State Opening of Parliament

First, the cellars of the Palace of Westminster are searched by the Yeomen of the Guard in order to prevent a modern-day Gunpowder Plot. The Plot of 1605 involved a failed attempt by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill the Protestant King James I and aristocracy. Since that year, the cellars have been searched, now largely, but not only, for ceremonial purposes. This is supervised by the Lord Great Chamberlain, and the Yeomen are paid for their services with a small glass of port wine.

Peers and peeresses assemble in the House of Lords. The Lords Spiritual and the Lords Temporal wear their Parliament robes for the occasion. They are joined by senior representatives of the judiciary, who sit on woolsacks in the centre of the Chamber, and members of the diplomatic corps, who are seated behind the Bishops.[2] The Commons assemble in their own chamber, wearing ordinary day dress, and begin the day, as any other, with prayers. Beforehand the Speaker's Procession takes place in the usual way: preceded by a doorkeeper, the Serjeant at Arms, leads the Speaker of the House of Commons from his official residence to the Commons Chamber, followed by his trainbearer, chaplain and secretary. In the Central Lobby, a police inspector makes the traditional cry of "Hats off, strangers", instructing those assembled to remove their hats in deference to the highest-ranking commoner in the realm.

On the morning of the State Opening, the Treasurer, Comptroller and Vice-Chamberlain of the Household (all of whom are government whips) assemble with other senior members of the Royal Household at Buckingham Palace, carrying their ceremonial white staves of office.[4] The Treasurer and Comptroller, along with other senior members of the Royal Household, accompany the monarch in the carriage procession; but the Lord Chamberlain does not join them. Instead, on behalf of the monarch, he remains at Buckingham Palace keeping one MP (the Vice-Chamberlain) "hostage" for the duration of the state opening, by tradition as a surety for the safe return of the monarch. The hostage MP is well entertained until the successful conclusion of the ceremony, when they are released upon the safe return of the monarch.[4][5] The Vice-Chamberlain's imprisonment is now purely ceremonial, though they do remain under guard; originally, it guaranteed the safety of the Sovereign as they entered a possibly hostile Parliament. The tradition is said to stem from the time of Charles I, who had a contentious relationship with Parliament and was eventually beheaded in 1649 during the Civil War between the monarchy and Parliament (a copy of Charles I's death warrant is displayed in the robing room used by the monarch as a ceremonial reminder of what can happen to a monarch who attempts to interfere with Parliament); however it has been suggested that the custom in its present form is of much more recent origin (mention of hostage-taking only dating back to the 1960s or 70s).[2] In 1845, by contrast, the Lord Chamberlain's routine absence from the State Opening was said to be due to 'the department over which his lordship presides not being acknowledged in His Majesty's Palace at Westminster' (where the Lord Great Chamberlain instead has the equivalent authority).[6]

Hostage MPs in recent years (all of whom were serving as Vice-Chamberlain of the Household at the time) have included:

• 2014: Desmond Swayne[7][8]
• 2015–16: Kris Hopkins[9]
• 2017: Chris Heaton-Harris
• 2019: Stuart Andrew
• 2021: Marcus Jones[10]
• 2022: James Morris[8]

Arrival of the Regalia at the Sovereign's Entrance (2022).

Before the arrival of the sovereign, the Imperial State Crown is brought to the Palace of Westminster, together with the Great Sword of State and the Cap of Maintenance, in their own carriage (usually Queen Alexandra's State Coach). The King's Bargemaster and Watermen accompany it, acting as footmen (a reminder of past times when the regalia were brought from the Tower of London by river).[11] On arrival at the Sovereign's Entrance, under the Victoria Tower, the Crown is passed by the Bargemaster to the Comptroller of the Lord Chamberlain's Office, under the watchful eye of the Crown Jeweller. The regalia are then carried to be displayed in the Royal Gallery. Also in the procession, usually in King Edward VII's Town Coach, are the two maces (separate from the three used by parliament) which are carried by the Serjeants-at-Arms of the Royal Household who escort the regalia in procession.

King Edward VIII surrounded by heralds of the College of Arms on his only State Opening of Parliament, on 3 November 1936.

