CHAPTER VI
THE REGAL EMBLEMS
The emblems of Royalty—Spiritual and Temporal—The regalia used at the Coronation of George V—The emblems borne in procession at Westminster—The Ampulla or golden eagle—The Anointing Spoon—The Sword and Spurs—The ceremony of the Jewelled Sword—The King offers it to the Church—Redeems it for 100 shillings—The Armilla, or Pall of Cloth of Gold—The Orb placed in the King’s hand—A portent of Christian domination—The Coronation ring—The ensign of Kingly Dignity—The Sceptre with the Cross—The Sceptre with the Dove—A glove presented by the Lord of the Manor of Worksop—The King is crowned with St. Edward’s Crown—The Peers put on their coronets—the people shout and “the great guns of the Tower are shot off”—The enthronement of the King—The Queen’s Coronation—The Anointing—The Ring—The Queen is crowned—The Peeresses put on their coronets—The Queen’s Sceptre—The Ivory Rod with the Dove—The Regal emblems on view in the Tower.
THE emblems of Royalty are many and curious, and each has its significance. When a King or Queen of England is crowned, all these emblems are brought from the Tower to Westminster Abbey, and each in turn is presented to the new sovereign by the Archbishop of Canterbury. This fact in itself is curious and interesting. It is not the House of Lords which represents the aristocracy of the country, nor the House of Commons which represents the people, nor the Lord Chancellor as representing Law and Order, but the highest prelate of the Church of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who on behalf of 500,000,000 subjects of every race and creed, is deputed to crown the rightful successor King of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of wide-world dominions.
Of these emblems some are of a purely kingly significance, such as the Crown and Sceptre; others, like the Orb and Ring, have a religious connection, whilst others, as symbolized by the Sword and Spurs, are military emblems giving the knightly touch.
When a King or Queen is to be crowned, all the regal emblems from amongst the Crown Jewels, which are required for the ceremony, having been conveyed from the Tower to Westminster Abbey, are there met by the Peers and high officers, each of whom, either by hereditary right or by order of the King, takes charge of one emblem. The portions of the regalia used at the Coronation of King George V were:
St. Edward’s Crown, or the Crown of England. The King’s Imperial State Crown. The Orb. The Sceptre with the Cross. The Sceptre with the Dove. The Jewelled State Sword. The Sword of State. The Three Swords of Justice and Mercy. The Gold Spurs of St. George. The Bracelets. The Coronation Ring. The Ampulla or Golden Eagle. The Anointing Spoon.
These are all borne in procession to the altar, and there, with the exception of the Swords, each article is handed to the Archbishop of Canterbury, who in his turn hands them to the Dean of Westminster, and by that prelate they are each in due order placed upon the altar. When the ceremony of coronation commences, the first emblems used are the Ampulla and Spoon.
The Dean of Westminster pours a little of the oil from the Ampulla into the Anointing Spoon and takes it to the Archbishop. The Archbishop dips his first two fingers into the oil, and with the oil that adheres to them anoints the King, first on the head, then on the breast bared for the occasion, and thirdly on the palms of both hands. In each case the anointing is made in the form of a cross. This ceremony of the anointing of Kings is of very ancient origin, as may be gathered from Bible history. Thousands of years ago it was the custom to pour oil on the King’s head and thus anoint him King over his people. What the origin of the custom was is not quite clear, but in the course of centuries it has become a recognized and indispensable part of the ceremony. Indeed, so indispensable, that there is on record a case where a Queen who had always been obliged to wear a wig was so impressed with the importance of the oil actually reaching the skin of her head that she had a small trap-door cut in the top of her wig so that the holy oil might assuredly reach its destination. In olden days the oil was literally poured on to the King’s head, so that it ran down his beard and must have considerably damaged his clothes. In another place[8] is mentioned the old horn comb, used to rearrange the King’s hair, perchance disordered by a too enthusiastic archbishop, which was thrown away by the Commonwealth.
