Lionel Gougelot (special correspondent on site), edited by Gauthier Delomez / Photo credits: Finnbarr Webster / GETTY IMAGES EUROPE / Getty Images via AFP
Millions of people were behind their screens this Saturday all over the world to follow the coronation of Charles III and Camilla in the United Kingdom. On the spot, they were several thousand to have camped around Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey for several days to experience this historic event, in communion and emotion.
Screams of joy bordering on hysteria
After hours of waiting in the rain, along the route of the royal procession between Buckingham and Westminster, the passage of the carriage of Charles and Camilla triggered screams of joy sometimes bordering on hysteria.
A moment of emotion for this couple posted on the outskirts of Trafalgar Square, and whom Europe 1 met. “It’s just amazing to be here at such a special time! It’s in times like this that you really feel British. We love it,” says the first. “It’s just great!”, Adds his companion. “It’s history in motion and we love Charles and Camilla.”
Britons confident in their new king
If the moment was fleeting, the feeling of living a unique moment is real for the worshipers of the monarchy. A fervor shared by thousands of tourists like Pauline and Sylvie, two French fans of the royal family. “Moving, very moving”, concedes the first at the microphone of Europe 1. “We were already at the jubilee (in 2022, editor’s note), we came for the coronation. It was really superb”, continues Pauline. For Sylvie, it was “frankly, a great experience. It was really very touching, great memories of London”.
At the end of the procession, Andrew, a British citizen who attended the event, spotted Charles and his family in the balcony of Buckingham Palace in the distance. This coronation will go down in history, he said. “I think the first steps of this new king will remain engraved. He gives a new direction, more modern. He is attentive to what people think, the way the world is going… Charles is really sensitive to all that, so I think that’s a good thing.”
The only false note of this day will remain the demonstration of the anti-monarchy militants, chanting their slogans “Not my king” (Not my king). Their leader was challenged by the police, and the crowd responded with boos and the God Save the King.