Angie Heart, from Brantford, Ont., sits in her tent as people line up days before the official coronation of King Charles III near Buckingham Palace along the Mall in London on Wednesday, May 3, 2023. People across Canada are preparing to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla this weekend, the first coronation in seven decades, with watch parties, commemorative pins, and public events. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
About 30 royal-watchers gathered in the middle of the night at Victoria’s 144-year-old Union Club, shunning sleep so they could celebrate the coronation of King Charles III.
Donna Otto said she wanted to be part of history, even though it meant being up when most Canadians are slumbering.
“At the same time that it’s happening, this is the moment in history,” she said. “It’s this moment and that feels right for me.”
The viewing party was held in the neo-Georgia-style brick building’s stately reading room. Attendees made themselves comfortable sitting on green leather couches and watching the ceremony on a big screen. Canadian flags and Union Jacks were on display throughout the room and coffee, tea and breakfast was available.
Otto said despite King Charles’s age, he has been embracing modern ideas for years, including environmentalism, heritage preservation and gardening.
“He’s done things that haven’t always been acknowledged.”
Otto’s husband, David Spence, said the coronation of King Charles had him looking to the future.
“It recognizes from where we have come and the possibilities of where we are going,” said Spence, who is president of the Victoria area’s Royal Commonwealth Society. “The energy and wisdom that is part of it all.”
Otto said she also celebrated the coronation by dressing for the occasion, wearing a royal blue dress and fascinator.
“To have a reason to dress up a little bit is really fun to do,” she said. “I think that’s part of it, and of course the tradition of the English fascinator.”
The Canadian government is holding an official ceremony for the coronation in Ottawa, with performances, speeches, the unveiling of a new stamp and emblems, and a 21-gun salute.
Public and private events are planned elsewhere across Canada from afternoon teas to parades. Many government buildings will be illuminated in emerald green through the weekend.
The Ontario government has organized a flag-raising ceremony, 21-gun salute and drum circle followed by a “fun royal fair” at Queen’s Park in Toronto.
A parade was held in Regina on Friday, while an event hosted by Lt.-Gov. Russ Mirasty is scheduled for May 13.
A celebration has also been planned in Alberta for May 13 at the University of Alberta Botanic Garden in Parkland County while a spring tea at Government House in Edmonton with Lt.-Gov. Salma Lakhani on May 14 has sold out.
In Winnipeg, a provincial coronation service will be held at St. John’s Cathedral followed by a gun salute on the grounds of the provincial legislative building.
Celebrations are also taking place on Government House grounds in Charlottetown, Fredericton, Halifax and St. John’s, including the distribution of 1,000 seedlings and plans to distribute more across Newfoundland in Labrador.
In Whitehorse, territorial commissioner Angelique Bernard has invited members of the public to a tea and open house at Taylor House.
Not all Canadians plan to celebrate the coronation.
A recent poll by Angus Reid Institute of more than 2,000 Canadians found 41 per cent said they don’t care about the event at all. Of the remaining respondents, 29 per cent said they would probably read a little about the coronation, 20 per cent would watch some of it and nine per cent were really looking forward to it.
Respondents in Ontario and women over the age of 34 expressed the most interest in the event.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 6, 2023.