The monarch travels to the Palace of Westminster from Buckingham Palace in a state coach (since 2014, the Diamond Jubilee State Coach), arriving at the Sovereign's Entrance under the Victoria Tower; the monarch is usually accompanied by his or her consort and sometimes by other members of the royal family. Senior members of the Royal Household follow in other carriages, and members of the armed forces line the processional route from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster. At the monarch's arrival, the national anthem is played, a gun salute is sounded in Green Park and the Royal Standard is hoisted in place of the Union Flag at the top of the Victoria Tower (where it remains until the monarch departs). The monarch is greeted on arrival by the Lord Great Chamberlain (who has oversight of the royal areas of the Palace of Westminster) and the Earl Marshal (who has responsibility for State ceremonial), before proceeding to the Robing Room, where he or she puts on the Parliament Robe of State[12] and the Imperial State Crown. A procession is formed of heralds, Great Officers of State and members of the Royal Household, and when all is ready a fanfare is sounded and the monarch proceeds in State through the Royal Gallery to the House of Lords. Directly ahead of the monarch walk two peers: one (nowadays usually the Leader of the House of Lords) carrying the Cap of Maintenance, and the other (nowadays generally a retired senior military officer) carrying the Great Sword of State. Once seated on the throne, the monarch, wearing the Imperial State Crown, instructs the House by saying, "My Lords, pray be seated"; his or her consort takes their seat on the throne to the sovereign’s left and other members of the royal family may be seated elsewhere on the dais (for instance the Prince of Wales may be seated on a chair of state on a lower portion of the dais to the monarch's right).

Changes are sometimes made to suit the requirements of particular monarchs at particular times; for example in October 2019, the Queen attended in the usual ceremonial robes of state, but did not wear the Imperial State Crown; instead it was carried ahead of her in the procession and placed alongside the throne on a table.

Sarah Clarke (Black Rod) knocks on the chamber door, October 2019

Motioned by the monarch, the Lord Great Chamberlain raises his white staff of office to signal the official known as Black Rod to summon the House of Commons. Black Rod turns and, under the escort of the Door-keeper of the House of Lords, proceeds to the Members' Lobby of the House of Commons, and reaches the doors of the Commons.

On Black Rod's approach, the Doorkeeper of the Commons orders that the doors are slammed shut against them, symbolising the rights of parliament and its independence from the monarch.[13] The Usher of the Black Rod then strikes with the end of their ceremonial staff (the Black Rod) three times on the closed doors of the Commons Chamber, and is then admitted (there is a mark on the door of the Commons showing the repeated indentations made by Black Rods over the years.)

Leading 17th-century parliamentarian John Hampden is one of the Five Members annually commemorated

This ritual is strongly associated with the occasion when (in 1642) King Charles I stormed into the House of Commons in an unsuccessful attempt to arrest five Members of Parliament, including the celebrated English patriot and leading parliamentarian John Hampden.[14] (Since that time, no British monarch has entered the House of Commons when it is sitting.)[13] The door-closing ritual, however, predates the 1640s, and although it has long since come to symbolise the independence of the Lower House, its primary purpose (according to Erskine May) is for the Commons to establish Black Rod's identity.[2] (Once this has been achieved, Black Rod cannot be refused admission, and all other business of whatever kind in the House must cease.)

The doors having been opened, the Chief Door-keeper of the House of Commons introduces Black Rod. At the bar, Black Rod bows to the Speaker before proceeding to the table, bowing again, and announcing the command of the monarch for the attendance of the Commons, in the following words:

Mr/Madam Speaker, The King/Queen commands this honourable House to attend His/Her Majesty immediately in the House of Peers.

For a number of years, a tradition developed for this command to be greeted with a defiant topical comment by republican-leaning Labour MP Dennis Skinner, upon which, with some mirth, the House rose to make its way to the Lords' Chamber.[13] This customary intervention was omitted by Mr Skinner in 2015, claiming that he had "bigger fish to fry than uttering something", due to a dispute over seating with the Scottish Nationalists.[15] Skinner resumed the practice in 2016, until he was unseated in 2019.[16]

The procession in October 2019

The Speaker proceeds to attend the summons at once. The Serjeant-at-Arms picks up the ceremonial mace and, with the Speaker and Black Rod, leads the Members of the House of Commons as they walk, in pairs, towards the House of Lords. By custom, the members saunter, with much discussion and joking, rather than formally process. The Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition followed by The Deputy Prime Minister, First Secretary of State or another member of the government and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition usually walk side by side, leading the two lines of MPs. The Commons then arrive at the Bar of the House of Lords. The only people required to bow are the House of Commons Speaker, Commons Clerk, senior Lords official Black Rod and the Serjeant-at-Arms. No person who is not a member of the Upper House may pass the Bar unbidden when it is in session; a similar rule applies to the Commons. They remain standing at the Bar during the speech.

