads of the

windows. Extraordinary. They even constructed a small railway up the

aisle, with branch lines into the transept. It carried 450 tonnes of

steel, over 3,000 tonnes of timber and enough scaffolding poles to

reach from here to Paris! These photos are absolutely extraordinary.

And they come as a bit of a shock. It dawns on you looking at this what

a terrifying process this fitting out must have been. I would have

hated to have been in charge of this, with the risks of something

falling and damaging the Abbey. It is more akin to something you would

find in a dockyard than a Cathedral. This is a foal io of plans of the

Coronation -- follow io of plans of the Coronation drawings produced by

the Ministry of Works in 1953. I love the way these plans show so

clearly where everybody was sitting. You've got the Royal Gallery

overlooking the altar. The peers down there in the South Transept and

the peeresses in the North Transept over there. Once in their seats the

8,000 or so guests had to stay in the Abbey for up to eight hours. To

allow for this the organise others constructed Medical Centers,

drinking fount ans and vast numbers of lav tress. What I really love

about these plans is you look here and it says, job 52242. Yet another

job for the Ministry of Works. moved now to St George's Chapel, the

Coronation Chair. Ptolemy is here. And I'm joined by Clare Skinner, an

actress who will be reading a poem during the service. First this

chair, it is astounding isn't it? It is so old, it has seen so much

history. It is wonderful to think of every monarch sitting on this chair

since the 13th century. What I love about it is that it is so sort of

bashed up. And yet in England, Scotland, Britain, we all see this

as a cherished part of our heritage. We don't restore it and overtidy it

up. We are proud of its battered, worn appearance. Your team, I've

seen them hard at work over the years here in the chapel. There is a

lot of graffiti on it. In the 18th century the schoolchildren of

Westminster School merrily carved their name on it. Children are

children aren't they. It hasn't been tarted up and made to look new. You

can see the old patterns of painting and decoration through the later

layers of graffiti. What did it look like in the one 300s? It was a

gleaming golden thing. You can look at the shape of the chair. It is

similar to the architecture of the building in which it sits. It is a

timber version of the stone Abbey itself. The finials would have been

far finer. One of them has been broken off and put back. When Queen

Victoria was crowned here she had it painted brown. Happily all of that

brown has come off. And the Queen is going to look later? Yes, I hope she

recognises it from 60 years ago. this beautiful canopy as well?

During the Coronation ceremony there is an amazing moment when the

courtiers come rushing with a canopy supported on very fine poles. It

goes over the crown and over the chair and over the King or Queen.

They anoint under this special awning. This awning here is to try

and remember that, but not look like a four poster bed. It has very thin

legs so it doesn't look like a ghastly Cotswolds hotel. And Clare

Skinner, you have a very special role today? Yes, I'm reading the

poem by Carol Ann Duffy called the Union. It is brand-new, hot off the

press, never read before, very exciting. And you will reading it

here? Yes, by the chair. It is incredibly exciting and a huge

honour for me. It is slightly funny, because it will all be going on down

there and you are back here. rather pleased I'm back here, it

feels safer in a strange way. you ever performed for the Queen

before? Of I have, on one of her anniversaries. I did a scene from

Romeo and Juliet at the Festival Hall for her. I can't remember which

an -- which anniversary it was. Thank you very much.

Clare Skinner there, who you may recognise better perhaps from seeing

her on the television programme Outnumbered. That's where I

recognise her from. Now, here in the Abbey we are still

waiting for this congregation to fill up. We are waiting for the

maids op honour to come here, the maids of honour who attended the

Queen at the Coronation, sitting in the front here, all of them titled.

Now Lady Campbell. They've changed their names through marriage. Lady

Glenconner, Lady Muir, Lady will by and Lady Mary Russell. They were is

six young women who held the corners of the Queen's train as she came

into the Abbey. They are sitting beside the Royal Family. No doubt

vividly remembering what it was like to be here on the second June 1953.

