Marking the Coronation

In honour of the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty Queen Camilla, we are delighted to share a look back through the College archive at royal events of the past.

The College has been privileged to welcome several members of the royal family on official visits to the College and town, including Their Majesties King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1948 who visited as part of the College’s Centenary celebrations, and the current King, then Prince of Wales, in 2004 on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of the granting of the town’s Royal Charter. On this visit, Charles unveiled the large commemorative sarsen stone in the Wilderness, on the site where Marlborough’s Royal Castle once stood.

We review how Marlborough – town and College – celebrated the Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 and share special items from the archive such as our Royal Charter and some of our Rare Books from the reigns of Charles I and II.

There is a section on the historic Royal Castle and we tell of the professional connections between Charles and esteemed Old Marlburian artists and College Heads of Art.

We hope you enjoy this reflection on some of the royal connections with which Marlborough has been honoured and that we have curated in tribute to Their Majesties on the momentous occasion of their Coronation.