The royal thrones, c. 1902

King Charles III, at the time the Prince of Wales, reading the speech on behalf of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.

The monarch reads a prepared speech, known as the "Speech from the Throne" or the "King's/Queen's Speech", outlining the Government's agenda for the coming year. The speech is written by the Prime Minister and their cabinet members, and reflects the legislative agenda for which the Government seeks the agreement of both Houses of Parliament. It is traditionally written on goatskin vellum, and presented on bended knee for the monarch to read by the Lord Chancellor, who produces the scroll from a satchel-like bag. Traditionally, rather than turning their back on the Sovereign, which might appear disrespectful, the Lord Chancellor walks backwards down the steps of the throne, continuing to face the monarch. Lord Irvine of Lairg, the Lord Chancellor at the time, sought to break the custom and applied successfully for permission to turn his back on the sovereign and walk down the steps forwards. The next Lord Chancellor, Jack Straw, continued the former tradition but succeeding Lords Chancellor have chosen to walk forwards.

The whole speech is addressed to "My Lords and Members of the House of Commons", with one significant exception that the monarch says specifically, "Members of the House of Commons, estimates for the public services will be laid before you", since the budget is constitutionally reserved to the Commons.

The monarch reads the entire speech in a neutral and formal tone, implying neither approval nor disapproval of the proposals of their Government: the monarch makes constant reference to "My Government" when reading the text. After listing the main bills to be introduced during the session, the monarch states: "Other measures will be laid before you", thus leaving the government scope to introduce bills not mentioned in the speech. The monarch mentions any state visits they intend to make and also any planned state visits of foreign heads of state to the United Kingdom during the parliamentary session. The monarch concludes the speech in saying:

"My Lords and Members of the House of Commons, I pray that the blessing of Almighty God may rest upon your counsels".

Traditionally, the members of both houses of Parliament listen to the speech respectfully, showing neither approval or dissent towards its contents before it is debated in each house. This silence, however, was broken in 1998, when Queen Elizabeth II announced the government's plan of abolishing the right of hereditary peers to automatically sit in the House of Lords. A few Labour members of the House of Commons cried "yes" and "hear", prompting several of the Lords to shout "no" and "shame". The Queen continued delivering her speech without any pause, ignoring the intervention. The conduct of those who interrupted the speech was strongly criticised at the time.[17]

The Queen returns to Buckingham Palace in the Irish State Coach via Whitehall and Horse Guards in 2008.

The return procession crossing Horse Guards Parade in 2015.

Following the speech, the monarch and his or her retinue leave the chamber. The monarch bows to both sides of the House of Peers and then leaves the chamber, in the reverse order of the usual procession, before the Commons bow again and return to their Chamber.

After the departure of the monarch from the palace, each Chamber proceeds to the consideration of an "Address in Reply to His/ Her Majesty's Gracious Speech." But first, each House considers a bill pro forma to symbolise their right to deliberate independently of the monarch. In the House of Lords, the bill is called the Select Vestries Bill, while the Commons equivalent is the Outlawries Bill. The bills are considered for the sake of ceremony only, and do not make any actual legislative progress. For the address in reply, a chosen member moves "That an humble Address be presented to His Majesty, as follows". The following is the form used in the House of Lords and is nearly identical to that used in the House of Commons:

Most Gracious Sovereign, We, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled, beg leave to thank Your Majesty for the most gracious Speech which Your Majesty has addressed to both Houses of Parliament.[18]

The first speech of the debate in the Commons is, by tradition, a humorous one given by a member selected in advance. The consideration of the address in reply to the Throne Speech is the occasion for a debate on the Government's agenda. The debate on the Address in Reply is spread over several days. On each day, a different topic, such as foreign affairs or finance, is considered. The debate provides an indication of the views of Parliament regarding the government's agenda.

