A Guide to the King’s Speech: Crown Jewels, Black Rod and a Mace

A “hostage,” a search for explosives, heaps of royal jewels and a five-foot silver gilt mace. Welcome to the reopening of Britain’s Parliament, replete with ancient traditions and elaborate rituals, and infused with anticipation over the country’s newly elected Labour government.

The restart of parliamentary business on Wednesday will begin with a speech by King Charles III, a significant ceremonial duty that sets out the government’s agenda. While it’s not the first time King Charles has presided over the ceremony — he delivered his first King’s Speech last November, and he delivered the Queen’s Speech on behalf of his mother, Elizabeth II, in 2022 — it is the first time his speech will herald a new party’s time in power.

Despite the name, the speech is not written by the king, but by government officials. The monarch just reads it out.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party, which won a landslide victory in a general election earlier this month, is expected to announce more than 35 proposed pieces of legislation on issues including housing, energy, transport and the makeup of the House of Lords. During the election campaign, Labour pledged to phase out hereditary peers — 92 members of the House of Lords who inherit their seats in Parliament from their fathers — as part of a broader modernization of the second chamber.

The opening will be rife with ceremony and symbolism, all of it steeped in history — with some elements dating back to the Middle Ages. Here is a guide.

A Gaslit Hunt for Explosives

Some elements of Parliament’s reopening happen behind the scenes, including a ceremonial search of the cellars of government buildings for explosives.