What exactly takes place during the coronation ceremony of King Charles?
LONDON, April 18 (Reuters) - King Charles became monarch of the United Kingdom and 14 other realms after his mother, Queen Elizabeth, died in September. In May, however, he will be crowned in a solemn religious ceremony that will be full of ceremony, pageantry, and pomp.
What does it all mean and why is he being crowned?
History shows that the kings and queens of England and Britain have been crowned in a ceremony that hasn't changed much over the centuries at Westminster Abbey in London.
At the Abbey, 38 monarchs have been crowned. Edward VIII, who abdicated to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson, and Edward V, one of two young princes who are believed to have been murdered in the Tower of London in the 15th century, were not crowned.
Unique No other monarchy in the world holds an event in the same style, and the coronation is not required.
According to royal historian Alice Hunt, "the form of the ceremony that we'll see when Charles III is crowned is unique to this country and unique in its survival."
It is organized by the Earl Marshal, England's most powerful peer who is in charge of state events and has been mostly held by the Howard family and The Duke of Norfolk for centuries.
Edward Fitzalan-Howard, the current Duke of Norfolk, is currently in charge of making arrangements for Queen Elizabeth's funeral.
Why have it?
A monarch's coronation was once a requirement, but it is now a ceremonial occasion.
According to Hunt, "the coronation still kind of persisted in this country as a moment that would really legitimize that monarch in a public way."
"It has also always maintained a religious moment of transformation at its core. Even though the monarch is the monarch from the time his or her predecessor dies, the language of the coronation ceremony, which dates back to the 14th century and was locked down, still explains that the king or queen changes in some way during the ceremony.
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