What I remember most still about the day, quite funnily, was that it was

horribly cold. The weather was awful. I believe it was two degrees

colder than it became in December of that year. But it didn't stop people

sleeping in the streets, determined not to miss the opportunity of

seeing this fairy-tale procession. Into the forecourt of the Palace and

through the gates comes the gilding coach... I was a Junior Footman in

those days. After breakfast I went up to my room and started to powder

my hair, which consisted of lathering your hair with soap,

leaving the soap in the hair and then sprinkling it with flour and

shaping it like a wig. And then my role was to walk by the left hand

wheel on the Duke of Edinburgh's side of the carriage. Absolutely

incredible. As the coach went through the arch to go down the Mall

it was just a roar of the people. It was something I believe never forget

really. I was having my second baby, which was very unhandy at that

moment, but I wore my wedding dress, which was a lovely brocade, which

had been severely let out, for various bits of my anatomy. We had

to be there terribly early in the morning. The Abbey of course was

looking quite marvellous, shining and glittering and full of people.

The peers were all wearing their robes. There was quite a smell of

mothballs about, because they had all been put away for the whole of

the war. It was very noisy, everyone was talking, but we were all in our

seats, so once the doors opened, it was a hush that came over everybody.

Everybody was expectant. It just went all very quiet. Everyone was

turning, waiting for her to come down. It was a magical moment.

stood and we picked the train up. It had little satin handles underneath

and the train rippled over our hands. We all stood there and she

turned and said, "Ready girls?" And we said yes and off we went. They

were the first pictures. The second picture as few steps further in. The

atmosphere had changed a. From our point of view we were working. As

soon as the doors opened we were working, but it was fun, fast and

there was so much to do. It was an exciting atmosphere. Receive the rod

of equity and mercy. To see the Queen looking so fragile, young and

defenceless somehow, with all the regalia going on around her, and

that little lonely figure standing there. It was terribly moving. It

was somebody who knew but in a totally new light, which always

changes everything. God God Save The life. People often say your wedding

must have been wonderful I say well it was, but in a different way. To

be chosen to be a Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation was the most

amazing, wonderful day of my life. Along with many other people who

were involved in the '53 Coronation John and Joan Taylor sitting there.

Part of the congregation. And in the front just to the right of your

screen in beige with the black stripes on her dress Prince Charles

the Prince of Wales's nanny at the time of the Coronation. Mabel

Anderson, who was with him at the window of Buckingham Palace. A

wonderful picture you must have seen of him waving excitedly as he sees

the Queen's coach coming back to Buckingham Palace. You can glimpse

the other nannies behind. She is here for the service. Prince Charles

of course was the youngest person to be invited to the Abbey in 1953,

only four years old. He hasn't arrived yet but he and other members

of the Royal Family will be with us shortly. He was only four years old,

and difficult guest to fit in so young. Sophie Raworth went to

Buckingham Palace to see how he was made to feel that his mother's

coronation was a special day for as well. So this is the throne? Yes,

this is the throne room. And this is Prince Charles' invitation. There is

a wonderful playfulness about it. Yes, you could see how the design

would appeal to a four-year-old boy, and it was designed by an

illustrator and she won the competition to design the official

invitation to -- that went to all of the guests. Here she has done

something slightly different and charming, and incorporated a lot of

the formal aspects like the lion and the unicorn, and the royal coat of

arms. This is something Prince Charles must treasure. I think so,

it is a very special treasured possession. And over here you can

see what they wore. Yes, a little silk shirt and matching cream

trousers, just trimmed with this beautiful lace. That actually

matches on this little dress which the two-year-old Princess Anne war.

