Posts Tagged ‘British history’
King Charles III’s Coronation: everything we know so far…
Buckingham Palace has announced that the coronation of King Charles III will take place on Saturday 6th May, 2023 at Westminster Abbey.
The Archbishop of Canterbury will preside over the anointing in a service that Buckingham Palace have said will be a mix of ancient and modern traditions to “reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future”.
Image: Dan Marsh/CC-BY-SA-2.0
King Charles will be 74 at the time of his coronation – making him the eldest new monarch to be crowned.
Camilla, the Queen Consort, will also be crowned as part of the service in a shorter ceremony. She will become the thirtieth consort to be crowned since the Norman Conquest.
What will happen at the Coronation of King Charles III?
This will mark the first coronation in the United Kingdom for nearly 70 years. A young Prince Charles attended the coronation of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, on 2nd June 1953 and it is believed that the new monarch has made adaptations to the ceremony for his own coronation.
Image: Photos from Library and Archives Canada via Wikimedia Commons
Lots of the pageantry and ritual is expected to be retained. Monarchs traditionally sit on a 14th century coronation chair and are officially crowned with St Edward’s solid gold crown.
There is likely to be a procession through London, featuring a Gold State Coach.
And it is expected that the celebration will come to an end with a Buckingham Palace balcony appearance.
How will the world celebrate King Charles’ Coronation?
The coronation will be televised and a potential worldwide television audience of hundreds of millions has been predicted.
It has been confirmed that there will be an extra UK bank holiday to mark the coronation. This is scheduled for Monday 8th May 2023, two days after the service.
If you’re interested…
The King Charles III Coronation Commemorative
Today you can own the BRAND NEW King Charles III Coronation Commemorative for FREE (you’ll only pay postage!) with this introductory offer.
Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork, this BRAND NEW King Charles III Commemorative is the perfect way to chronicle His Majesty’s first year as King.
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Introductory Offer
The King Charles III Coronation Commemorative is an Introductory Offer for the Long To Reign Over Us Collection. Each month, you’ll receive four commemoratives for £25.00 (+p&p). You’ll also receive your FREE Presentation Album to house your collection. You can cancel your subscription at anytime. Click here to secure yours >>
80 years on from El Alamein: The battle we simply had to win…
“Before Alamein we never had a victory. After we never had a defeat.”
Winston Churchill
It’s 1942 and the fortunes of war are running against the Allies on almost every front.
In the east, the Soviets are in collapse.
In the Atlantic, U-boats are crippling the ferrying-in of Britain’s vital supplies.
While, in western Europe, Nazi troops are the occupying force in country after country.
To North Africa, where Rommel’s Afrika Korps are trying to break through to the Suez Canal – and to that all important oil of the Middle East.
To stop them, the Egyptian village of El Alamein, situated between the Mediterranean Sea and the Qattara Depression, simply had to be held.
The defending Allies were represented by the Eighth Army – the ‘Desert Rats’, led by General Montgomery.
Montgomery had a plan. He would launch a diversionary attack to the south, while the main attack would come from the north, nearer to the coast.
And 80 years ago, on the night of 23-24 October 1942, the attack began.
A noise so great, the gunners’ ears bled
It started with the firing of over 800 artillery pieces at the German lines, creating a noise so great that, according to legend, the ears of the gunners bled.
When the infantry attacked, they were followed by tanks that moved through the minefield along a path cleared by engineers.
Outnumbered and under constant attack from land and air forces, on November 4th, Rommel, refusing to carry out Hitler’s suicidal order to fight to the last, retreated.
Image Credit: Chetwyn (Sgt), No 1 Army Film & Photographic Unit.
The Battle of El Alamein, fought in the deserts of North Africa with tank warfare at the heart of it, was undoubtedly one of the pivotal battles of World War II.
The battle revived the morale of the Allies and helped turn the tide during the war. As Churchill noted, “After Alamein we never had a defeat”.
The Battle of El Alamein NumisProof
A Silver Proof NumisProof Commemorative has been issued to mark the 80th Anniversary of the battle of El Alamein.
This stunning NumisProof has been struck from Sterling Silver to a perfect Proof finish, it features a full colour design created by world renowned digital artist Adam Tooby.
It depicts the two leading military commanders involved in the battle – Britain’s Bernard Montgomery and Germany’s Erwin Rommel, with the battle raging in the background.
For such an important anniversary of such an important WWII battle, you’ll be surprised by the edition limit. Just 250 have been authorised.
Today I invite you to be one of just 250 people in the world to own this scarce 80th anniversary commemorative.
Click here to own the 80th Anniversary of the Battle of El Alamein NumisProof >>
The 2022 RBL Poppy Masterpiece – Creating a Masterpiece
Here at The Westminster Collection, we’ve had the privilege of working in partnership with the Royal British Legion for over a decade.
Each year, we issue bespoke coins and commemoratives for the RBL Poppy Appeal and Remembrance Day.
And we’re incredibly proud to have so far raised over £1 million for the Royal British Legion.
Unboxing the 2022 RBL Poppy Masterpiece
The Masterpiece is a remarkable coin and this year, creating the Masterpiece has more of a personal touch than ever before.
Each coin has been meticulously painted by hand, making each one unique.
Never has the name “Masterpiece” been more appropriate. Each coin is a work of art, but how do you go about creating 350 pieces of unique artwork?
“The 2022 Masterpiece Poppy Coin is a timeless token of Remembrance. Not only is this coin a poignant reminder of all those who have served and sacrificed, but it also helps the Royal British Legion continue to be there for today’s Armed Forces community, no matter what.”
Charles Byrne , Director General of the Royal British Legion
One of a Kind – Creating a Masterpiece
This year’s Masterpiece coin has been expertly designed by Beata Kulesza-Damaziak. Beata has a studio in Warsaw, Poland, designing sculptures, book covers and has produced many coin designs.
Beata’s design has been struck in high relief on 5oz Pure Silver blanks, with different heights of relief applied to give a real depth to the design.
Keen-eyed observers will see a map of the Falklands on the very bottom layer, with a total of 40 poppies poignantly sitting on top to mark the 40th anniversary of the Falklands War.
The largest and 40th poppy sits proudly in the middle of the coin. It’s that poppy that elevates the coin to status of “Masterpiece”.
Every single coin has had that poppy hand-painted by artist Adam Taylor, making each one unique.
Most colour on coins these days is printed using high-speed pad-printing machines or using modern UV printing techniques. Adam has used traditional model-painting techniques on the coins, which means each one has unique brush-strokes and subtle differences in the colours.
Adding acrylic paint to the high relief poppy gives it that iconic red colour and further enhances the coin design. The time, care and attention required on a project such as this, truly does make each one of the 350 a one-off.
Adam dedicated hour upon hour to these coins, adding the personal touches to make each one a true Masterpiece.
Secure your hand-painted, one of a kind RBL Poppy Masterpiece Coin here>>