King Charles and Queen Camilla have released a new portrait in anticipation of the coronation. An updated photo of the 74-year-old King and 75-year-old Queen Consort was released by Buckingham Palace on Tuesday, along with new details about the crowning ceremony. Hugo Burnand captured the royal couple posing in Buckingham Palace’s Blue Drawing Room in March, reported People. In 2005, Charles and Camilla commissioned Burnand to photograph their wedding and have reportedly chosen him to take the official portraits on their coronation day. Queen Camilla and King Charles released a new photo alongside information about the crowning ceremony. Courtiers confirmed what role Prince George, 9, will play at the inauguration, ending months of speculation. The second-in-line to the throne will serve as a Page of Honor alongside Queen Camilla’s grandson, Freddy Parker Bowles, Gus Lopes, and Louis Lopes. The boys will process together through Westminster Abbey as part of a group of eight, according to People.
“Throughout the Coronation Service on 6th May, Their Majesties will each be attended by four Pages of Honour. The Pages will form part of the procession through the Nave of Westminster Abbey,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement. “The King’s Pages of Honour will be His Royal Highness Prince George of Wales, Lord Oliver Cholmondeley, Master Nicholas Barclay and Master Ralph Tollemache. “The Queen Consort’s Pages of Honour will be Her Majesty’s grandsons, Master Gus and Master Louis Lopes and Master Freddy Parker Bowles, and Her Majesty’s great-nephew, Master Arthur Elliot,” the statement continued. Freddy is the son of Camilla Parker Bowles’s son Tom and Sara Buys, who share 15-year-old Lola Parker Bowles. Gus and Louis are twin sons of Laura Lopes, who shares 15-year-old Eliza with Harry Lopes. Queen Camilla’s children and grandchildren attended Princess Elizabeth’s state funeral in September.
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The palace has also released the official coronation invitation, which will be sent to over 2,000 guests for the Westminster Abbey service. It will be printed on a recycled card, reflecting King Charles’ lifelong interest in sustainability. Heraldic artist and manuscript illuminator Andrew Jamieson designed the intricate invitation with a floral border. Two birds perch on the letter C, flanked by the coats of arms of Charles and Camilla. According to the palace, flowers flow into an illustration of the Green Man — a figure from British folklore whose purpose is to symbolize spring and rebirth, People reported. “The Coronation of Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla,” the letter heralds. “By command of the King the Earl Marshal is directed to invite [name] to be present at the Abbey Church of Westminster on the 6th day of May 2023.”
The pictures, pages, and invitations from Buckingham Palace have added to the excitement regarding the upcoming coronation celebration. Upon the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth in September, Charles became King immediately, but in just a few weeks, he will be symbolically crowned alongside his wife, Queen Camilla. In keeping with nearly a thousand years of tradition, the Archbishop of Canterbury will conduct the historic service. “The Coronation will reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry,” Buckingham Palace previously announced.
