In the previous blog we looked at the first three monarchs who reigned in the 20th Century, and in this post we will take a look at the other two ahead of the Coronation of King Charles III…
King George VI (1936-1952)
Following the abdication of King Edward VIII, his brother Albert who, using his last name George, became King George VI.
Again, throughout the collections we have items celebrating his Coronation:
Celebrations for the Coronation were held in Maumbury Rings, Dorchester, as can be seen in the photos below:
Lapel badges were also issued by Weymouth and Melcombe Regis Borough Council to mark Coronation:
And shop fronts in Bournemouth were decorated:
Following a prolonged illness and a lung operation George VI failed to recover and died in his sleep on 6th February 1952 at Sandringham aged 56. After lying in state at Westminster Hall, the King’s funeral was held at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, where he lies buried.
Queen Elizabeth II (1952-2022)
Following the death of King George VI, Princess Elizabeth, then aged 25, acceded to the throne, becoming Queen Elizabeth II. As with Edward VIII we hold a copy of the Royal Proclamation of her accession to the throne dated 6th February 1952:
Her Coronation took place in Westminster Abbey on 2 June 1953, conducted by Dr Geoffrey Fisher, Archbishop of Canterbury. Amongst the records we hold for Queen Elizabeth II Coronation there are programmes:
Posters advertising events being held in Symondsbury and Corfe Castle:
And photographs of Coronation processions:
Full marks to the young girl joining in the Shillingstone procession in her wheelchair with her leg in plaster!
A procession was also held in Dorchester:
And again, a Thanksgiving Service was held at Maumbury Rings, Dorchester:
Queen Elizabeth’s II Coronation was the first to be televised at a time when not everybody had a television people. People invited their neighbours in to watch the service on the television and pictures of this TV broadcast can be found in a photo album, at the Dorset History Centre, showing the celebrations for the Coronation in Dorchester:
Queen Elizabeth II died at Balmoral on 8th September 2022, aged 96, having ruled for over 70 years, longer than any other Monarch in British history.
The 21st Century saw the death of the last monarch crowned in the 20th Century. Queen Elizabeth’s eldest son, Prince Charles, formerly known as The Prince of Wales, became King Charles III upon her death and his coronation is due to take place at Westminster Abbey on 6th May 2023.
