After 27,200 days as the heir, Charles Philip Arthur George has today been officially crowned King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Video / AP / Getty / The Royal Family / Jennifer Mortimer
Could anyone else really compete with young scene stealer-in-chief Prince Louis?
The youngest member of the congregation at the Coronation was, naturally, also the most lively, fidgeting and yawning in his seat, thumping the Buckingham Palace balcony with both fists and waving to the crowds with gusto.
But the five-year-old Prince did his family proud as he stepped once again into the global spotlight.
Impeccably turned out, he belted out every word of the national anthem and showed remarkable poise under pressure for one so young.
As has become custom, he was ably guided by his elder sister, Princess Charlotte, eight, who calmly and confidently took the reins.
Sophie, Princess Charlotte, Princess Anne, Catherine, Prince Louis, Prince William and Lord Oliver Cholmondeley during the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla. Photo / AP
The young siblings proceeded both in and out of Westminster Abbey holding hands, whispered conspiratorially during the service and stood shoulder to shoulder on the balcony.
Prince George, nine, also played his role with aplomb, putting not a foot wrong as he carried his grandfather’s velvet robes alongside his fellow Pages of Honour. The future King displayed a solemn sense of awareness about the magnitude of the occasion.
Standing nervously to attention, he clutched a corner of his grandfather’s robe in a white-gloved hand and moved perfectly in time as the royal party processed into the Abbey.
The King appeared relieved to see his grandson and his fellow Pages of Honour on arrival at the Abbey after an apparent hiccup over timings.
Prince Louis, Prince George and Princess Charlotte ride in a carriage during the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla. Photo / Getty Images
The schoolboys appeared to dash towards the King as soon as he alighted from the Diamond Jubilee State Coach after Charles expressed concerns to the Crown Equerry that the timing was all out.
There was a touching moment between the monarch and his grandson as George carefully picked up the robe to accompany him inside.
Inside the Abbey, the Prince belted out the hymns and was immediately on hand to help with the heavy robes as the King moved between his various chairs during the service.
He appeared unconcerned about his lack of proximity to his family, happy to fulfil his duties independently as they watched proudly on from the sidelines.
Even on the balcony, Prince George stood apart from his parents and siblings for the first time - a coming of age moment for the boy who will one day be King.
Prince George seemed to enjoy his role as a page of honour. Photo / Getty Images
But it was on Prince Louis that so many eyes were trained.
Sources close to the family agreed that the small Prince had coped admirably as he unwittingly played a starring role at his grandfather’s Coronation.
He appeared amazed by the grand surroundings of Westminster Abbey, pointing out something of interest to Princess Charlotte, high up in the eves of the gothic church, and occasionally gazing up at his mother, the Princess of Wales, open-mouthed.
At other times, there were several large yawns as he tried to keep up with the spectacle before him.
Prince Louis’ day began at Kensington Palace, where the Waleses stayed on Friday night.
Early on Saturday morning, his parents helped him into his smart outfit made by Dege and Skinner, the military tailors in Savile Row, London.
It included a Hainsworth Garter Blue Doeskin Tunic with specially designed lacework embellishment to the collar, cuffs and fronts.
He left Kensington alongside the Prince and Princess and his sister at around 10.30am to make the short journey to the Abbey in one of the Bentley State Limousines, waving to the crowds as they arrived in Westminster amid loud cheers at around 10.50am.
“I’m waving,” he appeared to tell his family with delight.
They waited patiently outside as the bells tolled before slowly making their way inside, the children chatting as they walked just behind their parents before gripping hands to process down the nave.
Inside, Prince Louis had a prime front-row seat. Sandwiched between his mother and sister, he would have found it hard to cause any mischief.
The young Prince yawned a number of times during the ceremony. Photo / Getty Images
But there was no need for concern. The young prince followed the service intently, occasionally asking questions and studying his order of service.
He gazed up at the impressive ceiling in awe, letting out an occasional, wide yawn as the Archbishop of Canterbury perhaps unsurprisingly, failed to keep his attention.
An hour into the service, after the King had been crowned, Louis was spirited away by an aide.
In a nod to his tender years, the Prince and Princess of Wales had earlier decided it would be too much to expect their younger son, who turned five just two weeks ago, to remain seated through the entire two-hour ceremony.
Instead, he was given a much-needed break from the formality - and the television cameras - and left his seat to relax behind the scenes.
The decision followed a precedent set by the King himself, when in 1953 as four-year-old Prince Charles he became the first child in British history to witness their mother’s coronation.
Dressed in a white silk shirt and white suit, he frequently tugged at the Queen Mother’s glove with excitement but was also pictured looking bored at times, resting his head on his hand during the three-hour deeply religious proceedings.
After communion, he was “taken silently and unobtrusively from the church,” according to reports from the time.
Prince Louis was back in his seat in time for an enthusiastic and faultless rendition of the National Anthem, singing both verses with gusto, arms glued to his sides.
Having reunited with Prince George at the Great West Door, the family of five then joined the Coronation Procession to Buckingham Palace in the Australian State Coach.
Louis gazed from the window with awe, soaking up the atmosphere and taking in the huge crowds.
“All these people waving,” he said to his parents, according to an expert lip reader. “So happy. Yaaay! Yaaay!”
When they emerged later on to the balcony alongside the rest of the family, the children remained on their best behaviour, showing remarkable stamina.
Louis thumped his fists on the balcony and waved with both hands, pointing into the distance and turning to shout over to his elder brother who was standing with the other pages.
His excitement brimming over, he shouted “look over there” as he gestured wildly to the crowd.
Charlotte was characteristically more restrained, hands clasped together when not giving the occasional small wave.
After a family lunch and the official portraits, the Waleses were due to head back to Windsor for an early night before the celebrations continue on Sunday.
