The last coronation ceremony was that of Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving monarch in British history. With Elizabeth’s passing in September 2022, Charles succeeded immediately to the throne. The upcoming ceremony is the first since June 2, 1953, when Queen Elizabeth was crowned. Binghamton University, State University of New York professor Andrew Walkling said the point of the ceremony is to invoke the past and draw a connection with tradition, but some things will be different.

“You want a coronation not just to be a kind of call back to the past, but something that reflects the new reign,” said Walkling.

This coronation ceremony will be much more environmentally friendly, down to the small details of the rituals. Part of the ceremony includes an anointing by a priest with a holy oil called chrism. The oil is traditionally made with ambergris from sperm whales and oil from a wild cat called a civet, said Walkling.

“The chrism oil is meant to have those things in it, but Charles wants the coronation to be more humane, so they're going to use oil without those ingredients,” said Walkling.

The ceremony will also be a smaller affair in terms of audience. For Elizabeth II’s coronation, 8,251 guests were present. Walkling explained that Charles wants something different.

“He wants to acknowledge a wider swath of British society for the coronation,” said Walkling. “Charles wants a much smaller audience physically present to make it more intimate and also to emphasize that it's for everyone, because most people will be watching it on television rather than being invited guests.”

Seventy years have passed since the coronation of Elizabeth II. In this new era, there are many traditions that will remain, but there are many that will progress.

“There are certain elements of the coronation ceremony that go all the way back to the Middle Ages,” said Walkling. “There are other ones that are more recent, but part of the point is to draw a connection with tradition.”