Lyn & Exmoor Museum

Coronations and Celebrations of the Past

Discover how the communities of Lynton & Lynmouth came together to enjoy these once-in-a-lifetime events and embrace the spirit of patriotism.

by Nicolas Lovell

With the Coronation of King Charles III scheduled for Saturday the 6th of May 2023, we thought we might look at what the Lyn Museum has to tell us about past coronations and royal events.

If you go upstairs into what is grandly called the ‘Television Room’, you might perhaps be disappointed to find that the television is not a big 65-inch screen but instead, a rather small brown Bakelite box, featuring a minuscule 9-inch screen, built in 1953. A great number of people bought or rented their very first television sets, just like this one, expressly to watch the coronation of Elizabeth II on Tuesday 2nd June 1953.

One has to imagine 20 or so people (the Lynton family that owned it and probably extended family and neighbours) crowded around the tiny indistinct black and white picture, watching ‘live’ a British monarch being crowned in Westminster Abbey. This particular television cost the princely sum of 44 guineas (a guinea was 21 shillings, so it cost over £46) making it a hugely expensive item for the time, bearing in mind the average wage for men was only about £500 per annum.

In its archives, the Lyn & Exmoor Museum holds correspondence, original programmes and photographs which show the coronations and other royal events that people around here celebrated: such as Queen Victoria’s Golden and Diamond jubilees, coronations of several monarchs, royal marriages and the deaths of kings and queens.

In fact, there were so many of them between the end of the nineteenth century and the coronation of Elizabeth II that the celebrations developed into quite a fixed pattern: with parades and marches; sports for children; singing; teas and dinners free of charge for people living in the various parishes (to promote a feeling of community among residents from all walks of life); free entertainments; sometimes displays by boatmen or firemen; prizes for the best-decorated houses or businesses; fireworks and bonfires; church services; and sometimes even the opening of a significant landmark to mark the occasion, such as laying the first stone of the Esplanade or unveiling a clock for the parish church tower.

There was great local excitement about two days of celebrations on Monday 1st June and Tuesday 2nd June 1953. A tea party was organised for all the children and one for the ‘Old Folks’ (probably I would have qualified for this). Streets, houses and shops were decorated, with a first prize of £3 and 3 shillings for the best decorations. All the children were given souvenir coronation tankards and flags, and a film was shown in the Lynton Town Hall.

On the afternoon of the great day itself there were Sports in Holman Park followed by high teas, then a fire fighting display and comic football match, the day was then brought to a close with a Grand Coronation Ball (Fancy Dress optional) in the Town Hall from 9.00 pm to 2.00 am. The official programme states after the final event: ‘The end to a Perfect Day. God Save the Queen.’

It’s clear from these old documents and photos that local people entered into these festivities with great enthusiasm and made the most of them. It’s true to say that their lives were harder than ours and so they grasped the opportunity to celebrate and enjoy themselves. However, it’s also true that the vast majority of people were very patriotic and one must remember that many had served King and Country during the First or Second World War.

At the time of writing this article, I’m not at all sure what events are taking place around here to mark the Coronation of King Charles III but I hope that we shall take the opportunity to celebrate with the joy and energy of our forebears an event which might only happen once or twice in our lifetimes. We can also of course watch the coronation live on large screen ultra high definition television!

Nicholas Lovell

Nicholas Lovell has been visiting Exmoor since 1967 and retired to Lynton a few years ago. He is the Vice Chairman of the Committee responsible for the Lyn & Exmoor Museum.