King Charles to use George VI’s throne for coronation in spirit of ‘sustainability’

UK's King Charles and Queen Camilla will be using the recycled thrones from King George VI's coronation for their own scheduled at Westminster Abbey on May 6 in the spirit of "sustainability". The 74-year-old monarch and his 75-year-old wife will both be reusing identical chairs from George VI's 1937 coronation as they will pay a special tribute to Charles' late grandparents. The throne on which the 40th reigning monarch will be crowned is re-upholstered with an original embroidered coat of arms, according to the emerging reports. Camilla's throne was used by Queen Mother and will have the queen's coat of arms.

'Incredibly efficient and sustainable thing to do'

The deputy surveyor of the King’s Works of Art at the Royal Collection Trust, Caroline de Guitaut, was reported as saying, "For His Majesty King Charles III's coronation he has wanted very much to re-use things where possible and obviously it's an incredibly efficient and sustainable thing to do." Furthermore, he said, "So it's giving the chairs I suppose a new life in a slightly different guise, but at the same time respecting that they are historic objects, and conserving them for the future."

The deputy surveyor noted that King Charles will take to throne officially as he will get crowned at Westminster Abbey on Saturday. The monarch will be seated in chairs of the estate, which the late Queen Elizabeth II and Duke of Edinburgh had used during the 1953 coronation. The images of the thrones were shared by the Twitter handle of the Royal Family. Pictures of the ceremonial outfits the couple will wear were also published. 

By tradition, ceremonial chairs and thrones are used for the different stages of the Coronation.

In the interest of sustainability, Their Majesties have chosen to use Chairs of Estate and Throne Chairs from the Royal Collection made for previous Coronations. Click to read more.

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily)

"For the first time, insects including bees and a beetle feature on the Coronation Robe, drawing on the themes of nature and the environment and reflecting their Majesties' affection for the natural world," Buckingham Palace. 

In the Royal Family photos, the Royal School of Needlework's embroidery team, of which Camilla has been a patron since 2017, was seen working on King Charles' and Camilla's garments. UK's King Charles will wear the Robe of State in the colour of crimson velvet which was worn by his grandfather at his coronation and will change into the Robe of Estate worn by then King George during his time after the coronation. The Royal School of Needlework has reportedly been conserving the velvet. The team has been reworking the gold lace by Ede and Ravenscroft. Camilla will wear the crimson velvet Robe of State that was worked by Queen Elizabeth during her coronation in 1953. The design of the attire is inspired by nature and the environment and has been made by Ede and Ravenscroft.