(Cover image – © Unknown Artist – The National Portrait Gallery)
Over five hundred years ago on this day, the 25th of November 1487, Elizabeth of York was crowned Queen of England.
As a daughter, sister, and niece to three kings already, at twenty-years-old, Elizabeth was in a unique position when she became the wife of King Henry VII, a man who had won the crown by conquest in 1485. Their marriage meant the joining of the houses of York and Lancaster - the white and red roses - signifying a peace in England that had not been found for many tumultuous years.
Elizabeth and Henry’s marriage had already been arranged prior to his taking of the throne, and whilst this did serve to quell some of the anger from the Yorkist forces when their king, Richard III, was deposed and killed, it also meant that Henry feared that many of his subjects were not loyal to him, but were loyal to his wife and her bloodline.
Due to this, Elizabeth’s coronation did not take place straight away. Henry likely feared that, should his wife be made Queen, rebellion could stir up in her name as queen regent, as she would hold a title which is equivalent in rank to a king. Instead, Elizabeth waited nearly two years after her marriage to Henry, by which point she already had a son, to officially become queen consort - a title used for the wife or husband of a monarch, whereby no constitutional power is given {1}.
Despite Elizabeth’s title she remained hugely popular with the people of England, and her coronation was watched and celebrated by hundreds.
Preparations:
Taking place on a Friday, Elizabeth’s coronation would have been filled with splendour, pomp and ceremony, with lords and ladies in attendance from across the land. In the days prior to the coronation, preparations to receive the queen were being undertaken by the City of London, such as the creation of the Knights of the Bath - the monarch’s ‘special escort’ for the coronation itself. These ‘knights’ were usually a selection of young squires, who - before the ‘big’ day - were ritually bathed before spending the night in prayer {2}.
In line with hundreds of years of tradition, the queen-to-be was taken to the Tower of London to stay the night before her coronation. It is recorded that Elizabeth was taken to the tower by twelve knights in a glorious procession, whereby she wore a ‘costume’, presumably a beautiful gown, and had a canopy held over her {3}. On this night, she would have been expected to ‘dub’(i.e., name) her Knights of the Bath before they escorted her to her coronation on the following day {2}.
These rituals and much of the preparation process came from the Liber Regalis, meaning ‘Royal Book, which was created in 1382 and describes how to organise a coronation {2}.
Coronation Day:
On the day itself, Elizabeth was taken to Westminster Abbey in another lavish procession, with displays of both her royal lineage and her dedication to the church being professed in pageantry and splendour. She likely made her way through London to the sound of trumpets and heralds, with cheers sounding from the crowds that had gathered. It is noted that, on this particular occasion, the Archbishop of Canterbury did not walk with Elizabeth but instead waited for her at Westminster Abbey. However, she was joined by several Bishops, one of these being Peter Courtenay, the Bishop of Winchester, who had previously supported Elizabeth’s predecessor, Anne Neville, in her coronation as queen {3}.
Elizabeth was joined by bishops, abbots, peers, knights, and her ladies. Some of her family members were also present during this procession, with her sister Cecily holding the train of her gown. In a display of togetherness and unity, Jasper Tudor, the man who raised Henry VII and was then titled the Duke of Bedford, carried Elizabeth’s crown {3}. Historians, such as P. W. Hammond, mention that there was some disruption during this procession from the common folk, as the roads were very crowded and the spectators were extremely keen to follow tradition and take cuttings of the ‘ray cloth’ that the procession walked upon.
© Starz – The White Princess
The Ceremony:
Once the procession had made it safely to Westminster Abbey, having travelled almost 3 miles across London, the coronation mass would have taken place. The king and his mother, Margaret Beaufort, watched on from a private ‘latticed’ stage. However, Elizabeth’s mother - Elizabeth Woodville - was apparently not present {3}.
After the mass, where prayers and blessings were spoken, a special and traditional banquet took place. During this, Elizabeth was shielded by the Cloth of State (a magnificent canopy, often made of rich damask, brocade or velvet cloth) {4}, which was held by members of both her and her husband’s family.
Overall, Elizabeth’s coronation was well attended by members of the court and gentry in England. According to historical records, the number of attendees even surpassed Richard III’s coronation, which was considered the ‘best attended’ of the medieval period {3}.
A day like this would not have been forgotten quickly and, although on the surface this meant that Elizabeth finally received the crown and title that she deserved, this event also acted as a final spectacle of a united royal family and an undivided kingdom.
As the mother of Henry VIII, her legacy lived on through the Tudor dynasty and, to this day, Elizabeth remains the only woman who was the daughter, sister, niece, wife, and mother to the kings of England {5}.
References:
{1} Royal Trust Collection, rct.uk.
{2} Coronations Past and Present, Historic Royal Palaces.
{3} The Coronation of Elizabeth of York, P. W. Hammond.
{4} Cloth of State (UK), Textile Research Centre. 2017.
{5} The coronation of a consort who might have been England’s first queen regent, Royal Central.
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