Coronation celebrations

As it was the first coronation since the ending of the Second World War, the town decided to rejoice in such a way that all the misery and sadness of the war’s six years would be forgotten.

Basingstoke council pulled out all the stops and set about decorating the streets and Market Place, and arranging a whole week’s entertainment for its residents.

The mayor, Cllr Lionel John Stroud, was chosen as chairman of the executive committee in charge of the events which were planned to take place in the War Memorial Park.

The street decorations in the town consisted of two 20-foot-high triumphal arches, one of which was erected in London Street, outside the Deane’s Almshouses, and the other at the approach to Winton Square.

In the Market Place, a huge crown, 14 feet in diameter, was erected on a single column 25 feet above ground level, which made the whole structure 46 feet high.

Along the main shopping streets were some 84 banners and 42 crowns, while the Town Hall was also decorated.

On the Sunday before Coronation Day, the mayor and corporation led a parade of local groups, such as the Fire Service, Civil Defence, Red Cross and Scouts and Guides, to St Michael’s Church for a special service.

Afterwards, the mayor stepped into Church Square to formally open the Garden of Remembrance, which was laid out in memory of those who gave their lives during the Second World War.

In the weeks up to Coronation Day, each child attending school in the borough received a book entitled Elizabeth Our Queen in memory of the occasion, a memento which many local folk still have today.

The Coronation Day events began on June 2, at 2.30pm in the park, with a series of school sports. A large gathering of children and adults watched, although the weather was cloudy and damp. During the afternoon various events took place on the lawn near the municipal buildings, including dancing displays and gymnastics.

Music was played in the bandstand in the park by three local bands, the British Legion Military, The Tadley Silver and the Basingstoke Silver. Then, at 4.30pm, a children’s tea was arranged for all the schoolchildren of the borough in the park, with an assortment of drinks and food for both infants and older children. The town’s older folk were not forgotten, for they had their tea in Thornycroft’s canteen in Worting Road, with a concert to entertain them.

In the evening, a carnival procession assembled in Basing Road, then moved off through the town centre to the park. Crowds of people from the town and villages cheered the procession, with its decorated vehicles and gaily dressed people, to its destination in the park. The park keeper was worried that so many wheeled vehicles would leave ruts in the soft ground, but he was assured that all would be well.

Only a few grooves appeared in the turf in the end.

The day ended with an evening of performances in the park arena by various entertainers.

Then, at 10pm, a grand firework display took place, followed by a torchlight procession to Basingstoke Common to light a large bonfire.

Throughout the following week there were an assortment of events and competitions to keep the local folk happy, including a Mardi Gras on Thursday, June 4.

The town centre streets were closed to traffic and, after a session of community singing, people flocked in to dance to three different bands positioned in the Top of the Town.

Further events took place in the War Memorial Park on the Saturday, which began with a children’s fancy dress parade from Fairfields School to the park, and ended with a series of rodeo displays in the park arena. As darkness fell and people slowly wandered home, they chatted to each other and felt that the week’s events to celebrate the coronation went very well. Little did they realise that the Queen would still be on the throne 50 years later, and of all the world’s events that would take place during that half century.

Some of those people will remember 1953 for many things, but those born in Basingstoke have a memento of their birth, for the mayor presented each baby born on Coronation Day with a silver spoon, with the borough crest on it. So to those people who have those spoons – congratulations!