Coronation crown

Updated on Oct 18, 2023

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A coronation crown is a crown used by a monarch when being crowned. In some monarchies, monarchs have or had a number of crowns for different occasions, such as a coronation crown for the moment of coronation and a state crown for general usage in state ceremonial.

Famous coronation crowns

1877 Papal Tiara - used to crown Popes Pius XII and John XXIII;

St. Edward's Crown - traditional English then British coronation crown. The current St. Edward's Crown has been used a number of coronations since the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, but not, in fact the majority. The monarchs crowned with St. Edward's Crown were Charles II (1661), James II (1685), William III (1689), George V (1911), George VI (1937) and Elizabeth II (1953). King Edward VII intended to be crowned with St. Edward's Crown but in the event used instead the lighter Imperial State Crown (St Edward's Crown being judged too heavy for the King to wear soon after his illness).

Crown of Charlemagne - the coronation crown of Kings of France up to and including King Louis XVI. It was destroyed during the French Revolution.

Crown of St. Stephen - no Hungarian king was ever regarded as being truly legitimate without first being crowned with it. The original was a gift from Pope Sylvester II and was used to crown St. Stephen I, the first Christian king of Hungary, in 1000 or 1001. It was later stolen and replaced with the current version, which is featured on Hungary's coat of arms.

Crown of Saint Wenceslas - coronation crown of Kingdom of Bohemia since 1347.

Crown of Bolesław I the Brave - traditional coronation crown of the Polish monarchs. According to legend Bolesław I the Brave received it from Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor. The original crown was lost in the course of history. It was only in 1320 that a new set of regalia was prepared for the coronation of King Władysław I the Elbow-high and survived as long as until the 18th century.

Imperial Crown of Russia - the Great Imperial Crown of Russia, designed by Jérémie Pauzié in 1762 for the coronation of Catherine the Great. Inspired by the Byzantine Empire design, the crown was constructed of two gold and silver half spheres, representing the eastern and western Roman empires, divided by a foliate garland and fastened with a low hoop. The crown contains 75 pearls and 4,936 Indian diamonds forming laurel and oak leaves, the symbols of power and strength, and is surmounted by a 398.62 carat ruby spinel, that previously belonged to the Empress Elizabeth, and a diamond cross. The crown was produced in a record two months and weighted only 2.3 kg. From 1762, the crown created by Jérémie Pauzié was the coronation crown of all Romanov emperors, till the monarchy’s abolition and the death of last Romanov, Nikolas II in 1918. It is considered to be one of the main treasures of the Romanov dynasty, and is now on display in the Moscow Kremlin Armoury Museum in Russia.

References

Coronation crown Wikipedia

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