Following this debate, a vote is taken on the Government Programme. This vote is treated as a vote of no confidence and losing this vote will automatically trigger a general election. When the Fixed-term Parliaments Act was in force, a general election was not automatically triggered if the vote was lost.[19]

Since 1901, the monarch has opened Parliament in person on all but six occasions.[2] In 1929 and 1935 King George V was too ill to attend; in 1951 King George VI was too ill to attend; in 1959 and 1963 Queen Elizabeth II was pregnant and did not attend. In each of these years Lords Commissioners were appointed to preside over the opening, with the speech being read by the Presiding Commissioner (namely the Lord Chancellor). The speech was prefaced with the words:

"My Lords and Members of the House of Commons, We are commanded to deliver to you His/Her Majesty’s Speech in His/Her Majesty’s own words".[2]

In 2022, when the Queen was absent on the day due to 'episodic mobility problems', the heir-apparent to the throne and his elder son (the then Prince of Wales, now Charles III, and the Duke of Cambridge) were appointed to open Parliament as Counsellors of State, with the Prince of Wales reading the speech from the consort's throne on this occasion.

On certain occasions through history, some ceremonial aspects of the State Opening have been scaled back for specific reasons (including plague in 1593, threats of assassination in 1679, and war in 1939-1945).[2]

On three occasions in the reign of Queen Elizabeth II (in March 1974, June 2017 and December 2019), the State Opening has been conducted in a "dressed-down" manner, due to the snap general elections held in those years. On these occasions the Queen attended in day dress, rather than the traditional ceremonial robes of state; the Imperial State Crown was carried in front of the Queen, rather than worn; inside the Palace, there were reduced numbers in the procession; and outside, motor cars were used in place of horse-drawn carriages, no military escort accompanied them.[20] Otherwise, the ceremony remained largely the same.

In 2021, the ceremony was also scaled down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Queen arrived by car at Westminster, and seating was restricted – 74 were allowed in the Lords Chamber, whilst 34 further MPs and peers were able to participate from the gallery. The Queen also attended in day dress.[21] To prevent the spread of the virus, mask-wearing and testing was enforced, and the Lord Chancellor did not directly pass the speech to the Queen, but placed it on a table next to the throne.[22]

The State Opening in May 2022 also took place with reduced ceremonial, due to the Queen suffering 'episodic mobility problems' (which eventually led to her being absent on the day).[2]

Throughout the twentieth century (including in wartime) the State Opening took place on an annual basis, with the following exceptions:[23]

• There were two State Openings in 1914 (and no State Opening in 1915);
• There were two State Openings in 1921 (and no State Opening in 1923);
• There were two State Openings in 1924 (and no State Opening in 1925);
• There were two State Openings in 1948. On 24 June, it was announced that in order to secure the passing of the Parliament Bill, there would be a short session from 14 to 24 September, followed by an adjournment, then a new session from 26 October.[24] On 14 September the King opened Parliament with a very brief speech (just 74 words), announcing that the only business of the session would be the bill to amend the Parliament Act.[25] On 24 September it adjourned as planned, [26] and the new session was again opened by the King on 26 October.[27] The two weeks in September formed Parliament's shortest modern session.[28]
• There were two State Openings in 1974.

In the twenty-first century the State Opening continued on an annual basis up to and including 2010, since when the following situations occurred:

• There was no State Opening in 2011, as it was cancelled to ease the pressure for the planned introduction of legislation for fixed-term Parliaments;[29]
• There was no State Opening in 2018, as it was cancelled to lengthen the timeframe for the passing of Brexit-related legislation.[30]
• There were two State Openings in 2019 (and no State Opening in 2020).

The Opening of Parliament[31] began out of practical necessity. By the late 14th century, the manner in which the King gathered his nobles and representatives of the Commons had begun to follow an established pattern. First of all, Peers' names were checked against the list of those who had been summoned, and representatives of the Commons were checked against the sheriffs' election returns. The Peers were robed and sat in the Painted Chamber at Westminster; the Commons were summoned, and stood at the Bar (threshold) of the Chamber. A speech or sermon was then given (usually by the Lord Chancellor) explaining why Parliament had been summoned, after which the Lords and Commons went separately to discuss the business in hand. The monarch normally presided, not only for the Opening but also for the deliberations which followed (unless prevented by illness or other pressing matters).

