The welcome to the powerful of the Earth in the sumptuous halls of Buckingham Palace on the one hand;
the wink at ordinary people on the street on the other, in search of a popularity that risks - to some extent - escaping from the hands of a monarchy in transition.
Thus was consummated
the eve of the solemn
formal coronation of King Charles III and Queen consort Camilla, scheduled for Friday - in the general expectation of a large part of the United Kingdom and a vast audience of admirers or onlookers around the world - between the aisles of
Westminster Abbey
in the heart of London: a symbol of these royal rites for almost a thousand years and the scene of an appointment with destiny postponed for 7 decades in the life of Elizabeth II's eldest son.
The countdown is winding down.
With the leaders and crowned heads of the world - including President
Sergio Mattarella
- received in these hours for a welcome meeting at the palace by Charles, by Camilla, by the heir to the throne
William with his wife Kate
, by other members of the dynasty (Harry excluded, given that the rebel prince is only expected for a hit and run), as well as by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and various ministers.
ANSA agency
Charles III greets the crowd outside the palace: "I love Italy" - World
Unscheduled also with some Italian journalists and admirers, this afternoon, for King Charles III, outside Buckingham Palace, before the reception offered by him together with Queen Camilla to foreign leaders already arrived in London - including the president ... (ANSA)
While the route of the royal procession is closed to traffic, flags and festoons fly under an uncertain sky and the
police
are already mobilized to guarantee security: 29,000 men strong, snipers deployed and new powers of intervention attributed not without controversy by the Tory government through the recent public policy tightening of the Public Order Bill.
Meanwhile, behind the barriers, the avant-garde of royal fans are camped, willing to spend
two nights in the open
just to conquer the front row.
But the presence of niches of protesters summoned by the militant republican fringe of the Republic movement is also announced in a country where consent to the crown remains dominant - polls in hand - among the over 50s or over 60s, only to fade between indifference and disaffection with the decline of age;
until reaching historic lows (and a majority of explicit anti-monarchical sentiments) in the youthful twenty-year-old range.
Coronation, King Charles greets his subjects encamped outside Buckingham Palace
A context that the 74-year-old King Charles, the 75-year-old Queen Camilla and the rest of the Windsors who remained active at court are trying to address with some partial attempts at more inclusive innovation - in celebratory rites - of social, ethnic, confessional or other differences which deeply mark the Kingdom of today.
And even with some
sympathy operation
public relations trenches, such as the impromptu made this morning to the passengers of the sprawling London underground, the popular 'tube': where a message recorded directly by Charles III - also in the name of his wife - has replaced that of the impersonal voice called to give indications and recommendations of caution, to wish everyone "a wonderful Coronation Weekend".
As well as a reminder to be careful not to trip according to the proverbial warning "please, mind the gap".
ANSA agency
The voice of Carlo and Camilla on the subway in London - World
'Happy coronation day.
Remember, mind the gap'.
The coronation of Charles and Camilla in 10 moments of history.
THE SPECIAL (ANSA)
The initiative has raised more than a smile and waves of approval.
But certainly not enough to erase the elements of discontent which the coronation - albeit in an official atmosphere of prevailing enthusiasm - threatens to act as a catalyst.
Before a sovereign not lacking in modern sensitivities on issues such as the environment or sustainability, and yet less protected by the sort of limitation of the lese-majeste right conquered by his mother in long years of reign and impeccable dedication to the institutional role.
This is not only confirmed by the
protests of activists
of Republic behind the slogan 'Not my King', but the centrifugal tendencies and historical recriminations against the colonial slavery of the past which - from the Caribbean to Canada - are regaining share among the countries of the former empire that remained tied to the crown within the Commonwealth.
Or the questions about the monarch's wealth and the public costs of the coronation itself, estimated by the media (including security) at up to 100 if not 250 million pounds, even against earnings calculated by tour operators at 350 million.
ANSA agency
The coronation of Charles and Camilla in 10 moments of history - World
Symbols of tradition and remnants of modernity for a ritual that spans the centuries (ANSA)
Without neglecting the
boomerang effect of the appeal of the Anglican archbishop of Canterbury
, Justin Welby, called to officiate the ceremony in Westminster, for an oath of loyalty to the king no longer delegated to the aristocrats, but extended to ordinary people who wanted to join it from home : initiative imagined as a more democratic form of popular involvement, but which ended up irritating many;
and that the same re-to give credit to a journalist of his personal friend, Jonathan Dimbleby, veteran and well-known face of the BBC-apparently has in these hours disavowed
The crown for King Charles is ready but the former empire rebels
ato.
