Kings and queens

Low angle view of the Westminster Abbey

General History

Why are British monarchs traditionally crowned in Westminster Abbey?

Charles III, whose coronation on 6 May “will be significant for the kind of king that emerges”, says Alice Hunt (Photo by Hannah McKay / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

General History

Coronations The soft power of royal pomp and pageantry

Queen Victoria receives the sacrament as part of her five-hour coronation service, in a 19th-century painting by Charles Robert Leslie (Photo by The History Collection / Alamy Stock Photo)

Extravagance, crowds and blunders: the coronation of Queen Victoria

Queen Elizabeth II processes down the nave of Westminster Abbey during her coronation on 2 June 1953 (Photo by Chronicle / Alamy Stock Photo)

General History

Coronation A-Z of royal coronations in Britain

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Peterborough Cathedral

Peterborough Cathedral: Catherine of Aragon’s final resting place . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Snape Castle

Snape Castle: Katherine Parr’s prison . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Pontefract Castle

Pontefract Castle: the beginning of Catherine Howard’s downfall . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Deal aerial

Deal Castle: Anne of Cleves’ first taste of England . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Hampton Court Palace

Hampton Court Palace: Jane Seymour’s final home . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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The Tower of London

The Tower of London: Anne Boleyn’s place of triumph and terror . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Coronation portrait of Charles II after his crowning at Westminster Abbey on 23 April 1661 (Image by Pictorial Press Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo)

Your ultimate guide to the Restoration period

An illustration of Charles II entering London on 29 May 1660 after the restoration of the monarchy (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

The Restoration period A timeline of key moments

Stained glass in Exeter Cathedral depicting King Æthelstan. (Dreamstime)

The astonishing Æthelstan

A memorial tomb to King Æthelstan, in Malmesbury Abbey, Wiltshire. (Photo by Geography Photos/UIG via Getty Images)

If King Alfred was great, was Æthelstan even greater?

A copy of the Declaration of Arbroath is held by the National Records of Scotland in Edinburgh – the actual letter sent to Pope John XXII is lost (Photo by M.Brodie / Alamy Stock Photo)

The Declaration of Arbroath: your guide to Scotland’s historic document