From Prince to King
Celebrating King Charles III
by Becky May
Suitable for Whole School (Pri)
Aims
To celebrate the life of His Majesty King Charles III, on the occasion of his coronation.
Preparation and materials
- You will need the PowerPoint slides that accompany this assembly (From Prince to King) and the means to display them.
Assembly
- Welcome the children to the assembly.
Explain that today, we are going to be thinking about the man who is now our king. We will be celebrating his coronation on 6 May. - Show Slide 1.
Explain that this is our monarch, King Charles III.
Ask the children to share some of the things that they may know about him.
Listen to a range of responses.
Ask the children whether they or any of their family members have ever seen the king in person.
Invite them to share their stories. - Explain that this morning, we are going to find out a bit more about our king.
Use the slides to share a brief summary of King Charles’ life, and invite the children to comment with any stories of their own, as appropriate. - Show Slide 2.
Charles was born at Buckingham Palace on 14 November 1948 when his grandfather, George VI, was still the king. Charles’ full name is Charles Philip Arthur George Windsor. - Show Slide 3.
When Charles was three, his mother became queen. Charles attended part of the coronation ceremony to watch. - Show Slide 4.
Charles has one sister and two brothers: Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. - Show Slide 5.
When Charles was nine, he became the Prince of Wales, although he was only crowned as prince when he was 20 years old. He learnt to speak some Welsh especially for the ceremony. - Show Slide 6.
Prince Charles married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981 at St Paul’s Cathedral. - Show Slide 7.
The couple had two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry. After 15 years of marriage, they divorced, and sadly, Princess Diana died in a car crash in France a year later. - Show Slide 8.
In 2005, Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles. When Charles is crowned at his coronation, Camilla will also be crowned as queen consort. - When Charles’ mother, Queen Elizabeth II, died in September, Charles immediately became king.
His coronation on 6 May will celebrate him becoming king. The coronation is a special ceremony that has happened for hundreds of years, every time a new monarch has been crowned. - At the age of 74, King Charles will be the oldest British monarch ever to be crowned. Throughout his life, while he has been waiting to be king, he has been actively involved in issues that he cares about. These include the environment, rural life and young people.
As king, Charles now has to follow a different path, passing on some of his responsibilities for these issues to others. However, he will still play a big role in raising awareness about many important issues.
Time for reflection
Show Slide 9.
On the badge of the Prince of Wales, there are the words ‘Ich dien’, which mean ‘I serve’. As king, Charles will continue to serve, just as his mother, Queen Elizabeth, did.
Charles is now 74 years old. Many people of his age are retired, whereas he is just beginning a new role!
Optional: in the Bible, it says, ‘Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others.’ (1 Peter 4.10a)
Invite the children to think for a few moments about their various gifts, and how they could use them to serve others.
Perhaps they are gifted at making people feel welcome and included, or perhaps they are gifted at music, art or sport.
Ask the children what other gifts people might have. How might they use these gifts?
Prayer
Dear God,
Thank you for King Charles and for the way he has served our country for many years as the Prince of Wales.
We pray that you will bless him as he begins this new chapter of his life as king.
Thank you that you give each of us different gifts.
Please help us to use them to serve others.
Amen.
Song/music
‘Help me be your eyes, Lord Jesus’ by Doug Horley, available at: https://youtu.be/N94BBGiq_vQ (2.56 minutes long)
‘City on a hill’ by Nick and Becky Drake, available at: https://youtu.be/Cg2We2iK7og (4.40 minutes long)
Extension activities
- Encourage the children to write a card or letter to King Charles on the occasion of his coronation.
- Find opportunities for the children to put their various gifts to use in the service of each other and the wider community. Perhaps they could use them to raise awareness of a particular cause, as the king has done, or simply as a way of serving one another.
