London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jan 15, 2026

King Charles Coronation: What will he wear for the ceremony?

King Charles Coronation: What will he wear for the ceremony?

We know the date, the time, most of the guest list - and now we know the outfit.

The heavy and priest-like golden robes King Charles III will wear for his Coronation have been revealed.

During the service, the King will put on layer upon layer of glittering vestments, some of which were created for his great-grandfather George V.

Prince William will help during the service by placing a ceremonial robe on his father.

The Imperial Mantle, seen here, is meant to symbolise the divine nature of kingship


For the crowning, King Charles will be given a long shimmering gold-sleeved coat to wear called the Supertunica.

The robe was created for George V in 1911 and has been worn at successive coronations including by the late Queen Elizabeth II.

It weighs about 2kg (4.4lb), is made of cloth of gold - silk thread wrapped in thin pieces of gold or silver gilt metal - and is embroidered with stylised arabesques and floral motifs.

Layered on top of the Supertunica, there will be a floor-length cloak called the Imperial Mantle, or Robe Royal, which was made for George IV in 1821 - it weighs 3-4kg (6.6-8.8lb).

The mantle, which fastens across the chest with a golden eagle clasp, is inspired by ancient coronation ensembles and its priest-like style is meant to symbolise the divine nature of kingship.

Made of cloth of gold, it is embellished with motifs including fleur-de-lis, as well as imperial eagles, and national floral emblems of red-pink roses, blue thistles and green shamrocks.

It has been worn by previous monarchs including Queen Elizabeth II during her coronation in 1953.

The Imperial Mantle fastens across the chest with this golden eagle clasp


The weight of the ceremonial robes comes on top of the crown which weighs about 2.23kg (nearly 5lbs).

The robes are reminiscent of the coronation ceremony, explained Caroline de Guitaut, deputy surveyor of the King's Works of Art at the Royal Collection Trust.

"They have clearly incredible historic significance, but they're also significant because of the sacred nature of their use during the investiture part of the coronation ceremony," she said.

The garments are usually kept in the Tower of London and form part of the coronation regalia.

It is tradition for recent monarchs to reuse garments, just as King Charles is, but they usually have a new coronation sword belt and glove to be used during the ceremony.

But in a move aimed at making the event more sustainable, the King has decided to reuse the belt and glove worn by his grandfather George VI - the last male monarch.

"It was the King's personal decision", said Ms de Guitaut, adding that the items remain in "remarkable condition".

"And it's in keeping with this idea of sustainability and efficiency to reuse these pieces," she added.

The sword belt from 1937, also known as the Coronation Girdle, is made of embroidered cloth of gold and has a gold buckle stamped with national emblems.

During the investiture, it will be placed around the King's waist, over the Supertunica, and has a gold clip used for briefly attaching the jewelled Sword of Offering, which symbolises being able to decide between good and evil.

Meanwhile, the single coronation glove, also known as the Coronation Gauntlet, will go on King Charles' right hand while he holds the Sovereign's Sceptre with Cross during the crowning.

It is made of white leather and the large cuff is embroidered in the form of national emblems including the Tudor rose, thistle, shamrock, oak leaves and acorns. The back of the hand has an embroidered ducal coronet above the coat of arms of the family of the Dukes of Newcastle.

The garments are usually kept in the Tower of London and form part of the coronation regalia.

King Charles decided to recycle the Coronation Gauntlet worn by his grandfather George VI


King Charles will arrive at Westminster Abbey in George VI's crimson red Robe of State which he will remove for his anointing.

Then for the investiture he will put on a sleeveless white garment called the Colobium Sindonis - Latin for shroud tunic - and will also be given a long, narrow embroidered band of gold silk which goes around the shoulders, known as the Coronation Stole.