The next portions of the Regalia which come into the ceremony are the Spurs and Sword, the emblems of knighthood and chivalry. With the Spurs the Lord Great Chamberlain merely touches the King’s heels and returns them to the altar, but of the Sword much is made. It is in itself a magnificent work of art resplendent with costly jewels, the most valuable sword in the world. This most fittingly is carried by the Keeper of the Jewel House, an officer of high rank in the Army and a warrior of many wars. The Archbishop of Canterbury, taking the Sword, and accompanied by the Archbishop of York, the Bishops of London and Winchester and other bishops assisting, approaches the King and delivers it into the King’s right hand. And the King having girt the sword about him, the Archbishop gives him a benediction strongly reminiscent of that bestowed on the Knights of the Bath in olden days: “With this Sword do justice, stop the growth of iniquity, protect the Holy Church of God, help and defend widows and orphans, restore the things that are gone to decay, maintain the things that are restored, punish and reform what is amiss, and confirm what is in good order: that doing these things you may be glorious in all virtue; and so faithfully serve our Lord Jesus Christ in this life, that you may reign for ever with Him in the life which is to come.” This Jewelled Sword is then ungirded and placed by the King on the altar as his tribute to the Almighty, but the Almighty having no need of so valuable or indeed of any sword, it is redeemed by the Keeper of the Jewel House on payment of 100 shillings to the Archbishop, and returns eventually to safe keeping in the Tower.
The Dean of Westminster then puts upon the King the Armilla or stole, and the Imperial Mantle or Pall of Cloth of Gold, the Lord Great Chamberlain fastening the clasps.
The King being seated, the Archbishop of Canterbury places in his hand the Orb, which is the sign and portent of Christian dominion throughout the world. On top of the Orb is a jewelled Cross standing on a great amethyst. To this the Archbishop draws attention, saying: “And when you see this Orb set under the Cross, remember that the whole world is subject to the Power and Empire of Christ our Redeemer.” The Orb is then handed by the King to the Dean of Westminster, who again places it on the altar.
The Coronation Ring is the next emblem to be brought forward also by the Keeper of the Jewel House. The ring is the ensign of kingly dignity and of the defence of the Catholic faith, and is placed by the Archbishop on the fourth finger of His Majesty’s right hand. The ring is of gold, and set therein is a large sapphire of great value surrounded by a circle of small diamonds. Across, but clear of the sapphire, north to south and east to west, are long, narrow rubies, giving the general effect of a red cross on a dark blue background, the Cross of St. George on a shield. A smaller replica of this large ring was given to Queen Victoria by William IV, and used at Her Majesty’s Coronation. William IV naturally had this ring made in his lifetime when the Princess Victoria was young, but before the time that she came to the throne both she and her finger had grown larger. With many other things to think about, nobody thought of trying the ring on the Queen’s finger before the ceremony, all taking it for granted that it had been fitted. Hence resulted the historic struggle of the Archbishop of Canterbury to thrust the ring on, and the intense agony of Her Majesty throughout the rest of the ceremony. Both of these may be seen in the Jewel House, together with the ruby ring described later.
Next in the ceremony comes the presentation to the King of the Sceptre with the Cross, and the Sceptre with the Dove. But before the Archbishop places these in his hands, the Lord of the Manor of Worksop, by ancient right, presents the King with a glove which His Majesty draws on. The Lord of the Manor of Worksop also has the privilege of supporting the King’s right arm after the Sceptre has been placed in the King’s hand. The Sceptre with the Cross, which is the ensign of kingly power and justice, is delivered into the King’s right hand by the Archbishop. This is the sceptre which has the great diamond the Star of South Africa set in its head. This addition, which was introduced in the reign of Edward VII, was directly inspired by that wise monarch. The diamond represented the latest and youngest member of the British Empire, but the King made the proviso that though the great diamond was to be introduced no portion of the ancient sceptre was to be cut away or destroyed. When the King commands someone will be found with the brains and ingenuity to follow out the deep political sentiment thus expressed. The brains and ingenuity were duly furnished by Garrard’s, perhaps the most famous of a long succession of Court Jewellers.
The Sceptre with the Dove, which is known as the Rod of Equity and Mercy, is by the same prelate placed in the King’s left hand.
