Prince Charles to see part of the Coronation

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 May 12, 1953

Bernard Marmaduke Fitzalan-Howard, the 16th Duke of Norfolk,  who is the Earl Marshal, revealed today in an interview that Queen Elizabeth, "already knows her part," for the Coronation which will take place on June 3.  The Duke also revealed that his wife will be the stand-in for the Queen for the daily rehearsals.

He also told the press that Prince Charles, 4, will be present "for a time," during the ceremony.  Charles, whose official title is the Duke of Cornwall, is the heir apparent to the throne.

It is understood that the Queen and Prince Philip had wanted their son to see "something of the Coronation."   According to the Duke of Norfolk, the young prince had "passed the tests which he unknowingly had been undergoing for the past few months."

Charles' parents believe that he is old enough to remember what he will see, unlike his two-year-old sister, Princess Anne.  There were concerns that he would not be quiet at the ceremony as, at church,  he is always "removed before the sermon."

At some point during the Coronation,  Charles will be brought in by a side entrance and sit near his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.   The ideal moment, of course, would be when the Archbishop of Canterbury "places the crown on his mother's head."

This is the "moment" that his parents "would like Charles to see.