-- wore. And you can see from the size of the shoes how small they

were. Yes, the Queen was a young mother, 27 years old and she had

small children. And you are getting together an exhibition which the

public will be able to see? Yes, the public will not only be able to see

these charming outfits, but a whole array of outfits from other members

of the Royal family. Here they are, these two small, tiny figures. Four

years old and two years old, and a wonderful story about how when they

got back to Buckingham Palace, they ran up and down the corridors of

Buckingham Palace with the Queen 's mother trying to get a ride on her

long train. Of course, no small young royals at the service today,

but there is one on the way. There are many representatives of

Christian churches here in the abbey today, but this procession going up

the aisle now has representatives of other religious faiths, including

the Shia Muslims and Sunni Muslims, Buddhists, Sikhs, the orthodox

Jewish among others, and they will be sitting opposite the Queen and

the Royal family. And then for the Christian churches, there are Roman

Catholic, free churches in Wales, the General assembly the of

Scotland, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, the free churches, the

Methodist church, and members of the Queen's ecclesiastical householders

well. The Dean of Windsor, the Bishop of Worcester, the Bishop of

Guilford, the Bishop of London who will be saying one of the prayers.

With all its pomp and pageantry, the coronation is it hard focused on the

duty of Merck to God and the people. -- monarch. The months before the

ceremony, the then Archbishop of Canterbury, Jeremy Fisher, gave the

Queen a Little book of private devotions containing daily prayers

and meditations. Here, reflecting, are the Dean of Westminster and the

Archbishop of Canterbury, who will be delivering the sermon. One of the

most striking things about the coronation service in 1953 was the

way it combined and held together the religious and the official role

of the monarch. At the same time, the Queen becomes head of state and

supreme Governor of the Church of England, so at the beginning of the

service the Queen comes into Westminster Abbey and kneels in

private prayer. That is saying that the first thing she does before

varies all of the secular part of people giving their allegiance to

her, she acknowledges the sovereignty of God and the

allegiance she owes to God. anointing in the coronation is a

setting apart of the service, the service of God and the service of

the nation. Nobody would be in any doubt of the importance of that

moment for the Queen, nor in any doubt about the way in which she has

fulfilled that commitments so strongly, so powerfully during the

60 years since it took place. It is a moment of great celebration as

well as reflection, and a time to ask questions about our own service

as well. The Duke and Duchess of Kent, the members of the Royal

family arriving now. The Duke of Kent was 17 at the time of the

coronation, he was there with his mother, Princess Marina, and his

because these members of the Royal family are coming just to be members

of the congregation. They play no active part in the service so the

verger conducts them up the aisle. Nobody stands. There will be the

Duke and Duchess of Gloucester next. All through this organ music

played before the service by the assistant organist here, they are

playing from Stamford, Bach, Handel going through the choir. The choir

stalls themselves empty. The choir arrives later, the combined choirs

of St Paul's and Westminster Abbey guest reading from the book of

Kings. The Duke of Gloucester and the Duchess of Gloucester. He was

eight years old at the time of the faiths, sitting facing the Queen. We

coronation in 1953. Brilliant sunshine in London, bells ringing,

and they will be a special peal of bells ringing at 2:30pm. The bells

ringing now, waiting for the arrival of the rest of the Royal family. We

are waiting in particular for the front row, as you might say, of the

family. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Henry of Wales,

the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, and they all arrive

before the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh. For the arrival of the

Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, there will be a proper procession up

the aisle as the great song, the hymn or the anthem, I don't know

what you call it, I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me is played. The

Crown sitting there as a reminder of that day back in June 60 years ago,

when the Queen briefly wore it. And a little gold eagle below, which

carried the consecrated oil with which she was anointed. The clergy

are sitting in their place. They will be reading prayers during the

service, which takes a very simple form. There is a great deal of

music, there will be a sermon by the new Archbishop of Canterbury, and

there will be prayers, but no complicated ceremonial. Just a

simple celebration of the events of 60 years passed. The coats they are

wearing were specially made for the coronation, the Dean on the right,

who will be taking the service. Doctor John Hall. They haven't won

these since they wore them ten years ago for the 50th anniversary of the

coronation. They are waiting at the west end of the Abbey. Waiting to

greet the Royal family as they Archbishop of Canterbury, newly

appointed just in November last year and officially became archbishop in

February this year. This is his first big state occasions since his

appointment, and as I said earlier think there was one just there,

television sets showing these pictures to the congregation. Though

I said the Abbey was built so that everybody would see the moment of

the Coronation, in reality the arms of the church, the ran accepts, the

Nave are cut off from the main activities by the screen in the case

of the Nave and as a result many people come here only see a tiny

fraction of the service. The organ, which is playing now and will be

thundering out to the entrance of the Queen.

The organ here has had distinguished organists play here, Henry Purcell

perhaps in particular, who died I think aged 36. He was such a great

musician that the previous organist gave way for him to allow him to

play and then took over again after his death. The King's scholars don't

sing but have to shout out vivat Regina! And at the State Opening of

Parliament they cheer the Queen. The Westminster School, its chairman is

the Dean of Westminster, so it is closely tied in with this Abbey. We

are waiting here for the next arrivals. The Duke of York I think

is next. The Prime Minister has still to arrive. The music is

playing and the atmosphere inside the Abbey now is quiet and calm.

These services are beautifully organise organised. The simple

pageantry written in these books, which has in it an explanation of

what the service is and what the rituals of the Coronation were for

people to read while they sit here waiting. Prince and Princess Michael

his wife, and now a whole gathering of members of the Royal Family being

greeted at the door. The Duke of York, his daughters Princess

Beatrice and Eugenie there. Briefly greeted by the clergy of the Abbey.

Welcomed to the Abbey, which is under the control of the Royal

Family, of the Queen rather, and there's the Archbishop of Canterbury

greeting them. This is what's called a church peculiar, the only person

with control over it is Her Majesty the Queen. They are escorted by the

Duke of York. And Zara Phillips or Tindall as she now is with her

husband, Mike Tindall, the rugby And now the Duke and Duchess of

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Cambridge and Prince Harry. All eyes Archbishop. Next to him is Sir

who will be reading here. He will be escorted to the quire, where he will

take the seat occupied by Sir Winston Churchill at the Coronation,

William and Kate, who were married here just a couple of years ago.

Kate walking with her brother-in-law. The Royal Family is

now all seated on the right, as the Choir of Westminster Abbey and the

Choir of the Chapel Royal, the boys dressed in their scarlet and gold

state coats, designed at the time of the Restoration. They move to take

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take the ground. Two officers, two Sergeant Majors, 12 Yeomen. They

marched on each side of the gold coach at the Coronation, right the

way through the long, long procession that took them to

Buckingham Palace. And then after them the honourable Corp of

Gentlemen at Arms, the so-called Nearest Guard. The Yeomen of the

Guard have their partisans, which you see at the State Opening of

Parliament and other events. They take their place with in the Nave.

And now with the white swans' feathers in the hat the nearest

guard, they were formed way back by Henry VIII, in 1509, from the sons

of noblemen. They are now former Army officer officers or members of

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds

left, Lady Louise, a very exciting take their place. We are now

awaiting for the next arrival. The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of

Cornwall, Camilla. They are greeted by the Dean and the Sub-Dean, Robert

Reiss. They will wait here at the West End of the Abbey for the

arrival of Her Majesty the Queen. Then the four of them, and the Duke

of Edinburgh, if he comes here this morning, I know he was not well

yesterday, but it is said he will be here this morning. The four of them

will process up the Nave, with the Archbishop of Canterbury leading,

the Westminster cross and the Canons of Westminster, the people who run

the Cathedral, and the Dean and then the Royal Family. They will wait

here in what's called waiting on Churchill, because the place they

stand is Winston Churchill's memorial, which is just to the west

of the tomb of the Unknown Warrior. It is now just after five minutes to

11. We shortly will expect the Queen caught a glimpse of are going back

to the outer door, to await the arrival of the Queen. The Princess

Royal there. And her husband. The service Prince Charles attended when

he was aged four, I wonder how much he remembers of it and I wonder how

different when he becomes the sovereign, if he becomes the

sovereign, how different the service will be from the one we saw six zero

years ago today with all that astonishing pageantry. He may

perhaps remember what he saw from Buckingham Palace window. The

massive parade after the service taking his mother back to Buckingham

Palace. As it circled the Victoria Queen enters Abbey, is this great,

glorious music, I Was Glad, by Hubert Parry. And that is a

stupendous moment when the whole atmosphere here in the Abbey will

change from this casual, informal, the Prince and Camilla chatting, and

waiting for the thing to start, but once it starts, the trumpeters of

the Welsh Guards will be playing, the organ will be thundering and the

Choir will be singing their hearts out. Even the Queen's Scholars at

Westminster waiting to shout out vivat Regina. A single police

motorcycle marks the arrival of the Queen's car. Again, very little

formality. Nothing like what formality. Nothing like what

here. Despite not being well last night, but they said he would be

here and he is here, smiling, talking to the Dean and the sub

Dean. The bells ringing, and in a moment she will enter the race --

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the abbey for this service of we will go into the house of the

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O Jerusalem # Jerusalem is built as # Vivat Regina Elizabetha! # Vivat!

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# Vivat Regina Ellizabetha! they shall prosper that love thee #

Peace be within thy walls, and plenteousness within thy palaces #

For my brethren and companions' sakes, I will wish thee prosperity #

Yea, because of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek to do thee

high altar gives the bidding. 60 years ago in this holy place,

Queen Elizabeth II was anointed with holy oil, clothed with sacred

garments, and after receiving symbols of authority, crowned with

the crown of Saint Edward, King and Confessor, just as Her Majesty's

royal predecessors from 1066. Here today, we gather to give thanks to

Almighty God for the faithful ministry and dutiful service the

Queen continues to offer God and the people of this nation, the overseas

territories and the realms, and as head of the Commonwealth. As we pray

for her Majesty, for the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales, and

other members of the Royal family in health and wealth long to live and

for peace and prosperity throughout these lands, so shall we pray for

the grace of God that we, too, may offer our lives in faithful service

and wholehearted commitment for the good of our communities and

nations. Let us pray. Almighty God, who threw anointing with the oil of

gladness at the hands of priests and profits strengthens thy chosen

servants with the gift of thy holy spirit. Be pleased to accept our

holy praise as with united voice we give thanks for the long and

glorious reign of our sovereign Lady Queen Elizabeth, and to receive our

humble prayer that by renewing thy blessings, they will pour upon her

die choice gifts and upon all thy people the spirit of humility and

servers shown forth in the life and death of him who is the United

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Kingdom of all, our Lord and save our noble Queen God save our

gracious Queen, Long live our noble Queen, God save the Queen! Send her

victorious, Happy and glorious, Long to reign over us, God save the

Priest, and they came before the king. The King also said to them,

take with you the servants of the Lord and calls Solomon my son to

ride upon my own mule and bring him down, and let them be anointed king

over Israel. And blow with the trumpet and say God save King

Solomon. Then you shall come up after him, to sit upon my throne for

he shall be king in my stead and I have appointed him to be ruler over

Israel. And Benaiah answered the King, my people say so, too. Make

his throne greater than my lord, King David. So Zadok the Priest, and

Nathan the profit, and Benaiah went down and calls Solomon to ride upon

King David's mule. Zadok the Priest Took oil out of the Tabernacle and

anointed Solomon, and they blew the trumpet, and all the people said God

save King Solomon. And all the people came up after him, and the

people piped with pipes and rejoiced with great joy so that the Earth

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# Behold O God our defend defender; As the Choir sings the motet Behold

