| King Charles III Coronation Medal | |
| Presenter: | King Charles III |
| Type: | Commemorative medal |
| Awarded For: | Community contribution |
| Total Awarded: | More than 400,000 British medals[1] 30,000 Canadian medals |
| Year: | 2023 (British medal) 2024 (Canadian medal) |
The King Charles III Coronation Medal (fr|link=no|médaille du couronnement du roi Charles III) are commemorative medals created to mark the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, which took place on 6 May 2023.
The UK issued more than 400,000 coronation medals, awarded to individuals who contributed to the coronation, recipients of the UK's highest honours, and select British military personnel, frontline emergency workers, and public prison service staff with five years of service. The British coronation medal was also gifted to a select number of Australians, Canadians and New Zealanders.
Canada issued 30,000 coronation medals, awarding them to select members of the Canadian Armed Forces and Public Service, as well as individuals who made significant contributions to the country or achieved accomplishments that brought credit to Canada.
The British and Canadian medals are both made of nickel silver and have identical ribbons. However, the two medal designs differ. The British medal features effigies of both the King and Queen, while the Canadian medal only features the King. On the reverse, the British medal has laurels, the royal cypher, and the Tudor Crown, whereas the Canadian medal displays the royal cypher with the Canadian Royal Crown over a sunburst design.
The medals are made of nickel silver and were issued by Worcestershire Medal Service. The effigy on the obverse face designed by Martin Jennings,[2] while the reverse was designed by Phil McDermott of the Worcestershire Medal Service.[3]
The obverse features a crowned effigy of the King Charles III and Queen Camilla facing left. The reverse shows the royal cypher surmounted by the Tudor Crown, a laurel wreath and the date of the coronation, 6 May 2023.[3]
The medal's ribbon is 32mm in width and includes a red stripe in the centre, with white stripes on each side, followed by dark blue stripes, and then red edge stripes. The design of the ribbon is inspired by the ribbon used for the 1902 King Edward VII Coronation Medal. The ribbon is one of the few design elements which are identical between the British and Canadian medals.[4]
More than 400,000 medals will be distributed.[1] Those who received the medal include:[5]
Australians were awarded coronation medals administered by the United Kingdom as a personal gift from the King.[6] Its conferment was an act by Buckingham Palace and is not a decision made by the Australian Government,[7] [8] in line with the practice for all past coronation and jubilee medals awarded to Australians.[6]
The medal was initially awarded to ten Australians, each of whom had previously been awarded one of Australia's highest honours, namely the Victoria Cross, Victoria Cross for Australia, George Cross, or Cross of Valour.[9] The medal was presented to three Australian recipients at Government House, Brisbane on 2 May 2024. Another presentation ceremony took place at Government House, Perth on 27 June 2024.[8] In November 2024, the medal began to be more widely issued to members of the Australian Defence Force, with an initial presentation to Australia's Federation Guard.[10]
Members of the Canadian Coronation Contingent who took part in the coronation events in London were awarded the British coronation medal, having been approved for wear by Canada. Contingent members who received the British coronation medal are ineligible to be nominated for the Canadian coronation medal.
New Zealanders may be awarded the coronation medal if they meet its eligibility requirements. However, the medal's conferment to New Zealanders requires the approval of the Prime Minister of New Zealand, as it is considered a British medal and a foreign honour.[11] [12] The coronation medal is listed in New Zealand's official order of wear.[13]
The New Zealand Government did not issue its own medal. Responding to a Official Information Act request, the Clerk to the Executive Council of New Zealand noted that New Zealand hadn't issued medals to mark royal occasions in "recent times", primarily due to cost and difficulty in administering a domestic medal programme.[11]
The British coronation medal was announced on 5 May 2023, the day before the coronation.[1]
The Scottish Government initially stated they would not help fund the British coronation medal. However, the government reversed its decision in October 2023, agreeing to help fund its cost for all eligible Scots. The estimated cost to provide all eligible Scots the medal was £200,000.[14]
The Canadian medal is the first domestic commemorative medal to mark a coronation. The Chancellery of Honours of the Office to the Secretary to the Governor General is responsible for administering the medal on behalf of the government of Canada.[15] The medals are manufactured by the Royal Canadian Mint.[4]
The medal was designed by the Fraser Herald of the Canadian Heraldic Authority, Cathy Bursey-Sabourin. The medal are made out of nickel silver and are coloured silver, with a diameter of 32mm, and with a ring suspension.[4]
The obverse features a crowned and robed effigy of the King facing right, circumscribed by the inscription "CHARLES III DEI GRATIA REX • CANADA" (Latin: "Charles III, by the Grace of God, King • Canada").[4] The reverse shows the royal cypher surmounted by the Canadian Royal Crown, over the sunburst design of the Canadian coronation emblem. The date of the coronation is inscribed to the left of the cypher and the words VIVAT REX (Latin: Long Live The King) to its right.[4]
The medal's ribbon design is identical to the British coronation medal, using a dark blue, bright red, and white arrangement.[4]
The medal will be awarded to 30,000 individuals, 4,000 of which will be awarded to members of the Canadian Armed Forces, while another 1,000 medals are reserved for Public Service employees, including those in the Department of National Defence.[16]
Nominations for recipients is received from partner organizations chosen by the government of Canada will nominate and present medals to individuals who meet the medal's eligibility criteria. To be eligible for the Canadian medal, a person must:[17]
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the coronation medal program on 3 May 2023 to honour Canadians who made significant contributions to the country, a province, territory, region, or community, or achieved abroad in a way that brought credit to Canada. However, little update was provided for the rest of 2023 concerning the status of the medal program.
Excerpting from a report, the Monarchist League of Canada claimed the delay in the medal program was due to two coinciding issues. First, there was a disagreement between the King and his Canadian Cabinet over whether Queen Camilla's effigy should appear on the medal's obverse, with the Cabinet arguing against her inclusion due to her absence from the Canadian order of precedence and the Queen not having a constitutional role. Second, the resignation of the secretary to the governor general, whose office manages the medal program, also contributed to the delay.
The medal was eventually unveiled on 6 May 2024, on the first anniversary of the coronation. Governor General Mary Simon hosted a virtual ceremony to present the inaugural medals to lieutenant governors and territorial commissioners across Canada.[18] On the same day, some lieutenant governors and territorial commissioners also held presentations in their province or territory, which included the first military recipients of the medal.[4] [19] [20] [21]
Some orders of precedence are as follows:
