“Read all about it!” he friendly encourages the writing on the packaging of an exceptional souvenir from London. It is the reproduction of an original “Coronation Special” conducted by the “Evening Standard”, dated Tuesday 2 June 1953. The special, which at the time was on sale for “three-half pence”, reports the breaking latest news of a historic day . Opening title: «The crowned Queen. Pages of dramatic pictures ». Memorable images in sharp black and white make up, as in a mosaic, the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Leafing through the pages of this replica today offers a doubling of interest in the ideal reinterpretation of a key day of the twentieth century and in the memory, both official and private, of Prince Philip.
Photo with captions. Brief flashes of the facts. Gestures caught in their fulfillment. Facial expressions. Images that convey the atmosphere of that day. And the testimonies of the involvement of the whole country: the journey made by the young Elizabeth and her husband to Westminster Abbey with the rituality of the procedure, and the spontaneous growing celebration among the numerous people crowded along the way. “As his carriage slid out of the palace gates, exultation erupted from the crowd. The Queen, smiling, turned to Prince Philip who was next to her and then returned the greeting of the crowd […] As the royal carriage turned from Northumberland Avenue along the Embankment, in front of thirty thousand schoolchildren, the Queen and Prince Philip leaned forward, waving goodbye. There was a real ovation ». The television coverage of the event played an important role that day, allowing the estimated twenty-two million viewers to have an overview of sequences destined to remain forever in the collective memory. The Evening Standard, confirming the importance of media coverage, reports: “For four minutes,” the camera followed the Queen in the foreground, “who smiled and spoke confidentially to Prince Philip.”
The newspaper report also offers details that are revealed to be precious in trying to understand or at least get closer to the climate of the occasion. “On a small table in the Queen’s dressing room in the Abbey were ‘old-fashioned white Lancaster roses’. The smallest French roses decorated his “dressing table” ». The photographs of the Queen generally portray her happy, and always in control of herself. A photograph of the Prince portrays him proud and elegant. The caption reads: “Prince Philip, wearing his robes and coronet in the Abbey”. In a precise phase of the elaborate ceremonial of the coronation, then, Prince Philip becomes the protagonist. The Evening Standard dedicates to those moments a paragraph with an evocative and affectionate title: “The homely moment”. We read: «There was another moment that deeply moved. It happened when the Queen was crowned and was now sitting on the throne. ‘ Her husband, as first duke, “has come to pay homage. Standing in front of her, he bowed. Then he slowly climbed the steps to kneel in front of her. Putting his hand in hers he said: “I Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, do become your Liege man of life and limb,” and so on until the end of the oath. ” After this part of the ceremony, he, the only one among the dukes, was left to touch the side of the crown and kiss the cheek of the Queen. Not very easy operation due to the grandeur of the crown. The newspaper comment: “It was a simple and familiar moment in which the Queen and he were just husband and wife struggling with a mild qui pro quo about a headdress.” The spectators in their homes had awaited this step of the ceremony. And thanks to the television footage “they heard the words of Prince Philip and saw in one of the closest images so far, Prince Philip kissing the Queen’s left cheek”. Two photographs in succession, reported by the newspaper, narrate the solemnity of the case and give a sense of the deep bond between two people ready, with mutual respect and trust, to face the world and challenge time.
The coronation ceremony is a demanding ritual. The chronicler observes from the Evening Standard columns: ‘It was splendid and historic, but I think the Queen will have the feeling that her real coronation came from the people who flocked to see her pass and had hung on the windows of their small houses her portrait as the flag of the country over which she reigns ». The general enthusiasm accompanied the whole day and also left traces in the life of ordinary people. Among other things, the newspaper reports a small but significant piece of news: in those hours Mrs. O ‘Neill resident in St. Leonards in Sussex gives birth to twins. They will be called Norma Elizabeth and Norman Philip. For the rest, the sign of a tangible affection embraced the Queen who was returning to the palace while the sunny day gave way to rain and hail: “when the Queen passed, her left hand was clutching that of Prince Philip”.