A look at King Charles’ coronation procession including route as rehearsals get underway through London

King Charles and ‘Queen Camilla’ will be crowned as monarchs this Saturday, May 6 2023. However, they will have to navigate the streets of London first to get to Westminster Abbey for the ceremony.

Coronation day begins with their Majesties travelling in ‘The King’s Procession’ in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach from Buckingham Palace to Westminster, taking a route some four miles less than the late Queen Elizabeth’s procession in 1953.

While King Charles and the current Queen Consort Camilla travel 1.3 miles in the State Coach pulled by six horses down the Mall, through Admiralty Arch, along Whitehall to Parliament Street, they will be surrounded by hundreds of personnel from the Army, navy and RAF.

The soldiers, who either walk in the procession or ride on horseback, will also be led by crucial attendees such as the Duke of Westminster, the Marquess of Anglesey and the Earl of Dundee to name a few, carrying the Standards of the Quarterings of the Royal Arms and Standard of the Principality of Wales.

Despite plans to have a scaled back and modernised affair, an event of this scale with hundreds of personnel takes a lot of careful planning and rehearsal, therefore the first glimpses of the procession were seen in the early hours of this morning when the Diamond Jubilee State Coach was marched through London.

Fans waited patiently for the rehearsals to begin just shortly after 12.20am this morning before returning to the Mall at 3am.

As it was the early hours of Wednesday morning, soldiers carrying instruments did not play the whole fanfare for Saturday but instead, the drummers played quietly throughout the 1.3-mile circuit.

The conductor for the procession confirmed earlier this week that the King had final say of the music to be played during His Majesty’s procession, with the discussions starting before Christmas.

People can expect to hear the soundtrack of Coronation Bells as they leave Westminster Abbey, the newly created The King’s Company piece and The King’s Guard before the national anthem is played to finalise the procession in the Palace Gardens ahead of three cheers for the new monarch.

Further rehearsals took place later on Wednesday, with King Charles, Queen Consort Camilla, Prince William, Kate Middleton and their children all in attendance at Westminster Abbey, where they were greeted by church officials and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Saturday’s procession is expected to start at 10.20am to get King Charles and Queen Consort Camilla to Westminster Abbey for the 11am ceremony.

Here are the best vantage points to watch the Diamond Jubilee State Coach, military personnel and their Majesties.