Coronations in Europe
s were previously held in the monarchies of Europe. The United Kingdom is the only monarchy in Europe that still practises coronations. Other European monarchies either have replaced coronations with simpler ceremonies to mark an accession or have never practised them. Most monarchies today only require a simple oath to be taken in the presence of the country's legislature.
By country
Albania
, self-proclaimed monarch of Albania, was ritually crowned on 1 September 1928. His coronation attire included rose-colored breeches, gold spurs, and a gold crown weighing. Europe's only Muslim king swore a required constitutional oath on the Bible and the Qur'an, symbolizing his desire to unify his country. Zog was forced into exile by Italian invaders in 1939, and the monarchy was formally abolished in 1945.Austria
were never crowned, as a coronation was not viewed as being necessary to legitimize their rule in that country.However, they were crowned in some of the kingdoms within the Austrian Empire. Ferdinand I was crowned as King of Hungary with the Crown of Saint Stephen in 1830, as King of Bohemia with the Crown of Saint Wenceslas in 1836, and as King of Lombardy and Venetia with the Iron Crown of Lombardy in 1838.
After the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, the Emperors of Austria were only crowned as King of Hungary : Franz-Joseph I in 1867 and Charles I in 1916.
Belgium
Following the Belgian Revolution from 1830 to 1831 and the subsequent establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, Leopold I and his successors have never been crowned in a coronation rite. Belgium has no regalia such as crowns ; the monarch's formal installation requires only a solemn oath to "abide by the Constitution and the laws of the Belgian people, maintain the country’s independence and preserve its territory" before members of the two chambers of parliament.During the enthronement of Baudouin, one legislator, Julien Lahaut, cried "Vive la République", only to be shouted down by others, who cried "Vive le Roi", with the entire chamber rising to applaud the King. Lahaut was found dead a week later. During the enthronement of Albert II, one legislator, Jean-Pierre Van Rossem, cried "Leve de republiek, Vive la république européenne, Vive Lahaut!" Van Rossem was also shouted down by the others, but did not suffer the same fate as Lahaut.
Bohemia
was the first crowned ruler of Bohemia. During the Middle Ages, it was held that enthronement would make a person Duke of Bohemia and that only coronation would make a person King of Bohemia. St. Vitus Cathedral was the coronation church. Monarchs of Bohemia were crowned with the Crown of Saint Wenceslas and invested with royal insignia, among which a cap or mitre and a lance were specific for Bohemian coronations.Maria Theresa, the only female monarch of Bohemia, was crowned king in order to emphasize that she was the monarch and not consort. The last King of Bohemia to be crowned as such was Emperor Ferdinand of Austria.
The abbess of the St. George's Abbey had the privilege to crown the wife of the King of Bohemia. In 1791, the right to crown the Queen of Bohemia was transferred to the Abbess of
the Damenstift or Theresian Institution of Noble Ladies.
Bosnia
The first crowned ruler of Bosnia was Tvrtko I. His coronation, held on 26 October 1377, created the Kingdom of Bosnia. It was traditionally held that Stephen Tvrtko I was crowned in the Mileševo monastery by its metropolitan bishop, but it has been proposed that he was crowned in the monastery of Mile, where most Bosnian coronations were held, with a crown sent by King Louis I of Hungary. Tvrtko I's coronation served as an example for subsequent such rites.The details of the Bosnian coronation ceremony are unclear. The Catholic Church, the Bosnian Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church competed in Bosnia, and it is not even known which church's officials performed the coronation. The Bosnian Church is considered least likely to have led the ceremony, as its elders frowned upon such rituals. The liturgical aspect of the ceremony was important, but not primary. A specific crown was revered and deemed indispensable for a proper coronation. Dethroned rulers had to undergo another coronation upon restoration to the throne. The coronation was sometimes delayed, but monarchs could exercise full authority immediately after their election.
The last coronation in Bosnia was held in St. Mary's Church in Jajce, November 1461. Although all kings of Bosnia were at least formally Roman Catholic, only the last king, Stephen Tomašević, was crowned with the Pope's approval and with a crown sent by Pope Pius II. The coronation was performed by the papal legate.
