Coronation of Charles X of France

During the later years of the Napoleonic Wars he settled in Britain, returning to France when his elder brother, Louis XVIII, was restored in 1814.

Artois emerged as the leader of the Ultra-royalists, a conservative political grouping which rejected the changes of the French Revolution.

Henri was therefore heir to the throne after the childless duc dAngoulême, apparently securing the succession for at least another generation.

In a speech from the throne on 22 December 1824, Charles made clear his intention to be crowned in the tradition of the ancien régime.

[2] While the 1804 coronation of Napoleon had taken place at Notre-Dame de Paris, the new King selected the ancient site of Reims.

Extensive preparations had been made in Reims, with Charles X contributing a significant sum from the royal treasury, including funding the remodelling of the Palace of Tau, where he stayed.

In a new innovation, four Napoleonic Marshals of France presented the King with the symbols of royal authority.

[9] Notable French figures in attendance included the royalist writers François-René de Chateaubriand, Victor Hugo, and Charles Nodier.

Louis Philippe, duc d'Orléans, usurped the crown shortly after and rejected the idea of a coronation in an attempt to appear more liberal.