At Tring station in Hertfordshire, the early morning bird songs are in full swing as hundreds of Royal Air Force (RAF) personnel embark on a train ride to London for the Coronation procession. The RAF members have spent the last few weeks at the nearby RAF Halton practicing their marching and rifle drill in preparation for the grand event. The procession will involve 6,000 UK armed forces personnel, with 949 of them from the RAF, making it the largest military ceremonial operation in nearly 60 years. After arriving at Waterloo station, the servicemen and women will watch the ceremony before joining the procession.
If you don't have a ticket, there are still ways to watch the coronation. The coronation of Charles's mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1953 was the first UK coronation to be televised and was even filmed in color and 3D. Now, seventy years later, hundreds of millions of people worldwide are expected to watch today's event through various methods. You can access special coverage by clicking the Play button on this page from 7:30 a.m. Viewers in the UK can watch on BBC One or BBC Two, or listen on BBC Radios 3, 4, and 5 Live, and BBC Sounds. Those outside the UK can watch on the BBC News channel or listen on the BBC World Service.
According to historian and CBS News royal contributor Amanda Foreman, King Charles expressed his desire to start afresh to his advisors well ahead of his coronation ceremony, indicating that his coronation will be significantly different from his mother's in 1953. Queen Consort Camilla will be formally crowned alongside King Charles, and will drop the "consort" from her title.
King Charles will wear ceremonial robes made of gold thread and his military uniform underneath, unlike his mother who wore a special Coronation Dress commissioned by a British designer. The ceremony will be a much smaller affair, with approximately 2,000 guests as opposed to the over 8,000 at Queen Elizabeth's coronation, and it will only last two hours.
The procession routes will also differ, with King Charles and Queen Camilla traveling to and from Westminster Abbey together. During the coronation oath, King Charles will kneel before the altar and give a nod to other religions, stating that he wants to be a blessing to all children of every faith and belief.