The Sun.
London, England, 1821-07-21 00:00:00

[MORNING CHRONICLE.]

There was mothing more truly regal in the Co-
ronation than the disregard to the distinctions of
party which has characterised his Majesty's mea-
sures of preparation for that national solemnity.
His own judgment decided on giving for the first
time a Representative to Ireland on this occasion,
by summoning the Marquess of Lansdown to per-
form the duties of Lord High Constable of that
ingdom. To his just principles and steady friend-
ship is to be ascribed the unusual enlargement of the
Order of the Thistle, which enabled him to confer
tat honour on the Earls of Cassillis and Lauder-
rinlo.— But the nomination of the six Royal
Pages on Tuesday last, though seemingly. a
small circumstance, is perhaps the clearest
mark of his Majesty's personal disposition in
matters which peculiarly concern himself. The
young Noblemen chosen by the King are Lord
Charles James Fox Russell, Lord Wriothes-
ley Russell, Lord Villiers, and the Honourable
Mr. Villiers, Lord Fordwick, and Mr. Howard,
a sun of Lord Morpeth. However loudly the

retainers of an ...tdministratiota, oanscious of their
small claims on Royal Favour or popular sup-
port, may exclaim against these alarming indica-
tions of his Majesty's feelings, the public will re-
joice at such marks of his Royal preference for

Noble families as conspicuous for independent
principles as for illustrious descent. If a play
on words may be excused, we trust that these
young and noble Whigs may be among the
brightest pages in the history of his Majesty's
reign.

The Coronation was certainly, as a pageant, per-

haps the most magnificent that was ever witnessed
in this country ; nothing could exceed the bril-
liancy, order, and general effect of the whole
ceremony, or be more animating and lively than
the circumstances which accompanied it ; but
when we recollect that the foundation of such a
pageant is laid in days comparatively barbarous—
the days of feudal domination and imperfect re-
finement, when the tyranny that sported with the
interests and rights of mankind was not more
pleased with gaudy spews for the gratification of
its own vanity, than aware of their usefulness in
,')vorting the popular feeling from gloomy reitec-

tions upon their political state, to the admiration
of shows not unmingled with awe, when supersti-
tion blended its powerful charm with the pomp
of Courts, and gave an ideal grandeur to ceremo-
nies of state. Bat the reign of superstition, as
well as of civil tyranny, has long since, at least
in principle, died away in England, before the
light of vigorous intelligence, and the spirit
emanating from the institutions of civilization.—
Should, then, these forms be retained and ho-
noured, after the denouncement of their principle
Should we continue to recal the reMembrance of
an enervated barbarism, which We consider it
the triumph of glorious tithes to have blast-
ed before the hardy viE,i'our 6f lour freedom
Should we decorate The old -attar of superstition
after overturning its temPles, and surround with
the insignia of despotic power the Monarch who
has the prouder' 'privilege of being united to us
by the ties of the Constitution ? To answer in
the affirmative, must suppose a want of that good
taste which ought to belong to true refinement,
or a levity of mind which can take pleasure in
incongruities.
.Are we then to be understood as
saying that the King of England ought not to
perform the ceremony of a Coronation ? By no
means. But we would have the ceremony of
more real grandeur, and one capable of exciting
.snore exalted and nobler feelings than the inven-
iions of feudal times ever contemplated. We
would have a Coronation be a truly august and
sublime spectacle, where the King would pledge
himself to the Constitution under all the awful
sanctions of pure religion,—where the people
would truly he a party to the compact made
with a Constitutional King—and where both
parties would meet upon terms of mutual confi-
dence, without apprehension of popular tumult
on the one side, or a necessity for military inter-
ference on the other. Were the King in simple
majesty, guarded not by living fortifications of
troops, but by the• more invincible strength of
an affectionate people, to meet both Houses of
the Legislature, and take the oath to the Con-
stitution, the recognition of which first placed
the Crown on the head of his family, such a cere-
mony would be as grand as it would be useful.
(Ibid.)

