This Sunday, June 5th, the infamous Gold State Coach will grace the streets of London for the first time in 20 years. The jubilee coach will be an important part of the weekend-long celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s 70 years on the throne. For decades, the gilded carriage has stood as the main attraction for tourists and local visitors alike at the Buckingham Palace Royal Mews, but on Sunday the world will be able to glimpse it in its truest state—in motion, that is.
As it leads the Platinum Jubilee Pageant, onlookers will notice that the Gold State Coach is not carrying passengers, but rather it’s flaunting new windows through which footage of the Queen on Coronation Day back in 1953 is on display. Ahead of the pageant, we’ve rounded up the rich history of the glitzy ride.
The Gold State Coach is 260 years old
Per the Royal Collection Trust, the Gold State Coach was commissioned in 1760 for King George III’s coronation and wedding day, both of which would take place in 1761, though its construction wasn’t completed in time. Instead the carriage would first be used when King George III ventured to the Opening of Parliament on November 25, 1762.
It’s been used at every coronation in the past 200 years
Even if the carriage wasn’t ready for the coronation it was originally commissioned for, it has had plenty of time to make up for it. Beginning with the 1821 coronation of King George IV (the son of King George III) the coach has been used in the crowning of each monarch, according to BBC News.
Each design element is deeply symbolic
