The coronation of Queen Elizabeth II took place on June 2, 1953, more than a year after she actually took the throne as Queen of United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Ceylon as well as Head of the Commonwealth and Supreme Governor of the Church of England.
The ceremony, which was held at Westminster Abbey, took a total of 16 months to prepare for and was the first major international event to be televised. 8,000 guests were invited to the ceremony and 20 million viewers watched the event at home.