Bulgaria
The rulers of the Second Bulgarian Empire were crowned in the same manner as Byzantine emperors, while the manner of coronation of the rulers of the First Bulgarian Empire remains unknown. Modern Bulgaria was a monarchy from its independence in 1878 until 1946. The modern hereditary Bulgarian kings were pronounced heads of state by the Parliament and anointed at the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia, but did not have the formal coronation ritual known in western countries.Byzantine Empire
Building on the largely impromptu and informal acclamation of the Roman emperors, the Byzantine Empire gradually developed a complex coronation ritual. Initially taking place in public at the Hippodrome of Constantinople, by the 7th century coronations took place in a church, most often the Hagia Sophia cathedral, with the Patriarch of Constantinople playing a significant role in the ceremony. The ceremony became standardized thereafter, with minor changes during the remainder of the Empire's history. Byzantine practice was emulated elsewhere, notably by the Bulgarian, Serbian, and Russian monarchs.Croatia
The Trpimirović dynasty was a native Croatian dynasty that ruled in the Duchy and later the Kingdom of Croatia from 845 until 1091, with interruptions by the Domagojević dynasty.The first monarch of Croatia was King Tomislav, crowned in 925. A note in the proceedings of the 925 Council of Split calls Tomislav king "in the province of the Croats and in the Dalmatian regions", and in the council's 12th canon, the ruler of the Croats is called "king". In a letter from Pope John X, Tomislav is called "King of the Croats". Letters in which Tomislav was called king were preserved in a version of Thomas the Archdeacon's 13th-century History of Salona.
Older historiography assumed that Tomislav was crowned in a field at Duvno, although there are no contemporary records. This conclusion was probably drawn from the Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja, which describes a coronation of King Svatopluk and a council held in a field at Dalma. Some historians theorized that Tomislav and Svatopluk were the same person, or the author was mistaken about the king's name.
Prominent rulers of the Trpimirović Dynasty include Tomislav, Petar Krešimir IV and Demetrius Zvonimir. The house included four dukes, thirteen kings and a queen consort.
In 1091 the last member of the House of Trpimirović, Stephen II, died without leaving an heir. In 1093 the Croatian nobility chose Petar Snačić as King of Croatia. Petar Snačić fought the war against the invasion of the Hungarian King, and died in the Battle of Gvozd Mountain in 1097. This led to a personal union of Croatia and Hungary in 1102. In practice, Croatia was ruled by a Ban who was commonly from a Croatian noble house. It was agreed that every King of Hungary would come to Croatia for a separate coronation as King of Croatia. The last king to be crowned in Croatia was King Andrew II of Hungary. His son, King Béla IV, refused to be crowned in Croatia in 1235, and the custom afterward died out. Some scholars claim Béla IV's father was never crowned as King of Croatia either.
In 1941, Aimone, 4th Duke of Aosta, was installed as King by fascist Italy. No coronation was ever held.
Denmark
enthronements may be divided into three distinct types of rituals: the medieval coronation, which existed during the period of elective monarchy; the anointing ritual, which replaced coronation with the introduction of absolute monarchy in 1660; and finally the simple proclamation, which has been used since the introduction of the Danish Constitution in 1849.The coronation ritual began with a procession of the ruler and his consort into St. Mary's Cathedral in Copenhagen, followed by the Danish crown jewels. The monarch was seated before the altar, where he swore to govern justly, preserve the Lutheran religion, support schools, and help the poor. Following this, the king was anointed on the lower right arm and between the shoulders, but not on the head. Then the royal couple retired to a tented enclosure where they were robed in royal attire, returning to hear a sermon, the Kyrie and Gloria, and then a prayer and the Epistle reading.
Following the Epistle, the king knelt before the altar, where he was first given a sword. After flourishing and sheathing it, the still-kneeling monarch was crowned by the clergy and nobility, who jointly placed the diadem upon their ruler's head. The scepter and orb were presented, and then returned to attendants. The queen was anointed and crowned in a similar manner, but she received only a scepter and not an orb. A choral hymn was then sung, and then the newly crowned king and queen listened to a second sermon and the reading of the Gospel, which brought the service to an end.
In 1660 the coronation ritual was replaced with a ceremony of anointing: the new king would arrive at the coronation site already wearing the crown, and he was then anointed. This rite was in turn abolished with the introduction of the Danish Constitution in 1849. Today the crown of Denmark is only displayed at the monarch's funeral, when it lies on top of their coffin. The former Queen, Margrethe II, and her son, the present king, Frederik X, did not have any formal enthronement service; a public announcement of the accession was made from the balcony of Christiansborg Palace, with the new sovereign being acclaimed by the Prime Minister at the time, then cheered with a ninefold "hurrah" by the crowds below.