O God, a procession representing all generations is escorting here a

flask of oil from theest end of the Abbey which is going to be placed on

the High Altar in acknowledgement of the service the Queen has given

since she was anointed at the Coronation, in one of most sacred

moments of that service when she dedicated herself to God and the

people. In that procession carrying the oil the Queen's guide, who is

training to be a Methodist Minister. Either side are two children. Behind

them the Warrant Officer from the Royal Navy and a nurse. Behind them

in yellow the lollipop Lady and Dr Jacqueline Coburn, a teacher a. The

judge, Mr Justice Cook, and Lord Wallace after Saltaire, who sang

here during the Coronation and two Chelsea Pensioners. Aged from six to

their 90s, carrying this oil to the altar to be placed on the altar in

memory of that moment that most sacred moment in the Coronation

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Dean, and the Dean will place it on the Coronation of Elizabeth our

Queen didst set her apart for thy service, anointing her with thy Holy

Spirit: grant, we beseech thee, that strengthened by thy seven-fold gifts

we may likewise always remain faithful to our calling and active

in thy service; through Jesus Christ Commonwealth, Kamalesh Sharma will

read from St Mark. James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him,

saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever shall

desire. And he said unto them, 'What would ye that I should do for you?'

They said unto him, "Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right

hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory." But Jesus said

unto them, "Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink

of? And be baptised with the baptism that I am baptised with?" And they

said unto him, "We can." And Jesus said unto them, "Ye shall indeed

drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am

baptized withal shall ye be baptised: But to sit on my right

hand and on my left hand is not mine to give, but it shall be given to

them for whom it is prepared. And when the ten heard it, they began to

be much displeased with James and John. But Jesus called them to him,

and saith unto them, "Ye know that they which are accounted to rule

ofer the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones

exercise authority upon them. But so shall it not be among you: but

whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: And

whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all.

For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister,

and to give his life a ransom for many. And now the only himself sung

at the Coronation, by Vaughan Williams, his version of all people

# All people that on earth do dwell. # Sing to the Lord with cheerful

voice. # Him serve with fear, his praise forth tell. # Come ye before

# Without our aid he did us make. # We are his folk, he doth us feed. #

praise. # Approach with joy his courts unto. # Praise, laud, and

bless his name always. # For it is # His mercy is for ever sure. # His

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truth at all times firmly stood. # # The God who whom Heaven and Earth

adore From men and from the angel host

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Be praise and glory evermore. And now the address given to the

Archbishop. In the name of the father, the son

time the whole nation had watched anything as it happened. But this

they saw. Pomp and ceremony on a rainy, June day, all so very

British, wrapped in time and custom. Very British. At its beginning was a

moment of deepest meaning we have almost forgotten. The figure at the

centre of events, the new Queen, goes alone, not to the throne, but

past it: to kneel at the altar in prayer. Before her on the High Altar

the words "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of

our Lord and of his Christ." We do not know what was prayed. Her

Majesty knelt at the beginning of a path of demanding devotion and utter

self-sacrifice: a path she did not choose, yet to which she was called

by God. Today we celebrate sixty years since that moment: sixty years

of whole-hearted commitment and faithfulness. There was a trumpet

fanfare as the Queen arrived with her supporters, but let us resist

the splendour of the spectacle for a moment, and focus on what was meant:

"Not my will, Lord, but yours be done." Following her giving of

allegiance to God, so others, including the Duke of Edinburgh,

pledged their allegiance to her. Here, in the grace and providence of

God, is the model of authority - and liberty - which our country enjoys.

