At the time that this is published, one of the big remaining questions for King Charles III’s coronation is not about The King but rather about the guests. There have been many changes made to the coronation to make it a more modern event. And one of the bigger potential changes has to do with headwear. Yes, The King and Queen will be wearing crowns as they have been confirmed. However, we do not know if the royal and aristocratic attendees will be wearing their traditional coronets on 6 May. For Style File Friday, we are exploring two key questions: what is a coronet and who wears them?
What is a Coronet?
According to Oxford Languages, a coronet is:
a small or relatively simple crown, especially as worn by lesser royalty and peers or peeresses.
Coronets are different from the crowns that the monarch and their consort wear. Coronets do not have arches, a standard feature of royal crowns. For example, The Queen is wearing Queen Mary’s crown for the Coronation. When Mary wore the crown in 1911, it had 8 detachable arches. In May, Camilla will only be wearing it with 4 arches.
Who Wears a Coronet?
In Britain, only royals and members of the aristocracy wear coronets, and they only wear them at coronations. They do not have any precious or semi-precious stones, unlike those of the monarch and their consort. The coronet is not worn for the entire coronation service; the wearer places it on their head at the moment when the monarch is crowned.
Each level of the aristocracy has a different design for its coronet. Historically, only Dukes were allowed to wear coronets, with later designs coming for the lower ranks.
The coronet of a Duke or Duchess features eight strawberry leaves; it is made of silver gilt. (This is distinctly different from all other ranks.)
A Marquess or Marchioness’ coronet features four strawberry leaves and four “pearls” (silver balls). They were first allowed to wear coronets in the 15th century.
Earls and Countesses were given the right to wear coronets in the 16th century. Their coronet has eight strawberry leaves and eight “pearls” (silver balls).
Viscounts and Viscountesses wear a coronet that has sixteen “pearls” (silver balls); they received their coronets in the 17th century.
Barons and Baronesses also received their coronets in the 17th century, and their coronet has eight “pearls” (silver balls). All coronets except for baronial coronets are engraved.
Royal Coronets
The royal coronets are slightly different in design.
The child of a sovereign wears a coronet of fleurs-de-lis and crosses (this would be Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, Prince Edward, Prince William, and Prince Harry), while the child of an heir apparent wears a coronet of strawberry leaves, crosses, and fleurs-de-lis. (This would be Prince George of Wales, Princess Charlotte of Wales, and Prince Louis of Wales.)
The child of a son of a sovereign wears a coronet of strawberry leaves and crosses (this would be Princess Beatrice of York, Princess Eugenie of York, Lady Louise Windsor, and James, Earl of Wessex, and Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet if they were attending), and the child of a daughter of a sovereign.
Will Anyone Wear a Coronet to the Coronation in May?
This is the question that many interested watchers are asking. We know that far fewer members of the aristocracy have been invited to the coronation, so there is a smaller potential pool from the outset. It was reported in early April that peers and peeresses have been advised not to wear their robes of estate (purple robes) or their coronets to the coronation. It is unlikely that anyone in the congregation will be wearing a coronet.
However, it is still very possible that members of the royal family will be wearing a coronet to the Coronation. In particular, I suspect that the Prince and Princess of Wales will don coronets, and their three children may potentially wear them as well. If there is a public confirmation on any of this, I will update this post.
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If you are interested in more information on the upcoming coronation and the history behind it, you can find my other Coronation Chronicles posts here:
Introduction: What is a Coronation
Who Will Attend the 2023 Coronation?
What Will King Charles Wear to the Coronation?
Where Will the Coronation Take Place?
Are you hoping to see coronets on 6 May?
Cheers,
The Historian
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