1937 – George VI Coronation
George VI Coronation
The coronation of George VI and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon as King and Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth and as Emperor and Empress of India took place at Westminster Abbey, London, on 12 May 1937.
George VI ascended the throne upon the abdication of his brother, Edward VIII, on 11 December 1936, three days before his 41st birthday. Edward’s coronation had been planned for 12th May 1937 and it was decided to continue with his brother and sister-in-law’s coronation on the same date. It remained a largely conservative affair and closely followed the ceremonial of George V’s coronation in 1911.
The event was designed to be not only a sacred anointing and formal crowning, but also a public spectacle, which was also planned as a display of the British Empire. May 1937 included a programme of royal events lasting nearly the entire month to commemorate and mark the occasion.
The media also played an important part in broadcasting this show of pageantry and imperialism to the Empire, which marked this coronation as an important event in the history of television, being the world’s first major outside broadcast. It was also the first coronation to be filmed, as well as the first to be broadcast on radio.