[THE TIMES.]
Thursday's Coronation naturally suggests a
comparison with that of 1761. In all matters of
form they agree; in many of their circumstances
they materially differ. The preparations of the
scene were the same—the arrangements in the
Hall and the Abbey were nearly the same—the
platform for the procession followed the same
line between the Hall and the Cathedral, and
presented little variety—the temporary theatres,
galleries, and pavilions for viewing the pageant,
were extremely alike. The ceremonies of the',
banquet and the church, of the procession and
the consecration, of the -religious show, and the
festive entertainment, were precisely similar.—
There was no variety in the class of persons or
the description of officers who enjoyed the splen-
dour or performed the services of the day. The
representative of the Lord of Scrivelsby was the
champion of George 111. and likewise that of
George IV. A Mr. Dymoke chivalrously threw
down a useless gauntlet and uttered an unan-
swerable challenge amid .a festive hall of. princes
and nobles on the 22d of September, 1761, and
a similar gauntlet was thrown down and the same
challenge uttered on Thursday. The actors
and the spectators were changed ; the theatre,
the scene, the piece remained the same in 1761,
as in 1821. Even the orders in The Gazette
issued from the Lord Great Chamberlain and
Earl Marshal, and from the punctilious officers of
the Herald's College were nearly the same. The
doors of the Hall and Abbey were thrown open
at three o'clock and shut at seven in 1761, as
well as on Thursday. Privy Councils then
sat to direct, as well as now, affairs of cookery
and police—to make arrangements for pre-.
serving the peace of the metropolis, and the
proper costume in hats, and to receive reports
from the Home Secretary and the wine-taster.
But the parallel must soon end. In almost
every circumstance in which the representations
of the same ceremony could vary, the Coronation
of Thursday varies from that of 1761. In the first
place, the Royal Family consisted then, as
now, of a King and a Queen. How different the
treatment ! Then the Queen was crowned along
with her husband, and received the homage,
while she contracted the obligations becoming her
rank and station. Nay, we are told, that when
the Royal Couple appeared below the canopy in
the procession, their . recent union, and their
known attachment, called forth general sympa-
thy, and procured affectionate applause. On
Thursday last the Queen was not only refused a
participation in the ceremony of her husband's
Coronation, but even admission to view it. This
necessarily introduced all that difference in the
marshalling the procession, and the subsequent
ceremonies that arose from the presence and ab-
sence of Ladies. In 1761, as perfect union pre-
vailed in the Court,the people's loyal attachment
to their Royal Family was undivided and with-
out alloy ; whereas on Thursday last, the cry of
" the Queen for sever," was considered by the
King's pretended friends as the watchword of
disaffection and the shout of disloyalty. At the
Coronation of our late lamented Sovereign we
hear of no barriers being thrown across the streets
to keep of the populace ; whereas on Thursday
Palace-yard was cleared of all persons except the
genteel mob who could afford to pay considerable
sums for their seats. At the Coronation of their]
late Majesties only Foot Guards were employed
in Palaee..yaid and along the line of the proces-'
sion, whereas on Thursday we had Horse and
Foot, regUlars and yeomanry, city light horse,
and boxers. The troops in and about London
in September, 1761, did not exceed 3,000 ;
whereas on Thursday they amounted to upwards
of '20,000. In 1761 the Spitalfields weavers hung
out streamers and banners in honour of their Ma-
jesties' Coronation : in 1821, we had illumina-
tions at the Horse Guards, and at the houses of
the King's tradesmen. In 1761 the lower orders
provided for their own amusement at their own
expence ; whereas on Thursday they grumbled
and broke windows (as we are told by the Mini-
sterial papers), even though they saw balloons,
ifireworks, and illuminations, and could enjoy

other entertainments paid for from the public
purse.

[NEW TIMES.]-
Thursday, the 19th of July, 1821, a day that
will be ever famous in the annals of this country,
saw the performance of the grand National
ceremony of the Coronation between King
George- the Fourth, the Nobles, the Cler-
gy, the great men, and the people of this
realm. Never did the consummation of this reli-
gious contract so deservedly cause a general in-
tensity of interest as it did on that occasion ; and
never were the rejoicings and acclamations of
England's subjects better merited, or more un-
equivocally expressed. King George IV. as-
cended not the Throne as a Conqueror, whose
way and tract were stained with blood and de-
ceit—by whose sword the flower of the land had
been cut off, not only from the enjoyment of
liberty but that of life. He ascended not
the Throne as an inexperienced or unsuccess-
ful Prince, but as a tried and an approved
Ruler. The conduct of the most glorious Re-
gency ever known to this or any other country,
had already stamped his name with immortality.
By the magnanimity and perseverance of the
Prince and people, during that ever-memorable
Regency, was the overthrow of a mighty and
dfingerous foe accomplished ; by its unshaken in-
tegrity and energetic exertions were the most
frightful confederacies for the subversion of the
liberty of Europe reduced ; and by its measures
have the shackles of slavery been burst, and
thousands of suffering wretches restored to li-
berty and peace.—But, blessed as we have been
in a grand series of uninterrupted success and
triumph—blessed as we now are in the possession
of peace, power, fame, unrivalled commerce and
territory, the measure of recompense was not
full until the completion of this grand and conse-
quential ceremony. Happy is the man, who by
the right of birth and Divine assistance is raised
to the proud and honourable greatness of ruling
over—

" This blessed spot, this earth, this realm, this England,
This nurse, this teeming womb of Royal Kings,
Feared by their breed, and famous for their birth,
This land of such dear souls, this dear, dear land ;
Dear for her reputation through the world ;
This Royal Throne of Kings, this sceptred isle,
This earth of Majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-paradise ;
This precious stone set in the silver sea!"

But happier he who after a long and glorious
servitude mounts to the full sway of his undoubt-
ed rights, amidst the well-earned acclamations of
admiring and grateful multitudes. This last is
the case of George the Fourth. Descended from
an illustrious line of ancestors, it pleased Provi-
dence to impose on him as Regent of this land
all the trials and distresses of Sovereignty with-
out the full fame and greatness attendant on that
sacred and exalted office when its functions are
executed with just vigilance and mercy. The ce-
remony, the rejoicings, the acclamations, and the
proceedings on Thursday will be transmitted to
posterity by the historian in the language of pride,
admiration and delight.

Had it been the intention of the Queen to
mark in the eyes of the whole country, and of
the assembled Representatives of Foreign Sove-
reigns, the immense and incalculable distance to
which she has fallen below her August Husband,
she could not have adopted a more effectual
mode of obtaining her purpose than the step
which she took on Thursday. She had re-
ceived an Order, which was really merciful to
her, not to expose herself by any intrusion
on a solemnity which she was so utterly unfit
to participate. As a wife and a subject she was
bound to obey, and she might have done herself
honour by a dignified obedience. But on this
solemn occasion she thought. fit to disobey—and
the deep and bitter draught of mortification she
has in consequence drained to the very dregs.—
The Times, but that paper's falsehoods are too
gross and notorious to excite any surprise, unless
when it unconsciously wanders into truth—The
Times said she would present herself at the place
of Coronation, attended by her Great Officers of
State ! What was the fact! One solitary Gen-
tleman accompanied her—no other officer, no
other advocate, no other partizan ! Surgeon
Hume was out of the way—Sheriff Waithman
and Alderman Wood were displaying their loyal
zeal in the King's procession ; and as to Messrs.
Brougham, Denman, &c. we have the authority
of The Morning Chronicle for saying, " that the
Queen's legal advisers exerted themselves to per-
suade her Majesty not to go down to the Abbey."
—(lbid.)

[BRITISH PRESS.]
The anxious bustling pursuit after amusement
which commenced in every part of the metro-',
pok,long before
,the rising of the sun on Thurs-
day morning, was continued by many persons
throughout the whole of yesterday. Every scene
which had been devoted to the festivities of the
coronation was again visited by no inconsiderable
crowds, as if by such means the enjoyment of
the former day's splendours could be still further
prolonged. Thursday, indeed, presented such
scenes as cannot often occur in the longest life,
and the day was universally enjoyed as one that
ought to be devoted without reserve to pleasure.
It is exceedingly delightful to our minds to see
the great body of the people relaxing from their
labours in the enjoyment of splendid national fes-
tivities; nor indeed, as it appears to us, can a
moderate portion of ttw- public money be better
employed than in contributing occasionally to the
gratification of people Is large, though at inter-
vals sufficiently distant to give the zest of novelty
to each enjoyment. We know that there are manj,
politicians who look on such proceedings with deep
suspicion, considering them as a manifestation of
an unsound principle, as well in the people as in the
Government—as not belonging properly to a free
constitution, and as a bribe to the multitude ex-
torted by fear, and not an honourable, largesse
bestowed with munificence and accepted with
gratitude. But, looking around us, we can per-
ceive no cause to justify the intrusion, in the pre-
sent circumstances of the country, of such uneasy
apprehensions. There are instances, no doubt,
in .the histories of the great ancient republics,
wlitze the ambitious leaders of parties corrupt-