The King holds these two sceptres in his hands, whilst the definite act of coronation takes place. The crown used is St. Edward’s Crown, or the Crown of England. This the Archbishop first places on the altar, and pronounces a blessing. The Dean of Westminster than takes the crown and with the bishops processes towards the King, who is seated in the ancient Coronation Chair. There he hands the crown to the Archbishop, “who putteth it reverently on the King’s head. At the sight thereof the people with loud and repeated shouts cry, “God save the King”; the Peers and the Kings of Arms put on their coronets, and the trumpets sound, and by a signal given the great guns of the Tower are shot off.”[9]
St. Edward’s Crown is very heavy, being made of massive gold; it is therefore almost immediately replaced by the King’s State Crown, a much lighter and at the same time much more resplendent insignia. St. Edward’s Crown is never used again till the next sovereign in succession comes to be crowned. Throughout his reign the King on all State occasions, such as the opening of Parliament, wears his State Crown, sometimes known as the Diamond Crown. Indeed, it may well be so called, for it is one great mass of brilliancy thrown forth by more than 6000 diamonds of every size.
The final act in the Coronation ceremony is the enthronement, or as it is more anciently named, the Inthronisation. Wearing the State Crown, with a sceptre in each hand, and clothed in the robes of majesty, the King is conducted from St. Edward’s Chair to the Throne of England, and is placed upon it by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Then all those peers and high officers who bear the Swords, and Orb, and other portions of the Regalia, group themselves round the steps of the throne, whilst the Archbishop makes his final exhortation. After the coronation of a sovereign all the Regalia are handed back to the Keeper of the Jewel House and conveyed to the Tower of London, where the majority rest till the next King or Queen ascends the Throne.
During a reign the only portions of the Regalia which usually leave the Tower are the King’s State Crown, the Queen’s State Crown, the Sword of State, and such maces as are required, these being used when the King opens Parliament in State. On great occasions, however, such as the day when peace was declared, at the end of the Great War, the silver trumpets are taken out and the State trumpeters sound a fanfare thereon when the heralds make proclamation. At the same time two or three of the Sergeants-at-Arms’ maces are also taken out and borne in the heralds’ procession.
When a Queen in her own right, like Queen Victoria, is crowned, she uses the same Regalia as is above described for a King, but when the Queen is a Queen Consort the procedure and Regalia are different. For such occasions a double set are made, such as were used by James II and his Queen Mary of Modena; by William III and Mary II; by Edward VII and Queen Alexandra; and by George V and Queen Mary. The Regalia of a Queen Consort consists of a State Crown, a ring, and two sceptres, with regal robes somewhat similar to those of the King.
The ceremony of the coronation of a Queen Consort is comparatively brief, and is performed by the Archbishop of York. First the Queen is anointed, whilst four peeresses hold a rich pall or canopy of gold over her. The Archbishop is enjoined to pour the oil on Her Majesty’s head, but we confidently hope that he is usually not too literal in the interpretation of this injunction. After the anointing, the Keeper of the Jewel House hands the Coronation Ring to the Archbishop, who places it on the Queen’s fourth finger of the right hand, giving to it the name of the Seal of Faith. Then the Archbishop takes the Queen’s Crown and reverently places it on her head, referring to it as the Crown of glory, honour, and joy. At the same moment as the Queen is crowned all the peeresses put on their coronets. Finally the Archbishop of York places a Sceptre in the Queen’s right hand, and the Ivory Rod with the Dove in her left hand.
All the regal emblems above described are kept in the Jewel House at the Tower of London, and are there on view every day in the week, except Sundays and Christmas Day, all the year round. On Saturdays and Bank Holidays the Jewel House is free to visitors, whilst on other days a charge of sixpence is made. On a Whit Monday Bank Holiday as many as 16,000 people have been known to pass free through the Jewel House. The money paid for entrance does not, as in the old days, go to the Keeper of the Jewel House or to his assistants, but to the Treasury. The takings vary from over £700 in a good month, say August, down to £150 in a bad month, generally December. The total fees taken must be some £5000 per annum. Thus the Crown Jewels are not like talents hidden in the ground, but bring in a handsome income to the State.