“King Charles III’s Coronation: Controversy and Efforts for Modernization”

[미리 보는 6일 대관식… 관전 포인트는]
Tight housekeeping, contributing to the expansion of negative public opinion
Efforts to “reduce things to reduce, strengthen diversity” of the royal family

The coronation ceremony of King Charles III of England will be held at Westminster Abbey in London on the 6th (local time). It is a place to officially declare that you have become the monarch of the United Kingdom and 14 Commonwealth. It is the first British coronation ceremony to be held 70 years after the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II (1953), who passed away in September last year.

According to British media outlets such as the BBC, the coronation ceremony will maintain the basic framework of past events. Ceremonial procedures such as the Archbishop of Canterbury, the highest-ranking member of the Church of England, asking God to approve Charles III as king, and the King pledging to God to ‘stance as a monarch’, and then the Archbishop crowning the King, are expected. do. After the coronation ceremony, Charles III is paraded through central London, greeting citizens as the ‘new king’.

Only 39% of young people ‘in favor of the monarchy’… ‘Abolition’ protests on the day of the coronation

However, the expression of the British royal family ahead of a large-scale festival is not good. The biggest reason is that the more attention is drawn to the super-large event of the coronation, After the death of Elizabeth II Abolitionism, which flared up and barely died down, could rekindleis at the point. As a result of a poll commissioned by the BBC and conducted in the UK from the 14th to 17th of last month by YouGov, a polling agency, there were more respondents (58%) in favor of the monarchy than opposed (26%), but in the ‘young generation between 18 and 35 years old’ The approval rate (39%) was found to be extremely low. especially 64% of respondents said they were “not interested in the coronation ceremony” done. The response from Commonwealth countries was even colder. Australia and Canada omitted or drastically reduced commemorative events.

There are also signs that could arouse public opinion about the abolition of the actual monarchy. During the coronation ceremony, there is a ceremony in which the clergy and the royal family pledge their allegiance and kneel in front of the king. The royal family explained that it was to ‘increase the participation of the people in the event’. “Many They regard the monarchy as an old-world institution, and to kneel down and swear allegiance is an act of contempt for the populace.”(civil group Republic) criticism grew. On the day of the coronation, a large rally calling for the abolition of the monarchy was also announced.status has been Republic plans to gather around 1,600 people in Trafalgar Square in central London as King Charles III’s procession passes by, chanting “Abolish the Monarchy” and “You are not my King”.

Planning of major ceremonies and parades for the coronation of King Charles III of England. Graphics = Reporter Song Jeong-geun

The inflation rate is 10.1%… “Coronation cost of 166.5 billion won”

also, The mere fact that the coronation ceremony is heavily taxed stimulates national anger.can do. The UK is experiencing a double whammy as it has been unable to get out of the swamp of economic depression after leaving the European Union (EU) and has suffered a sharp rise in inflation following the Russian invasion of Ukraine last year. In March this year, the inflation rate recorded 10.1%. It is the only 10% in Western Europe. There is little sign that the pocket situation of the general public will improve.

In the midst of this, there are even observations that the coronation ceremony will cost about 100 million pounds (about 166.5 billion won). People are already agitated. “The price of almost everything is skyrocketing,” said entrepreneur Ashlai Fielding. “It’s hard to hear how much the coronation costs taxpayers.”said to the New York Times.

The royal family is also watching public opinion. Without disclosing the specific cost of the coronation ceremony, it only emphasized that “there are more benefits from the activation of tourism.”

Britain’s King Charles III (second from left) smiles broadly as he attends a celebration ahead of his coronation at Buckingham Palace in London on the 3rd. London = AP Yonhap News

One-fourth the distance between invited guests and the march… event scale ‘diet’

The problem is that it is impossible to omit the traditional royal event or to hold it modestly. point. This is because a large number of domestic and foreign guests attend.

Therefore Keep the frame of the past, but reduce the scaleWe are preparing for the event. First, the number of attendees was drastically reduced. About 8,000 people were invited at the coronation of Elizabeth II, while around 2,800 people are expected to attend the coronation of Charles III. The matrix length has also been shortened. Queen Elizabeth marched 8 km, but Charles III is known to have marched only 2.1 km. Observations are made that the duration of the coronation ceremony will also be shortened from three hours in the past to two hours this time. The number of soldiers participating in the procession will also be reduced from about 30,000 to 4,000. Charles III’s wife, Queen Camilla, reuses a crown that was made in 1911 for the coronations of King George V and Queen Mary. The crown is recycled for the first time, the BBC reported.

Respect for diversity, embrace the socially underprivilegedIt is also an atmosphere of concern. In addition to English, hymns will be sung at the coronation in Welsh, Scottish Gaelic and Irish. In addition to the State Church, Hindus and Sikhs also join the procession of priests who enter first. Particular attention was paid to involving women. Many women were assigned to take on roles such as reading the Bible and delivering items related to the coronation ceremony to the king. 100% vegetable oil is used when the archbishop applies holy oil (sacred oil) to the king. The royal family explains that it took into account the fact that many people are animal-friendly.

Berlin= Eunbyeol Shin Correspondent ebshin@hankookilbo.com