Tuesday, 02 May 2023
The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Nottingham, Professor Shearer West, offered her congratulations on behalf of the university to King Charles III, together with a unique gift to celebrate his Coronation.
Professor Shearer West said: “The university community extends our congratulations and best wishes to His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty The Queen Consort on the occasion of their Coronation. We look forward to celebrating this historic event and wish them both every success in their reign.”
The Coronation
The Coronation is centred on a religious ceremony and has remained largely unchanged for more than a thousand years. For the last 900 years, the ceremony has taken place at Westminster Abbey in London and is conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
The Coronation of a new sovereign takes place in the months after their accession, following a period of mourning. In a similar but simpler ceremony, the Queen Consort will also be crowned alongside His Majesty The King as part of the service on Saturday 6 May 2023 at Westminster Abbey.
The Coronation is a time for celebration and a weekend of national events has been planned:
· Saturday 6 May the Coronation Ceremony takes place at Westminster Abbey, London.
· 6-8 May Coronation Big Lunches up and down the country and across the Commonwealth.
· Sunday May 7 a Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle with locations across the UK lit up using projections, lasers, drone displays and illuminations.
· Monday 8 May a special Bank Holiday in honour of the Coronation, giving everyone the opportunity to join in with their communities and good causes through Big Help Out activities.
The Nanoscale and Microscale Research Centre team have etched the names of all the Windsor monarchs, from George V to King Charles III, with the dates of their Coronations onto an uncirculated Charles III 50p coin.
A Coronation gift
The University of Nottingham’s Nanoscale and Microscale Research Centre and Precision Manufacturing Centre have made a special gift for the King to celebrate his Coronation.
The Nanoscale and Microscale Research Centre team have etched the names of all the Windsor monarchs, from George V to King Charles III, with the dates of their Coronations onto an uncirculated Charles III 50p coin.
The microscale etching has features that are only 3 microns wide which is 25 times smaller than the width of a human hair. It was created using a Focussed Ion Beam Scanning Electron Microscope.
A floating coin holder engraved with the University of Nottingham logo was also manufactured by the team to display the coin. It will be sent to the King and a copy will be displayed at the Nanoscale and Microscale Research Centre from 6 May.
The team previously etched birthday wishes for Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday on a corgi hair. The message was preserved in a tiny glass corgi made by Clive Dixon, the University of Nottingham glassblower, and sent to the Palace.
Royal History
In November 2017, we welcomed His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales to the University of Nottingham Malaysia campus as part of his first visit to the country.
He launched the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Summit and met with staff and students to learn about the university’s work on sustainability and environmental education. He also met with representatives of student societies aiming to making a difference in the local community.
The visit focused on research into ‘forgotten foods’ and an official launch of a new platform for sharing information on foods, recipes and traditions that are in danger of being lost.
The University of Nottingham royal links go right back to 1928, when King George V officially opened the Trent Building on University Park.
It was Queen Elizabeth II’s reign that has had the biggest impact on our university’s history. The Queen officially opened the new Queen’s Medical Centre on 28 July 1977, which was the biggest purpose-built hospital in Europe at the time, with 27 miles of corridors.
In 1981, the Queen unveiled a plaque on campus to commemorate the centenary of the foundation of University College, and in 1999 the Queen returned to open the initial phase of the university’s Jubilee campus.
(First image, top left.) When the new Queen’s Medical Centre was officially opened by The Queen on 28 July 1977, it was the biggest purpose-built hospital in Europe with 27 miles of corridors.
(Next 2 images) The Queen came to visit The University of Nottingham again in 1981. Her Majesty unveiled a plaque to commemorate the centenary of the foundation of University College. In the photographs above she is pictured en route to Hallward Library, chatting to the then-Vice-Chancellor and leading a procession of dignitaries.
(Next image) The Queen returned in 1999 to open the initial phase of the University’s Jubilee campus. The campus has grown tremendously over the years and is now home to the School of Education, Computer Science, the Business School and Innovation Park. The engaging photograph above captures Her Majesty sharing a joke and taking tea with staff and students.
(Final 2 images) During celebrations for her 90th birthday scientists based in the new Nanoscale and Microscale Research Centre in the School of Chemistry etched their birthday wishes on a corgi hair. The hair was kindly donated by Cracker and CJ – two corgis living in Nottinghamshire who are from the same blood line as the Queen’s corgis.
The message was preserved in a tiny glass corgi specially made by Clive Dixon, The University of Nottingham glassblower and sent to the Palace where it has been kept to posterity in the Royal Library.
During her 70-year reign the Queen has celebrated dozens of University staff and academics with birthday and New Year Honours, including most recently Sir Jonathan Van Tam, Professor Robert Mokaya and Professor Tony Avery.
Notes to editors:
About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 32 in Europe and 16th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings: Europe 2024, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the second most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
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