Why the coronation matters

At one level, asking why the coronation matters is to slightly miss the point. Living as we do in a constitutional monarchy, the coronation doesn’t need to make a case for itself. It is simply an indispensable part, primarily in symbolic terms, of the installation of our new head of state.

But setting aside for a moment its constitutional and religious significance, the coronation is important for another reason. Unlike almost every other nation state, the UK does not have an official national day. The patron saint days of the respective countries of the UK, of course, are celebrated to varying degrees ­– though St George’s Day far less so than the others. Abroad, British diplomatic missions will use the monarch’s official birthday in June for the purpose, and host a King’s Birthday Party (‘KBP’) around that date. But here at home the British do not celebrate a day of creation or independence, despite campaigns over the years making the case for doing so.