On January 14th 1559 one of the most extraordinary royal parades of Tudor England made its way through the heart of London. It was the Coronation Procession of Queen Elizabeth I.

In this special History Hit film, made to coincide with the coronation of King Charles III, royal historian Tracy Borman goes on a historic journey of just 3 miles, retracing the actual steps of this remarkable procession. It was part celebration and part political statement - Elizabeth’s grip on power was tenuous, she had to make a powerful statement in front of the people of London. The young queen spent the day travelling with great ceremony from the fortress of the Tower of London to her palace at Westminster. It was a spectacular parade of power and pageantry as Elizabeth stamped her mark on her reign to come, and London told her exactly what they expected from the new monarch.

Keep a lookout for more coronation related films to come from History Hit.

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If you would like to read more about Elizabeth’s Coronation Procession here are some interesting links:

Richard Mulcaster’s highly positive eye-witness account:

https://mapoflondon.uvic.ca/QMPS1.htm

There is an interesting note to make about the date - Mulcaster calls it January 1558, but that is because, until 1752, the year was taken to change on Lady Day, 25th March, the Feast of the Annunciation. So by the modern calendar it is January 1559.

An interesting analysis of Mulcaster’s account:

https://extra.shu.ac.uk/emls/09-1/leahmulc.html