At the end of the service, the King will change into George VI's purple Robe of Estate to leave the Abbey.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Launches First-Ever ‘Town of Culture’ Competition to Celebrate Local Stories and Boost Communities
Planned Sale of Shell and Exxon’s UK Gas Assets to Viaro Energy Collapses Amid Regulatory and Market Hurdles
UK Intensifies Arctic Security Engagement as Trump’s Greenland Rhetoric Fuels Allied Concern
Meghan Markle Could Return to the UK for the First Time in Nearly Four Years If Security Is Secured
Meghan Markle Likely to Return to UK Only if Harry Secures Official Security Cover
UAE Restricts Funding for Emiratis to Study in UK Amid Fears Over Muslim Brotherhood Influence
EU Seeks ‘Farage Clause’ in Brexit Reset Talks to Safeguard Long-Term Agreement Stability
Starmer’s Push to Rally Support for Action Against Elon Musk’s X Faces Setback as Canada Shuns Ban
UK Free School Meals Expansion Faces Political and Budgetary Delays
EU Seeks ‘Farage Clause’ in Brexit Reset Talks With Britain
Germany Hit by Major Airport Strikes Disrupting European Travel
Prince Harry Seeks King Charles’ Support to Open Invictus Games on UK Return
Washington Holds Back as Britain and France Signal Willingness to Deploy Troops in Postwar Ukraine
Elon Musk Accuses UK Government of Suppressing Free Speech as X Faces Potential Ban Over AI-Generated Content
Russia Deploys Hypersonic Missile in Strike on Ukraine
OpenAI and SoftBank Commit One Billion Dollars to Energy and Data Centre Supplier
UK Prime Minister Starmer Reaffirms Support for Danish Sovereignty Over Greenland Amid U.S. Pressure
UK Support Bolsters U.S. Seizure of Russian-Flagged Tanker Marinera in Atlantic Strike on Sanctions Evasion
The Claim That Maduro’s Capture and Trial Violate International Law Is Either Legally Illiterate—or Deliberately Deceptive
UK Data Watchdog Probes Elon Musk’s X Over AI-Generated Grok Images Amid Surge in Non-Consensual Outputs
Prince Harry to Return to UK for Court Hearing Without Plans to Meet King Charles III
UK Confirms Support for US Seizure of Russian-Flagged Oil Tanker in North Atlantic
Béla Tarr, Visionary Hungarian Filmmaker, Dies at Seventy After Long Illness
UK and France Pledge Military Hubs Across Ukraine in Post-Ceasefire Security Plan
Prince Harry Poised to Regain UK Security Cover, Clearing Way for Family Visits
UK Junk Food Advertising Ban Faces Major Loophole Allowing Brand-Only Promotions
Maduro’s Arrest Without The Hague Tests International Law—and Trump’s Willingness to Break It
German Intelligence Secretly Intercepted Obama’s Air Force One Communications
The U.S. State Department’s account in Persian: “President Trump is a man of action. If you didn’t know it until now, now you do—do not play games with President Trump.”
Fake Mainstream Media Double Standard: Elon Musk Versus Mamdani
HSBC Leads 2026 Mortgage Rate Cuts as UK Lending Costs Ease
US Joint Chiefs Chairman Outlines How Operation Absolute Resolve Was Carried Out in Venezuela
Starmer Welcomes End of Maduro Era While Stressing International Law and UK Non-Involvement
Korean Beauty Turns Viral Skincare Into a Global Export Engine
UK Confirms Non-Involvement in U.S. Military Action Against Venezuela
UK Terror Watchdog Calls for Australian-Style Social Media Ban to Protect Teenagers
Iranian Protests Intensify as Another Revolutionary Guard Member Is Killed and Khamenei Blames the West
Delta Force Identified as Unit Behind U.S. Operation That Captured Venezuela’s President
Europe’s Luxury Sanctions Punish Russian Consumers While a Sanctions-Circumvention Industry Thrives
Berkshire’s Buffett-to-Abel Transition Tests Whether a One-Man Trust Model Can Survive as a System
Fraud in European Central Bank: Lagarde’s Hidden Pay Premium Exposes a Transparency Crisis at the European Central Bank
Trump Announces U.S. Large-Scale Strike on Venezuela, Declares President Maduro and Wife Captured
Tesla Loses EV Crown to China’s BYD After Annual Deliveries Decline in 2025
UK Manufacturing Growth Reaches 15-Month Peak as Output and Orders Improve in December
Beijing Threatened to Scrap UK–China Trade Talks After British Minister’s Taiwan Visit
Newly Released Files Reveal Tony Blair Pressured Officials Over Iraq Death Case Involving UK Soldiers
Top Stocks and Themes to Watch in 2026 as Markets Enter New Year with Fresh Momentum
No UK Curfew Ordered as Deepfake TikTok Falsely Attributes Decree to Prime Minister Starmer
Europe’s Largest Defence Groups Set to Return Nearly Five Billion Dollars to Shareholders in Twenty Twenty-Five
Abu Dhabi ‘Capital of Capital’: How Abu Dhabi Rose as a Sovereign Wealth Power
×