King Charles III and the Queen Consort, Camilla, returned to York on Thursday to celebrate the annual Royal Maundy at the York Minster Cathedral. The first Maundy Thursday of his reign, the King chose York for the occasion, after visiting late last year to unveil a statue of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
The royals pulled up shortly before 11am, and headed inside the Minster where a well-dressed audience of Maundy recipients, minster staff and clergy sat waiting. These Royal Maundy recipients were senior citizens selected from across the country for their goodwill and dedication to service. The Royal Maundy, which has annually occurred since 1210, sees the monarch hand out money pouches to symbolise the servant leadership Jesus showed as he washed his disciples before the last supper.
In a conversation prior to the event, the Archbishop of Yorkshire highlighted the importance of the centuries old Maundy service. “It says something really important about service, about what we expect from our leaders. We want our leaders to have a servant heart. For the king this is deeply important for him. He understands, like his mother before him, that his role is to be of service.”
The Archbishop described his excitement for the whole event; “I’m looking forward to the whole thing. This is my first Royal Maundy. I’m looking forward to the giving of the maundy- the money is the heart of it. The crowds gathered, those bits either side of the service.”
The Dean of the Cathedral also shared in this excitement, looking forward to “a morning which is a great affirmation of the city and county of York, the importance of the north of England, and of course of this wonderful cathedral of which we are custodians.”
Thursday morning saw big crowds lining the streets around the Minster as press crews and police flocked into the city, ready for the hightened buzz of another Royal visit. Thousands gathered to catch a glimpse of their Royal Highnesses, and some lucky rows of onlookers even received handshakes upon their exit. One young recipient could be heard shouting “I’m never washing my hand again” admist excited chuckles. However, whilst generally excited, the crowd reactions were noticeably muted compared to November’s visit -cheering the King briefly- but putting more energy into booing a group of noisy protestors.
The protestors were dressed in yellow and carried signs stating “Not Our King”. Their chants of “Power to the People” and “God save the NHS”, which often reverberated when the Minister’s bells paused, received some backlash from the gathered masses, who at one point began singing “God Save The King” in opposition.
Security forces and police also kept a close eye on the small protest, having recently arrested egg-thrower Patrick Thelwell at the King’s last Yorkshire visit.
Inside the Minster, the Royal Maundy commenced, a procession of coin disrupting, musical accompainment and prayer. The service itself lasted about an hour, before the royal pair and accompaining Beefeaters remerged for a photo on the steps.
Head Virger Alex was present when the Queen last celebrated the maundy in York back in 2012 and noted, “For that particular hour we become the Chapel Royal.” While the service was planned by the Royal clergy, those participating from the York minster also received a special keepsake – “Those of us who take part receive a set of the maundy coins. The first one was minted with the King’s head on it.”
York Vision also spoke with some of the children and volunteers involved in orchestrating such a unique occasion. Ex-choristers Slyvia (15) and Noah (13) described their role in helping the Royal Wandsman in the service, described as a “once-in-a-lifetime moment.”
Slyvia was eager to see “all of the Minster community coming together for this brilliant event, it’s such an honour” and hoped to have a conversation with the king “In the flesh, have a conversation as a human. It would be really exciting.”
Noah looked forward to “being able to worship in such a grand space, with the king on a special occasion.”
Bell ringer David Hall described “It’s a real privilege to ring these bells and to ring them for the king. We don’t do anything differently when the king comes, but we will be a little more nervous and we want to make it sound as good as possible because there will be lots of people on the street listening.”
Fellow bell-ringer Gail Carter added,“We are aware that every time we ring it is a performance and half the city is listening.”
Following the Maundy Service the King and Queen Consort particpated in a handshake-driven walkabout on their way to the newly opened Minster Refectory for a reception and dedication ceremony.
Speaking with the refectory staff after the King’s departure, Vision gained a unique insight into this Royal reception. Executive Chef Joshua Brimmel described the canapes designed for the event, all with a ‘royal twist’. “10 canapes including Coronation crab, St George mushrooms, sweet Yorkshire pudding all with some really good quality ingredients.”
Chef Andrew Prone described his own meeting with the King on such a the unique occasion, “It was amazing to be honest. An amazing moment in our lifetimes. To do what we do, to be invited to the royal maundy and then to get the king to come and open our restaurant. It’s been a bit surreal, to be honest.”
“We discussed the apprenticeships we offer. We are very strong on that, promoting the staff internally, and giving them ownership. And The King is very passionate about that. I met him about 20 years ago, as a mere prince, and now we’ve both been promoted.”
Generally the Royal Maundy remained a joyful celebration for the Maundy recipients, Minster staff and the larger crowds of gathered onlookers. The return of the king, so shortly after his last visit, was an optimistic and exciting day for all of York, and hopefully for Charles and Camilla as well. Clearly at least one excited Maundy recipient agrees, exclaiming afterwards “I’m never going to forget this day. The day I met the king.”