Not everyone is excited and happy about the celebration that marks the formal investiture of the new King’s regal power. In the hope of abolishing the monarchy, a British republican pressure group called Republic will stage a protest on coronation day.
They will be holding placards that read ‘NOT MY KING’ and ‘Abolish The Monarchy’. The group is encouraging people to wear yellow in support of their goal to replace the monarch with a constitutionally elected head of state. Republic group believe the job should “not simply be ceremonial” and according to their ideals the new head of state would have very clear and limited powers.
The group’s website reads: “The kind of head of state we think is best for Britain is a ceremonial or constitutional position, someone chosen by the people to: represent the nation; defend our democracy; act as; referee in the political process and offer a non-political voice at times of crisis and celebration.”
On April 30, the group released a statement that called the plan to ask the public to pledge their allegiance to King Charles III during the coronation “offensive, tone deaf and a gesture that holds the people in contempt.”
Speaking for the group, Graham Smith said, “This oath plan has been widely mocked, and the chances of more than 0.001% of the country taking this seriously are zero. With just 9% of people enthusiastic about the coronation, this plan shows just how out of touch the royals are.”
Smith continued: “In a democracy it is the head of state who should be swearing allegiance to the people, not the other way around. This kind of nonsense should have died with Elizabeth I, not outlived Elizabeth II.”
He continued: “In swearing allegiance to Charles and his ‘heirs and successors’, people are being asked to swear allegiance to Prince Andrew too. This is clearly beyond the pale.”
“This bizarre idea is likely to prove a huge miscalculation, one born of fear that the monarchy is rapidly losing support. They are doubling down on the most archaic aspects of the coronation while trying to include everyone else in the most crass manner. This will not sit well with most people,” Smith concluded.
A YouGov poll in April showed a majority of Britons, 52%, are not interested in the coronation, with just 15% ‘very interested’ and 29% only ‘fairly interested’.
Speaking for the group, Graham Smith said on April 3: “Sadly, this won’t change the fact that the coronation will be trumpeted as a national event and the taxpayer will still pick up the £100m bill.”
But with only 2002 adults polled in the survey and around 67 million people in the UK, this data can’t paint an accurate picture of what Britons are really feeling.
The coronation will take place at Westminster Abbey, and a procession of 1.3 miles (2 km) will lead from Buckingham Palace to the Abbey. However, the Republic group will protest at the Charles I statue in Trafalgar Square, a short 14-minute walk away, starting at 6am.
Almost a million people have signed up for street parties and community events across England to celebrate the coronation, but only 2 000 guests will attend the ceremony at Westminster Abbey. About 20 000 supporters will be outside, while 1 000 angry Republicans are expected to protest with placards.
I will, however, be on the ground, bringing you the latest, as developments unfold.
- Catherine White is an award-winning multimedia journalist, and director of Cat White Media. She has worked for some of the largest news publishers in South Africa in radio, TV, print and online video. Catherine, who is originally from Jeffreys Bay, completed her high school education at Global Leadership Academy (2015) after which she studied Journalism and Media Studies at Rhodes University in Makhanda. Her move to London, England is in pursuit of an international journalism career with the hope of returning to South Africa as an African correspondent.
