Coronation Day

May 6

Today was coronation day for King Charles III. The last time England had a coronation for a new monarch was at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth in 1953, 70 years ago. Although the royal family was busy making preparations our only task for the day was to get to the Castle. 

We left the apartment about 10:30 and walked up to the Royal Mile. We bought tickets well in advance and we were scheduled for entrance between 11:00 and 11:30 AM. The streets were packed with people. Not sure if it had anything to do with the coronation or if people were just out as the weather is finally getting better. We were unable to find a suitable place for breakfast that wasn’t over crowded so we just went right to the castle.

We were really concerned that the castle would be closed due to the coronation but turned out it was just the opposite. As the coronation was happening in London, there was also a small, related ceremony to be held in the Edinburgh Castle. It was to including a Royal 21 gun salute by the Black Watch Guard accompanied by the Black Watch band. The time for the beginning of the ceremony was 11:30. Precisely the time of our tickets. Since we got there a little early, we were first in line to enter. At 11 AM sharp the changing of the guards took place at the entrance to the castle. At the conclusion we entered the castle and made our way to the ceremonial site by the royal cannons. 

We had no idea what to expect or what was happening. We were just told that the a special royal gun salute in honor of the crowning of the king would be happening and 12:01 PM. Since we were so early we started asking employees. Things did kick off by 11:30 and we were not only there but right up front. First the Black Watch band came marching in and parading around while playing and moved into position off to one side. Then all these smartly dressed guys came walking though in fancy outfits that obviously implied they were somebody of some importance. Then a lone bagpiper came up doing his thing. That’s when Rob started to piddle himself. 

Rob had still been looking everywhere for pipers and was determined he was not leaving till he saw one in person. Missing his chance in other towns he finally got it here. And not only did he get to see one but he saw one that was actually performing for the King’s coronation, in person, so close he could practically reach out and lift his kilt. Rob was already swooning. He was in the military and all this uniform and pomp and circumstance and military exhibition and shooting guns and stuff just gets him all emotional anyways, and here it was all together, well, it was a bit overwhelming for all of us. 

After the piper piped around a bit and the band played some more numbers, the calvary came marching toward the guns. OK this wasn’t the calvary, I think the calvary is when everyone on your side is about to get killed in battle and then a bunch of elves on magical deer come riding over the horizon and wipe out the enemy with some fairy spells and the soldiers are all liberated. At least that’s the way I remember it from Lord of the Rings. There is some other name for a bunch of guys that blow things up, but I don’t know what that is, since I wasn't in the military. I would have volunteer for the mess hall instead of going out fighting. But anyways, those guys marched up all regimental and formal and clomping on the cobblestone like a bunch of Clydesdales and took their positions at the cannons. 

Some of the solder guys came through the first lines of the crowd handing out earplugs informing us that the cannons can be deafening. They worked well because I couldn’t hear anything being said anymore, so I pulled one out till time for the cannons. From what we heard, after the King was crowned in London, the commonwealth all over the world would be firing gun at the same moment as a salute to the king. And here we were witnessing it. 

Boom! Boom! Boom! We counted along, I only counted to 4 and got lost. I was trying to get the perfect shot with my camera. Jason got the entire thing on video. We may need to contact the BBC later to see if the footage can help pay for our trip. Finally, all was quite. The calvary clomped off. The piper piped back across the crowd in front of us. Rob probably piddled a little more. 

The band Oom Pah Pah’ed back out of site and all was quite again. 

Finally we were free to explore the castle. But it was really exciting and emotional and awesome. When we were in Edinburgh before we tried to get in the castle and it was closed due to the funeral being that day. We scheduled this trip having no idea when the coronation was to be held. We bought tickets to the castle not knowing it was the day of the coronation and just happened to get a time slot precisely at the correct time to see this ceremony. It was just stunning to think of all the coincidences and how it played out. It was humbling and overwhelming. We all kind of had to recover a bit before we could move on, we needed to find fish and chips and fast.

We did gain our composure and moved on. I actually had a mission to accomplish and I was on it! Our close friend John was here at the castle last May and he hid several US pennies in various spots around the castle. He sent pics of the areas where he placed them, and here a year later I was on the lookout. To make this long adventure very concise I found every spot in the pics and I did actually find one of the pennies. I was ecstatic. It was like finding the special egg at an Easter egg hunt with the money surprise inside.  

We toured the rest of the castle, which was truly a marvel. We made our way up to the treasury where the king’s family jewels were kept. (yeah, yeah laugh if you must, we giggled a little too). While the Crown jewels were still there (from some previous monarchy I suppose, I never fully figured out why they weren't gone too) the Stone of Destiny was missing! 

The Stone of Destiny is an ancient symbol of Scotland’s monarchy, used for centuries in the inauguration of its kings. In 1296, King Edward I of England seized the stone from the Scots, and had it built into a new throne at Westminster. From then on, it was used in the coronation ceremonies of the monarchs of England and then Great Britain.

In 1996, the stone was officially returned to Scotland. Today, it is one of the priceless treasures on display in the Crown Room alongside the Crown Jewels in the Royal Palace. The stone only leaves Scotland for a coronation in Westminster Abbey. And that happened to be today! There was a sign in its place in the Crown Room stating that it was being used in the coronation of King Charles. A lady that worked in the Crown Room was very emotional talking about how her job is to guard that stone every day and now it is gone and actually being used for its intended purpose. She equated it to the emotional state of giving birth. 

At the conclusion of the castle tour we made our way onto the main street, the Royal Mile, and began the walk towards the palace at the other end. Along the way Rob saw yet another piper playing. We should have put him in diapers! It was a slow walk as we stopped for numerous shops, sights and photo opportunities along the famous street. 

We took a detour into the Canongate restaurant for lunch. Rob stayed with fish and chips but the rest of us ventured out into unknown culinary waters trying a few other dishes, all excellent. Then we continued the path to the palace, which was closed for the coronation. Well, at least we saw the castle and way more than we ever bargained for so we were not exactly disappointed. 

A slow cold typical UK rain started about this time which was very uncomfortable and unpleasant. We waved down a cab which took us back to our apartment. It was enough excitement for the day anyways. We were truly grateful for our experience. It was nothing we could have ever dreamed to see when we scheduled our trip. We were grateful…and tired.