The final practice before Saturday’s coronation of King Charles III was held in the early morning hours on Wednesday.
Thousands of members of the military were on parade between Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey in front of the early spectators who had already gotten prime spots to see the spectacle, Sky News reported.
About 6,000 people are expected to take part in the King’s Procession on Saturday, BBC News reported.
King Charles coronation: Here is the schedule for the ceremony that crowns Britain’s monarch
On Thursday, spectators also saw the 260-year-old Gold State Coach carriage as it was pulled along the route. They also got a glimpse of the Diamond Jubilee State Coach that was pulled by a team of six Windsor Grey horses, People magazine reported.
The Diamond Jubilee State Coach will be used to take Charles and his wife, Queen Consort Camilla, to Westminster Abbey. It was created to commemorate the 60th year on the throne for Charles’ mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in 2012, royal officials said.
Once the coronation is complete, Charles and Camilla will be taken back to Buckingham Palace in the Gold State Coach, which was last used during Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022. It has been used in every coronation, including Elizabeth’s, since King William IV’s in 1831, according to the palace.
A couple of things were missing from the practice — the music and ceremonial gunfire that usually deafens the sound of the boots crunching gravel, horse hooves clip clipping and officers giving commands, U.K. Army officials said.
In addition to the soldiers, sailors and airmen assigned to England, there will be 400 others from 33 Commonwealth countries and six territories, along with 300 from The Household Cavalry and King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery. There will also be 19 military bands, one of which will play on horseback, the Army said.
The practice was also held in Westminster Abbey on Wednesday morning with members of the royal family, People magazine reported.
Charles and Camilla attended the practice, along with Princess Anne, the former Kate Middleton, Prince William, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, the publication reported.
William will present his father with the Stole Royal and Robe Royal during the ceremony, according to Us Weekly.
George has been selected as one of the king’s pages and will walk behind his grandfather carrying his robes, Hello! magazine reported.
King Charles III coronation: King will wear vestments worn by mother, grandfather, great-grandfather
George and his brother and sister will also be with their parents as part of the procession from the abbey to the palace, Us Weekly reported.
Beneath the glow of London’s street lamps, 4,000 sailors, soldiers and aviators paraded through the empty streets of the Capital as they mounted their final full-scale rehearsal of the Coronation processions ahead of 6 May.
Beneath the glow of London’s street lamps, 4,000 sailors, soldiers and aviators paraded through the empty streets of the Capital as they mounted their final full-scale rehearsal of the Coronation processions ahead of 6 May.
A young Guardsman from the Welsh Guards was part of the street liners during the rehearsals for the Coronation processions.
Beneath the glow of London’s street lamps, 4,000 sailors, soldiers and aviators paraded through the empty streets of the Capital as they mounted their final full-scale rehearsal of the Coronation processions ahead of 6 May.
The Sovereign’s Escort of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment had the furthest to parade, as they will lead the ceremonial charge for both The King’s Procession to Westminster Abbey, and the return procession from the Abbey.
Beneath the glow of London’s street lamps, 4,000 sailors, soldiers and aviators paraded through the empty streets of the Capital as they mounted their final full-scale rehearsal of the Coronation processions ahead of 6 May.
Beneath the glow of London’s street lamps, 4,000 sailors, soldiers and aviators paraded through the empty streets of the Capital as they mounted their final full-scale rehearsal of the Coronation processions ahead of 6 May.
Beneath the glow of London’s street lamps, 4,000 sailors, soldiers and aviators paraded through the empty streets of the Capital as they mounted their final full-scale rehearsal of the Coronation processions ahead of 6 May.