State Opening of Parliament

The State Opening of Parliament is a ceremonial event which formally marks the beginning of a session of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It includes a speech from the throne known as the King's (or Queen's) Speech. The event takes place in the House of Lords chamber on the first day of a new session, which is usually in May or June, and traditionally in November, but can occur at any time of year depending on the timing of General Elections and parliamentary session start dates. It takes place in front of both Houses of Parliament. The monarch, wearing the Imperial State Crown, reads a speech that has been prepared by his or her government outlining its plans for that parliamentary year. The most recent ceremony was held on 10 May 2022. Queen Elizabeth II opened every session of Parliament during her reign, except in 1959, 1963, and 2022. In 1959 and 1963, she was pregnant with Prince Andrew and Prince Edward respectively and those two sessions were opened by Lords Commissioners, headed by the Archbishop of Canterbury (Geoffrey Fisher in 1959 and Michael Ramsey in 1963), empowered by the Queen. The Lord Chancellor (Viscount Kilmuir in 1959 and Lord Dilhorne in 1963) read the Queen's Speech on those occasions. The Queen also missed the 2022 State Opening on the advice of her doctors. That session was opened by her son Charles, Prince of Wales and her grandson Prince William, Duke of Cambridge who, in their capacity as Counsellors of State, were empowered to do so by Letters Patent issued by the Queen for the occasion, the Prince of Wales reading the Queen's Speech (from the consort's throne) on behalf of his mother. The State Opening of Parliament is a ceremony filled with historical ritual and symbolic significance for the governance of the United Kingdom.