Liberty is only real when it exists under authority. It begins, as the

Book of Common Prayer puts it, with our duty to God, "whose service is

perfect freedom". We live in a hierarchy of authority that ascends

to God's limitless love. As we see in the life of Jesus, with God

justice and mercy are perfectly joined, wisdom is unlimited,

generosity is unstinting, and love pours out to the whole world in an

overwhelming embrace that is offered universally and abundantly. A nation

that crowns its head of state with such a model of liberty under

authority expresses commitment to the same glorious objectives for

society. In those moments of prayer are symbolised the basis for the

greatness of this country. In their silence lies God's call. In their

humility lies God's authority. In their resulting service lies God's

perfect freedom. What follows is the joy of security that comes from

obeying God alone. Such consecration to God is followed by a crown: When

we obey God's call, whoever we are, leading Government or quietly

sevening our local community we are establish a country that is open

handed and open hearted, serving others with joy. In such service we

become Britain at its best. We know how to celebrate - as again last

year in the Olympics. We know how to comfort and grieve - as on the

streets of Woolwich, in the courage of passers-by and police. Yet we are

not always or everywhere at our best. We celebrate today not liberty

by itself, which in human weakness turns to selfishness, but liberty

under the authority of God. We are never more free, nor better than

when we are under the authority of God. The coronation was an

ordination, a setting aside of a person for service. Once anointed,

Her Majesty received symbols, symbols so monumental that they are

only bearable by the grace and strength of God. They were symbols

of service as well as leadership and authority. Hear the words spoken to

Her Majesty as she received the sword: With this sort do justice,

protect the holy Church of God, help and defend widows and orphans,

restore the things that are gone to decay, maintain the things that are

restored. Polish and reform what is amiss, and confirm what is in good

order, that doing these things you may be glorious in all virtue, and

so faithfully serve our Lord Jesus Christ in this life that you may

reign for ever with him in the life which is to come. Small tasks, tasks

that are shared and renewed in a free democracy under authority. The

symbols and words point us to our deepest understanding of the nature

of power which is found neither in pomp and circumstance nor in public

displays, but in radical commitment, single-minded devotion and servant

leadership. And for that we give thanks today. The very nature of

being British follows this simple logic. It is founded on liberty

under authority. It imitates the example of Jesus who did not count

equality with God thing to be grasped, but humbled himself and

took the form of a slave. In Jesus is seen the greatest servant of

all, whose service gives us freedom, whose love is generously

offered to each of us. Her Majesty the Queen is servant of the King of

Kings and so she serves us as we serve her in liberty and under

authority. It is a system that points to freedom in God, in whose

love alone we are fully human, fully free.

The choir will now sing the anthem that were specially commissioned for

this service by former choristers who worked at the Abbey and

Coronation, written by one of our leading composers of choral work,

The King Shall Rejoice. # The King shall rejoice in thy strength, O

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salvation. # Glory and great worship hast thou laid upon him. # Thou hast

prevented him with the blessings of goodness and hast set a crown of

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strength, O Lord. # Exceeding glad shall he be of thy salvation.

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# Glory and great worship hast thou to the Lord and giver of life.

Thanks to God for his gracious gifts so freely bestowed on our sovereign

Lady, Queen Elizabeth, throughout these past 60 years. For wisdom and

insight, for constancy and steadfast as a faith and for fortitude and

courage, both in prosperity and adversity, let us bless the Lord.

Thanks be to God. We give thanks to God for the Queen's long and

glorious reign, for her devotion to duty and to the people of this

United Kingdom, the overseas territories and the realms and the

Commonwealth, for her sustained support of the Armed Forces and

civil powers, and for her unswerving commitment to the peaceful

democratic principles of these lands. Let us bless the Lord, thanks

be to God. We give thanks to God for Her Majesty's example of public

service, for her commitment to the needs of others, for her

affectionate service of her peoples, and for the strength and

inspiration she fosters in the nations. Let us bless the Lord,

thanks be to God. We pray that as our sovereign Lady

has been strengthened by her belief and trust in Almighty God, though we

and all people of faith may grow and be nurtured in love and know his

peace in our lives. Lord in nine Mercy, hear our prayer. We pray for

those who bear the Queen's authority, all who have been elected

to public office, for those who serve in the forces of the Crown,

especially those currently engaged in theatres of conflict. And for

those who uphold and maintain justice that inspired by a vision of

Christ's glory, all may honour one another and seek the common good.

Lord, in nine Mercy. We pray for the Queen and all members of the Royal

family that they may have health of body and mind, length of days and

grace to continue to serve the needs of others, and all joy and hope in

believing. Lord, in nine Mercy, hear our prayer. These are prayers, let

us bring to the throne of heavenly grace as we say together the prayer

that Jesus taught us. Our father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy

name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread and four gives us our trespasses as we

forgive those who trespassed against us, and lead us not into temptation

but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the

glory, for ever and ever, amen. At the far end, the poem read by

Claire Skinner. The crown translates a woman to a Queen- endless gold,

circling itself, an O like a well, fathomless, for the years to drown

in-history's bride, anointed, blessed, for a crowning. One head

alone can know its weight, on throne, in pageantry, and feel it

still, in private space, when it's lifted: not a hollow thing, but a

measuring; no halo, treasure, but a valuing; decades and

duty.Time-gifted, the crown is old light, journeying from skulls of

kings to living Queen. Its jewels glow, virtues; loyalty's ruby,

blood-deep; sapphire's ice resilience; emerald evergreen; the

shy pearl, humility. My whole life, whether it be long or short, devoted

O eternal God, whose chosen servant Elizabeth our Queen hath for sixty

years worn a crown of glory and righteousness in humble duty and

devotion to thee: grant that we, her people, knowing whose authority she

hath,may continue faithfully to serve, honour, and obey her, in thee

and for thee, after the example of him who is the servant King, Jesus

the King of creation! # O my soul, praise Him, for He is

thy health and salvation! # All ye who hear, now to His temple

draw near; # Praise Him in glad # Praise to the Lord, who over all

things so wondrously reigneth. # Shelters thee under His wings,

yea, so gently sustaineth! # Hast thou not seen how thy desires

ever have been. # Granted in what He ordaineth?

# Praise to the Lord, who hath fearfully, wondrously, made thee. #

Health hath vouchsafed and, when heedlessly falling, hath stayed

# Ponder anew what the Almighty can # If with His love He befriend thee.

# Praise to the Lord, who, when tempests their warfare are waging.

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# Who, when the elements madly the departed rest; to the Church,The

Queen, the Commonwealth, and all mankind, peace and concord; and to

us sinners life everlasting: and the blessing of GodAlmighty, the Father,

the Son, and the Holy Spirit be among you and remain with you

always. Amen. The service ends with the long and complex Coronation

today and written by William Walton for the Coronation in 1953. He came

WE praise thee, O God; we acknowledge thee to be the Lord.

the earth doth worship thee, the Father everlasting. To thee all

angels cry aloud, the heavens and all the powers therein. To thee

Cherubin and Seraphin continually do cry, Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of

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Sabaoth; heaven and earth are full world doth acknowledge thee, the

Father, of an infinite majesty; thine honourable, true, and only

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Son, also the Holy Ghost, the Queen processes out, led by the

Archbishop of Canterbury with his cross, and the Dean of Westminster.

We expect her to pause at the West Door just to look at the newly

restored Coronation Chair, the chair which she sat in 60 years ago for

her Coronation. Followed by all the Royal Family on their way out, as

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The Dean just pausing with the Queen. The Duke of Edinburgh going

to have a look at the Coronation Chair. Each member of the Royal

Family accompanied by either Minor Canons or Canons of the Abbey,

having explained to them the work that's been done on the Coronation

sprightly despite what was said. He was a crucial figure in the creation

of the Coronation itself 60 years ago. It was his job to chair the

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Coronation committee that decided glass-topped limousine. The Queen

and Duke of Edinburgh leave the Abbey to go back to Buckingham

Palace. A different day in so many ways from that day 60 years ago when

the Queen came to be crowned. The weather is different for a start -

sunshine instead of torrential rain. But it is also a very different

country from the one she knew back in 1953. This private person, the