In the last section of the oath the Liber Regalis has Concedis iustas leges et consuetudines esse tenendas, et promittis per te eas esse protegendas quas vulgus elegerit? Here again in the oath of Charles there is a modification of the wording, Sir, will you grant to hold and keep the rightful customs which the commonalty of this your kingdom have? But this alteration had as a matter of fact been made at the time of the last coronation, for this passage is almost identical with the oath taken by James I. That there was in Stuart times a deliberate attempt to weaken the force of some of the language in the oath is evident. Henry VIII had been dissatisfied with the terms of the oath and made some attempt to alter it by the insertion of such modifying expressions as ‘not prejudicial to his jurisdiction,’ ‘not prejudicial to his crown,’ ‘which the nobles and people have made and chosen with his consent.’ But his attempted revision came to nothing, and both he and Edward VI took the oath at their coronation in the form in which it stands in the Liber Regalis[83].
It may also be noted here, as a matter connected with the oath, that up to the time of Henry VII the years of a king’s reign were reckoned from the day of his coronation, the oath being regarded as the compact or covenant made between him and his people, sealing as it were his election to the throne. From the time of Henry VIII onwards the king’s reign has been reckoned from the death of his predecessor[84].
Laud took infinite pains in the preparation of the coronation ceremony, in which he acted in the place of the Dean of Westminster. His copy of the Order with his MS. annotations still exists in the library of St John’s College, Cambridge. No detail is neglected and some of his notes are very amusing; for example, in connection with the putting on of hose and sandals he remarks, ‘These both—Hose and Shews the K: would haue putt on vpõ his other shoes: wᶜʰ had almost indaingered yᵉ tearinge of yᵉ old Tinsin Hose. It is safer to vnlase them before hand when they be vsed againe[85].’
The recipe for the preparation of the chrism used is preserved. The chrism was consecrated by Laud, who was at that time Bishop of St David’s, and who was acting for the Dean of Westminster. It is the dean’s function to bless the chrism if he is a bishop. If he is not a bishop the archbishop himself consecrates it.
It is perhaps most convenient at this point to deal with the coronation of King Charles at Holyrood by Abp Spotiswoode on June 18, 1633, for the rite then used was manifestly based on the English order, and was the work of Abp Laud. There are in it certain variations from the English rite, which were probably deliberately made with the intention of imparting a special Scottish character to the ceremony.
After the Litany, instead of the four prayers of the English order only one occurs, which is a combination of the two English prayers O Almighty and everlasting God, creator of all things and O Lord, thou that governest all kingdoms. The prayer after the anointing, God the Son of God, is shortened. At the investitures the prayer O God, the King of kings, a prayer of benediction of the ornaments, becomes a benediction of the king. The form accompanying the investiture of the Sword is shortened, and O God of eternity disappears at the crowning. On the other hand there appears after the crowning what may be a feature of the old Scottish rite, the ‘Obligatory oath of the people,’ which is read out by the Earl Marshal: We swear, and by the holding up of our hands do promise all subjection and loyalty to king Charles our dread sovereign: and as we wish God to be merciful to us, shall be to his majesty true and faithful, and be ever ready to bestow our lives and lands and what else God hath given us, for the defence of his sacred person and crown. The form at the delivery of the Sceptre is slightly shortened. After the benediction, as in the English rite, the king kisses the archbishop and the bishops. The form of enthronisation is slightly altered, and after the enthronisation a royal pardon is proclaimed and the homage of the peers is done. Of the Communion service which follows no details whatever are given.
V
With the accession of James II we come to an important point in the developement of the English rite. Since James was a member of the Roman Church he was not allowed to receive the Holy Sacrament after the use of the English Church, and Abp Sancroft was accordingly commissioned to edit the rite and omit the Communion altogether. Unhappily Sancroft in his work of editing made many and considerable alterations in the rite itself, which have never subsequently been properly rectified[86].
After the Recognition the king and queen make their first oblation, and then is said the prayer O God, who dwellest in the high and holy place, which is a much altered version of Deus visitator humilium. The Litany is said, and then follow the prayers Almighty and everlasting God, creator of all things, which has been altered and shortened, and O God, who providest, practically unchanged. The two prayers O Lord, thou that governest and God the unspeakable author are omitted. Here follows the sermon, and the sermon over, the king takes the oath, which is the same as that of Charles I, except that in the first question ‘The Gospel established in the Church of England’ is changed to ‘The Gospel established in this kingdom’; after which is sung the Veni Creator in the version now in use. Then is said We beseech thee, O Lord, Holy Father (unaltered), and then, introduced by Sursum corda and Preface, the consecration prayer God, the exalter of the humble and strength of thy chosen (shortened), after which the choir sings Zadok the priest. The king is then anointed as hitherto with the form Be this head anointed with holy oil; and as kings and prophets were anointed, etc.; and the archbishop says the prayer God the son of God; the prayer God which art the glory of the righteous being omitted. Certain changes are made in the forms of investiture; the prayer said after the vesting with the Colobium is changed into a benediction of the king; from the form with which the Sword is delivered it is noticeable that the words for the defence of Christ’s holy church are omitted, and the reference to the persecution of infidels and heretics also disappears; the form accompanying the investiture with the Pallium is made to include the delivery of the Orb, an unfortunate innovation which has been retained to this day, for the orb is perhaps but another form of the sceptre; at the crowning O God, the crown of the faithful appears in its present form, much altered from the original, and the prayers God crown thee and O eternal God (O God of eternity) are also altered; the archbishop reads the first anthem Be strong, and the choir sings the second The king shall rejoice; the blessing of the Ring is omitted, and the prayer following its delivery, O God, to whom belongeth all power, also disappears; the form of the investiture with the Verge is much changed. At this point the king makes his second oblation, which should have taken place at the offertory, and the archbishop blesses the king with the blessing The Lord give thee of the dew of heaven, a much altered edition of the older form, which in the previous order followed the Secret; and then curiously enough there reappears a short edition of the old In diebus eius (In thy days may justice flourish), which last was used in the second recension of the English rite. A new benediction appears, The Lord preserve thy life, and the old, The Lord bless thee and keep thee, is altered, the last prayer for clergy and people acquiring much of its present form, And the same good Lord grant that the clergy and people, etc. After Te Deum the king is enthroned in much the present form, and after the homage a final anthem is sung.
At the queen’s coronation the prayer Almighty and everlasting God, the fountain of all goodness is somewhat altered, and the next prayer God, which only hast immortality is omitted. In the prayer following the anointing the words that as by the imposition of hands she is this day crowned queen becomes that as by our office and ministry she is this day anointed and solemnly consecrated our queen. The form with which the ring is given is quite different from the form hitherto used after the opening words, and the prayer following, God, to whom belongeth all power, is omitted. At the crowning God, the crown of the faithful is omitted, and the forms Receive the crown of glory and Seeing you are by our ministry are combined into one. The order ends with the prayer O Lord, the fountain of all good things and a final anthem.