In the Tudor period, the modern structure of Parliament began to emerge, and the monarch no longer attended during normal proceedings. For this reason, the State Opening took on greater symbolic significance as an occasion for the full constitution of the State (Monarch, Lords and Commons) to be seen. In this period, the parliamentary gathering began to be preceded by an open-air State Procession (which often attracted large numbers of onlookers): the Monarch, together with Household retinue, would proceed in State from whichever royal residence was being used, first to Westminster Abbey for a service (usually a Mass of the Holy Ghost, prior to the Reformation), and thence on foot (accompanied by the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in their robes) to the Palace of Westminster for the Opening itself.

Opening of Parliament by Henry VIII at Blackfriars in 1523; a contemporary illustration from the Wriothesley Garter Book

The Wriothesley Garter Book, a 1523 illustration by Thomas Wriothesley, depicts King Henry VIII seated in Parliament in that year. It shows a remarkable visual similarity between State Openings of the 16th and 21st centuries. In both cases, the monarch sits on a throne before the Cloth of Estate, crowned and wearing a crimson robe of state; at his right hand sit Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, Archbishop of York and Lord Chancellor, with arms above under a cardinal's hat, and William Warham, Archbishop of Canterbury, with arms above. Behind stands Cuthbert Tunstall, Bishop of London.[32] The Cap of Maintenance and Sword of State are borne by peers standing before the monarch on the left and right respectively; the Lord Great Chamberlain stands alongside, bearing his white wand of office, near the Garter King of Arms in his tabard displaying the royal arms (Thomas Wriothesley himself, the illustrator).[33] Members of the Royal retinue are arrayed behind the King (top right). In the main body of the Chamber, the Bishops are seated on benches to the King's right wearing their parliamentary robes, with the Mitred Abbots behind them. The Lords Temporal are seated to the King's left and on the cross-bench, the status of peers is indicated by the number of miniver bars (white fur edged with gold oak-leaf lace) on their peerage robes: 4 for a duke, 3½ for a marquess, 3 for an earl, 2½ for a viscount, and 2 for a baron. Thus there are 2 dukes, both wearing ducal coronets, the first holding a Marshal's Baton, thus he is the Duke of Norfolk, Earl Marshal of England. William Weston, Prior of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem, premier baron in the roll of peers, dressed in black, sits at the end of the cross-bench.[32] The judges (red-robed and coifed) are on the woolsacks in the centre (two Chief Justices, eight judges, and four Serjeants-at-Law[32]), and behind them kneel the clerks (with quills and inkpots). At the bottom of the picture members of the House of Commons can be seen behind the Bar of the House, with Thomas More,[32] Speaker of the House of Commons, in the centre, wearing his black and gold robe of state.

The Mitred Abbots were removed from Parliament at the time of the Reformation.

Queen Victoria Opening Parliament in 1845.

Since that time the ceremonial has evolved, but not dramatically. In 1679 neither the procession nor the Abbey service took place, due to fears of a Popish Plot; although the procession was subsequently restored, the service in the Abbey was not. The monarch's role in the proceedings changed over time: early on, the monarch would say some introductory words, before calling upon the Lord Chancellor (or Lord Keeper) to address the assembly. James I, however, was accustomed to speak at greater length himself, and sometimes dispensed with the Chancellor's services as spokesman. This varying pattern continued in subsequent reigns (and during the Commonwealth, when Cromwell gave the speech), but from 1679 onwards it became the norm for the monarch alone to speak. Since then, the monarch (if present) has almost invariably given the speech, with the exception of George I (whose command of English was poor) and Victoria (after the death of Prince Albert). A dramatic change was occasioned by the destruction of the old Palace of Westminster by fire in 1834; however, the new palace was designed with the ceremony of the State Opening very much in mind,[34] and the modern ceremony dates from its opening in 1852.[35] The entire State Opening of Parliament was filmed[36] and televised for the first time in 1958.[37]

In 1998, adjustments were made to the ceremonial inside Parliament to shorten the proceedings. The heralds, instead of processing with the monarch, arrived at Parliament earlier and had a separate procession. The number of court officials in the procession was reduced, including one of the ladies in waiting and the Crown Equerry. Also omitted were the three Heads of the Armed Services, represented instead by the Chief of the Defence Staff. Silver Stick in Waiting (the Commander of the Household Cavalry) no longer processed, although Gold Stick-in-Waiting (the honorary Colonel of the Household Cavalry) retained a place.[38]