Royal Author Questions How King Charles III Could Be Coronated After His Divorce and Past Affair
Plans for King Charles III‘s coronation are plowing full steam ahead. However, certain aspects of his past are not in line with a ruling monarch, says royal author Anthony Holden. He questions the ability of Charles to be coronated in the wake of his 1996 divorce from Princess Diana and his ongoing affair with Camilla Parker Bowles throughout his 15-year marriage.
King Charles III’s coronation is a three-day event scheduled for May 2023
Per the royal family’s official website, Charles’ coronation will occur on May 6. The Coronation Ceremony is at Westminster Abbey, London, conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
King Charles III will be crowned alongside Queen Consort Camilla and usher a three-day event that reflects the monarchy’s role today. This historical event will also remain rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry.
People Magazine reported on May 6 the king’s procession starts at Buckingham Palace and makes its way to Westminster Abbey. Following the service, Charles and Camilla join members of the royal family in a return procession to Buckingham Palace.
One day later, a coronation concert will broadcast live from Windsor Castle. A separate event titled “lighting up the nation” occurs as well. On that same day, a Coronation Big Lunch celebrates the communities of the United Kingdom.
On May 8, the United Kingdom will enjoy a bank holiday. A volunteering initiative called the Big Help Out is also in the works for that day. However, a royal author questions Charles’ coronation as he is divorced and had an affair before taking the throne.
A royal author questions how King Charles III can be coronated due to his past
The Coronation of His Majesty The King will take place on Saturday 6 May 2023 at Westminster Abbey.
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) October 11, 2022
The Ceremony will see His Majesty King Charles III crowned alongside The Queen Consort.
Royal author Anthony Holden wrote King Charles: A Biography in 1988. He penned a letter to The Guardian arguing that Charles’ coronation should be invalid. He cites Charles’ divorce and well-known affair with Camilla during his marriage to Princess Diana.
Holden wrote, “Further to your concerns about the forthcoming coronation, the Church of England has never before crowned a divorced man as king. Therefore its supreme governor, let alone one who has publicly confessed to adultery – with the relevant woman, also a divorcee, sitting beside him expecting to be crowned queen consort.”
He alleges that the late Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie, once told him that Charles’s coronation would require “a revision of the coronation oath, which would require a new statute of parliament.”
Therefore he claims that this statute would require the prime minister “to seek King Charles III’s permission to debate whether or not it felt able to crown him. Runcie told me it would amount to a constitutional crisis. It seems hard to disagree.”
Can Charles’ coronation be canceled due to his past?
Per Express, Sir Vernon Bogdanor, a research professor at King’s College London’s Centre for British Politics and Government, believes Holden’s argument doesn’t hold water. He told the outlet that Charles and Camilla followed all the proper channels regarding their 2005 marriage.
The professor stated, “Charles and Camilla’s wedding was followed by a Service of Prayer and Dedication led by Archbishop Rowan Williams. This surely overrides anything Robert Runcie may or may not have said.”
He concluded, “It is clear that the King has obeyed the rules of the Church. Rowan Williams is, I think, in a better position to interpret the rules of the Church than Anthony Holden.”
