LONDON — So, what’s everyone wearing to the coronation?
The dress code on the invitation calls for morning dress, lounge suit or national dress, in keeping with the sober, and more democratic, nature of the affair, which is taking place during a cost-of-living crisis.
It’s not just the dress code that’s freer and less formal.
King Charles III, who’ll be crowned alongside his wife, Queen Consort Camilla on May 6 at Westminster Abbey, wants the event to be shorter (it’s set to last a little more than an hour, instead of three) with fewer guests (2,000 rather than 8,000) and a bigger focus on religion, diversity and community.
Already, members of the House of Lords, or peers as they’re known here, have been asked to swap their traditional coronation robes for plainer, ermine-edged parliamentary robes (which they can borrow). Alternatively, they can forget the robes altogether and opt for business attire.
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In the old days, the peers and their wives would also have worn coronets, or small, embellished crowns to denote their rank. But they don’t fit the new dress code, either.
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Hugo Vickers thinks the king has made a smart decision, in tune with these more straitened times.
“Is it right to put on a big show at the time of austerity, when people are having a problem paying their bills?” asked the author and royal expert in an interview.
Vickers, who has recently published “Coronation: The Crowning of Elizabeth II,” said the king has been “rather clever, because he wants it to be a more modest affair, and inevitably, it will be.”
The king himself plans to break with the past, rejecting the monarch’s traditional coronation breeches and stockings for his naval uniform on the day.
He’ll still carry a sword, and display a multitude of honors, such as the Order of the Garter.
At various points during the ceremony he will also wear a series of robes, including the Robe of State, the Robe Royal and the Colobium Sindonis, a simple linen shift that’s meant to signify the monarch’s humility before God.
The coronation sees the monarch anointed as head of state and supreme governor of the Church of England.
Guests, meanwhile, are using their seating assignments as a guide to how they’ll dress on the day.
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Anda Rowland, director at Anderson & Sheppard, which holds a Royal Warrant of Appointment for Tailoring Services, said customers will choose to wear either a formal version of morning dress or business attire, depending on where they are sitting in the abbey.
She believes “the closer they are seated to the Coronation Chair and the Canopy [which is made of gold cloth and is held above the Chair], the more likely guests are to choose morning dress,” which means a black morning tailcoat, worn with a dress waistcoat and trousers.
“One of our customers will be seated further back, and will be wearing a navy-blue, single-breasted business suit,” added Rowland.
Many guests are also taking the king’s green campaigns to heart and opting to wear outfits that are already hanging in their closets.
“British and international guests are most likely to have suitable clothing in their wardrobes and will not need to buy anything new — something that we believe is very close to His Majesty’s heart as he has been a champion of sustainable practices for so long,” she said.
Rowland added that more than 80 percent of the work that Anderson & Sheppard carries out for the king “concerns repairs and alterations.”
Quite a few of Anderson & Sheppard’s customers have already taken the sustainable route and brought in their morning suits for a “sponge and press service,” Rowland said.
The service uses a damp brush and large steam pressing machines to breathe life back into garments, remove light stains and restore the original shape of the clothing.
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Huntsman’s clients, by contrast, have ordered new outfits to mark the occasion.
Campbell Carey, head cutter and creative director of Huntsman on Savile Row, told WWD last month that the tailor was at work on “several bespoke commissions” for the coronation, and there has been a “particular emphasis” on morning wear: black tailcoat, striped trousers, a waistcoat, a white wing-collared shirt, a tie or cravat and a top hat.
“Although this ceremony might be considered pared back, there’s no denying the delight people find in the pageantry and protocol of this type of event. While a more relaxed dress code might be passable, I believe sartorially savvy civilian gentlemen in attendance will still favor morning dress as de rigueur, just as in 1953″ for Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, said Carey.
“This is an event for the history books; guests should dress in preparation to be immortalized in images and film around the world,” he added.
Edward Sexton, which opened its latest shop on Savile Row last fall, is not working on any coronation commissions, but Dominic Sebag-Montefiore, creative director of the brand, believes the excitement around the event dovetails with men’s desire to dress up again and celebrate life.
“The suit is no longer shackled to the corporate world. Men are reclaiming and re-owning it, and they’re ordering fun, playful things. There is a renewed joy in dressing up,” he said.
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Sebag-Montefiore said Sexton’s clients have been ordering velvet jackets in different colors and asking for silk shirts, and separates with interesting textures. “They want good ‘going-out’ suits and everyday ones, too.”
He also believes that King Charles has been a trendsetter from a sartorial, and a sustainable, point of view.
“He stands for tradition, stability and continuity and his tailoring has an old English wealth sensibility. It means you wear the suit to death. He’s always properly turned out, and has always been supportive of craft and quality,” said Sebag-Montefiore.
Sean Dixon, managing director and cofounder of Richard James, said it’s not just the king who’s having an impact on men’s style. His sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, are doing their part, too.
“They’ve got great bodies, they work out and they look relaxed when they’re wearing suits, jackets and color. They follow their own rules and, like their generation generally, they’re open to color and texture,” Dixon said.
Dixon said he’s seen a surge in demand for colorful clothing since pandemic-related lockdowns lifted. A pale pink corduroy suit was a bestseller at Richard James last summer, while a traditional glen plaid — with lilac checks — has been a popular fabric.
Dixon agreed that men are keen on dressing up again, and said Richard James’ bespoke and made-to-measure businesses have been “really strong.” He’s even seeing a resurgence of men wearing ties.
It seems the king — who is rarely seen without a colorful tie, or a natty pocket square — is already wielding his sartorial power.
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