"Just Stop Oil" movement members joined in the anti-royal protests as people gathered to watch the coronation procession in central London on Saturday morning.
LONDON — As expected, anti-royal protesters gathered in London on the day of King Charles III’s coronation.
They carried yellow signs and posters and waved flags with slogans “Abolish the Monarchy,” “Not My King,” “Pass the Dutchies to the Public Side,” “Don’t you think this is all a bit silly,” “King Parasite,” “I want equality, abolish the monarchy,” “Yes to Coronation street and Coronation Chicken, No to the King’s Coronation” and people have created a social media hashtag #NotMyKing.
Members of the “Just Stop Oil” movement joined the protest as people gathered to watch the procession in central London on Saturday morning as King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla made their way from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey for the service.
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According to British media reports, more than a dozen Just Stop Oil protesters were arrested over alleged plans to jump the barriers at The Mall, the road that links Buckingham Palace with Trafalgar Square.
The cost of the coronation is estimated to be 100 million pounds, roughly double the cost of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, and much of that spend has been earmarked for security. As reported, the coronation is being paid for by the U.K. government.
That anti-monarchist sentiment isn’t confined to Britain.
Last year, Prince William and the then Duchess of Cambridge were heckled about the royal family‘s historic ties to slavery, and Britain’s imperialist past, during a weeklong Caribbean tour to mark the queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
A month later, the Prince Edward and the then Countess of Wessex faced anti-monarchy protests, and demands for reparations during their own tour of the Caribbean to mark the Jubilee. The mood was so bad that the couple was forced to cancel a stop in Grenada.
In April, Buckingham Palace confirmed that it was supporting a research project, cosponsored by Historic Royal Palaces, into the monarchy’s involvement in the slave trade in the 17th and 18th centuries.
As part of the investigation, the king will open the family’s official collections, records and the Royal Archives. “This is an issue that His Majesty takes profoundly seriously,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement last month.
Protesters in Trafalgar Square ahead of the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on May 6, 2023 in London.
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Anti-monarchy protesters gather for a demonstration ahead of the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on May 6, 2023 in London.
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Members of the anti-monarchist group Republic are apprehended by police officers as they stage a protest close to Westminster Abbey, where the coronation was held.
AFP via Getty Images
Protesters hold up placards saying “Not My King” in Trafalgar Square close to where Britain’s King Charles III and Britain’s Queen Camilla were crowned at Westminster Abbey in central London on May 6, 2023.
POOL/AFP via Getty Images
A member of the anti-monarchist group Republic is apprehended by police officers as they staged a protest close to where Britain’s King Charles III and Britain’s Queen Camilla were crowned at Westminster Abbey in central London on May 6, 2023.
AFP via Getty Images
A person holds up a placard reading “Citizens not subjects” in Trafalgar Square ahead of the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on May 6, 2023 in London.
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Protesters from climate protest group ‘Just Stop Oil’ are apprehended by police officers in the crowd close to where Britain’s King Charles III and Britain’s Camilla, Queen Consort will be crowned at Westminster Abbey in central London on May 6, 2023.
POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Police officers detain a member of “Just Stop Oil” movement as people gather to watch the procession during the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on May 6, 2023 in London.
Getty Images
A protester from climate protest group “Just Stop Oil” is apprehended by police officers close to where Britain’s King Charles III and Britain’s Queen Camilla were crowned at Westminster Abbey in central London on May 6, 2023.
AFP via Getty Images
A protester holds a placard ahead of the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on May 6, 2023 in London, England. The Coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as King and Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
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Police officers detain a member of “Just Stop Oil” movement as people gather to watch the procession during the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on May 6, 2023 in London.
Getty Images
Police officers stand on guard on the route of the “King’s Procession” as they wait for Britain’s King Charles III and Britain’s Camilla, Queen Consort to pass in the Diamond State Coach, ahead of their coronations.
POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Protesters hold up placards saying “Not My King” in Trafalgar Square close to where Britain’s King Charles III and Britain’s Queen Camilla were crowned at Westminster Abbey in central London on May 6, 2023. The set-piece coronation is the first in Britain in 70 years, and only the second in history to be televised. Charles will be the 40th reigning monarch to be crowned at the central London church since King William I in 1066. Republican opponents who want an elected head of state plan to protest on the day with signs declaring “Not my king”. (Photo by Gareth Fuller / POOL / AFP) (Photo by GARETH FULLER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
POOL/AFP via Getty Images
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