There has been wry amusement at the incongruous prospect of Jewish leaders attending church on Shabbat for the coronation of the King and Queen Consort on May 6. Yet ten years ago, the reverse was the case when King Charles attended a coronation in shul… well, sort of.

In September 2013, the then-Prince of Wales was a guest at the “coronation” of Chief Rabbi Mirvis at St John’s Wood Synagogue. On that occasion, he was given the following words of welcome by Dayan Ivan Binstock: “The traditional Hebrew term for an event of this kind is a hachtarah, literally, a ‘coronation’. With all due deference and respect to actual royalty, the term hachtarah reflects the respect accorded in our tradition to highest rabbinic leadership.”

With just ten weeks to go until the royal coronation, it’s an opportune time to reflect on its meaning and relevance.

Whilst we have had four jubilees in a 45-year period (from the Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1977 to her Platinum Jubilee last year) and a smattering of royal weddings recently, it has been fully 70 years since the last coronation. For the Jewish community, it will have a special resonance for a number of reasons, because of the origins of the service, the attendance, the warmth of the relationship with the monarch and the emphasis on the value of community.

The content of the coronation service has not yet been confirmed by the Palace, but it’s certain to follow the broad template of previous coronations. These ceremonies stretch back a long way, having taken place in Westminster Abbey since 1066, and before that in other locations. The service has been heavily influenced by the Bible and, furthermore, is closely modelled on the inauguration ceremonies for the Kings of Israel (for the record, there were 42 kings and one queen in Israel and Judah). Indeed, the concept of coronation features prominently in the festival of Rosh Hashanah, which is widely regarded as God’s coronation, and this is referred to several times in the liturgy.

The centrepiece of the service is the anointing, which traces its roots to the anointing of King Solomon. According to tradition, the Archbishop of Canterbury will pour consecrated oil from the Ampulla (or vessel) into an ancient spoon thereby anointing the monarch. During her ceremony in 1559, Elizabeth I complained about the smell of the oil, as the same substance had been used for her sister’s coronation six years earlier. Assuming the usual template is followed, the famous anthem Zadok the Priest will be sung, set to Handel’s music, written for George II’s coronation in 1727. The moment of anointing was considered so holy that it was hidden from viewers during the television coverage of the coronation in 1953, so we’ll have to wait to see what the cameras will allow us to see this time. This is followed by the investiture when the St Edward’s Crown will be placed on the King’s head.

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Portrait taken on June 2, 1953 shows Britain Queen Elizabeth II during her coronation, which was the first to be televised. (Photo by STRINGER/AFP via Getty Images)

When I worked at the Palace, I had the memorable experience of seeing the Queen view some of the objects used in the anointing part of the ceremony from her coronation in 1953. They were on display at Lambeth Palace in 2012, when the Queen was hosted by the Archbishop for a special multi-faith reception. It was quite awesome to see the diminutive monarch look at the Ampulla and Coronation Spoon, from her big day six decades before.
Whilst we can’t expect the service on May 6 to finish with Adon Olam, it will be heavily influenced by Judeo-Christian heritage, and notions of kinship.

As well as the Chief Rabbi, other Jewish figures will be among the 2,000 or so fortunate guests at the abbey. They will join political and world leaders, including foreign kings and queens. Whilst Rabbi Mirvis attending Westminster Abbey on a Shabbat is unusual, there is a precedent. Chief Rabbi Hermann Adler was present at the coronation of King Edward VII on a Shabbat in 1902 (he stayed at the nearby Western Synagogue).

Half a century later, Chief Rabbi Israel Brodie was one of the only non-Christians to attend the Queen’s coronation in 1953 (this time on a weekday). The group of faith leaders present 70 years ago was quite limited and even the Catholic Church sent no official representative.

Much has changed over the subsequent seven decades. Britain has evolved into a much more diverse society, a “community of communities” in the King’s own words, with numerous Muslim, Hindu and other minority communities. The attendees this time around will include a broad cross-section of faith community representatives. A clue as to the multi-faith group likely to be present at the coronation was given by the entourage of faith leaders invited to Buckingham Palace to meet the King a week after Queen Elizabeth’s death last September. On this occasion, the King acknowledged his dual role, the first formal as head of the Church of England, the second as head of a multi-faith nation, remarking in his speech: “It is the duty to protect the diversity of our country, including by protecting the space for faith itself and its practise through the religions, cultures, traditions and beliefs to which our hearts and minds direct us as individuals. This diversity is not just enshrined in the laws of our country, it is enjoined by my own faith.”

There has been speculation that the non-Christian faith representatives could play a small role in the service, or more likely, be acknowledged in the King’s coronation oath. The King will still pledge to be “Defender of the Faith” in the Oath, but again there have been rumours the wording may be tweaked to also acknowledge the multi-faith landscape of modern Britain and the Commonwealth.

Another reason the coronation is especially relevant to the Jewish community is because of the King himself and his warm connection to our community. Through his patronage of Jewish charities and causes from World Jewish Relief and JLGB to Bevis Marks and Holocaust education, the King has developed extensive and enduring relationships with our community. He enjoyed a close friendship with Rabbi Sacks and went out of his way to hold a Palace reception for the community in 2019, when he recognised the stress and strain caused by the antisemitism in the Labour Party. In 2021, he accepted the Bridge Award from the Council of Christians and Jews. Already as King, he has visited CST’s offices and JW3 in December.

The service at the Abbey is not the only occasion marking the coronation. There will be a long weekend of celebrations and events, designed to build community spirit and national pride. The Big Help Out on the Bank Holiday Monday aims to highlight volunteering, in tribute to the King’s lifetime of service. There will also be street parties, a throwback to the last coronation when an estimated 17 million people took part in coronation parties fetes and gatherings on June 2, 1953 (out of a total British population of only 50 million).

Michael Young and Edward Shils, in their famous essay The Meaning of the Coronation, described the Queen’s coronation as a “great act of national communion” whereby a country “reaffirms the moral values which constitute it as a society.” It is hoped that this coronation also brings out the best in people, through voluntary acts of charity and service to others. The Jewish community and other religions are adept at building social capital, so look set to play a prominent role over the coronation weekend.

The coronation promises to be a special occasion for the whole country and for our own community. The interest will be intense and international. As an indicator, during the period around the Queen’s funeral last September, there were 1.6 billion engagements on the official Monarchy social media channels (one in five of the global population). Given the Queen’s incredible longevity, this will be the first coronation most of us have experienced. Even if we can’t be at the Abbey, as a community we should all wish a special Mazal Tov to King Charles III.

Zaki Cooper is co-founder of Integra and previously worked in the Royal Household