ed the native simplicity of the people by the
bribery of splendid shows and festivals, and
drew from their venal support the means of over-
turning the general liberty. The imperial mas-
ters of the Roman world in subsequent times
found it expedient, if not necessary, to purchase
popular favour by the frequent spectacle of
splendid exhibitions, and especially of theatrical
representations, and this necessity seems in every
age to have been felt by despotic Princes, so
that, in fact, with them to keep the people in
good humour, by affording them the indulgence
of public amusements, has generally been the
distinguishing policy of their domestic adminis-
trations. It does not, however, follow, because
arbitrary governments may find such a mode of
amusing the people politic or necessary, that
therefore the extension of similar indulgences to
the people of this country should be considered
as an indication of an approach to arbitrary prin-
ciples on the part of our Government, or should
be supposed to operate as a bribe to the people
to betray their political interests. It has been
often and truly remarked, that the mere cere-
mony of the Coronation adds nothing whatsoever
either to the dignity or the power of the King,
and that it might be performed or omitted alto-
gether at the discretion of his Majesty. Such es-
pecially was the point of the arguments used by
the King's Attorney and Solicitor-General before
the Council in opposiiion to the Queen's claim to
share the honours of the gorgeous ceremony.—
We must, however, confess, that to our minds this
ceremony is not without its importance. Not un-
important are the proud recollections of chivalrous
pomp and glory that are inspired by it, and which
are so intimately blended with the spirit-stirring
consciousness of national greatness and independ-
ence ; not unimportant is the proud display of
all that is eminent amongst us in rank, learning,
virtue, piety, and valour—all united into one
bright galaxy--the mind, the animating prin-
ciple of the nation, made visible and environed
with every circumstance of dignity and splendour.
Such an occasion ought not to be omitted for dis-
playing the distinctions of rank, as upon such dis-
tinctions the frame of our admirable Constitution
is founded ; but beyond every thing is its import-
ance raised, as it affords to a free people the best
and most appropriate opportunity of devoting the
spontaneous offering of their affectionate loyalty
to the person of their King. This opportunity
was not lost on Thursday, and never did a Mo-
narch receive from his people in general more ar-
dent and en thusiastic assurances of fidelity and love
than were manifested on the day of the Coronation,
in every way, by the immense multitude of this me-
tropolis, to our present beloved and gracious King.
From the preparations that are known to have
been made in every part of the United Kingdom
for celebrating the Coronation, it is clear that the
festivities of the day were not confined to the
metropolis. In every city and large town in the
empire means were adopted to enable the mass of
the people to share these festivities—in some, by
the exhibition of splendid shows ; in others, by
the more substantial enjoyment of good old Eng-
lish cheer. This latter mode of celebrating the
event is certainly the most rational, as it is the
most generally useful, but it is suited only for
small communities, such as for the tenants of a
nobleman or wealthy commoner, where the feel-
ing of deference and respect will insure decorum.
We shall probably hear of many of these rural
festivals when the Peers, having now discharged
their duty to the King, shall return to the midst
of their own little kingdoms in the different parts
of the country. Such occasional acts of libera-
lity and indulgence are strong promoters of
kindly feelings upon both sides, and are, in our
opinion, productive of more public good than is
generally imagined. There cannot be a scene of
higher interest or of purer enjoyment, nor one
more strongly calculated to excite the finest
sympathies of our nature, than the spectacle of
an English Nobleman or Gentleman standing in
the midst of his tenantry, dispensing among them
comfort and happiness, and receiving from their
honest, contented faces, the simple but eloquent
expression of their gratitude.