Watched by the seated Queen Mary on the left, the kneeling Edward, Prince of Wales does homage to the newly crowned, seated King George V, his left hand clasped in those of the King; Officers of State and Church around with peers in the Transept.

The coronation of King George V took place at Westminster Abbey on June 22, 1911. Both Tuxen and John Henry Frederick Bacon were asked to record the event (see RCIN 407572). Once again Tuxen was seated towards the front of the Abbey, in a similar position to where he had observed and sketched the coronation of King Edward VII (RCINs 404466, 404487-8). He was clearly taken with the moment at which Edward, Prince of Wales kneels on the step, in front his father's throne, doing homage and suggested that this would make a good subject for a painting. King George V's diary reveals, too that he found this an emotional moment: 'I nearly broke down when dear David came to do homage to me…' However, the King also suggested a painting of the King and Queen seated, side by side (RCIN 407287). This change of mind may be following reflection on the trip to India to attend the Delhi Durbar. King George V now wanted his Queen, not as a shy spectator in the shadows, but as his steadfast consort, seated by his side. In this picture she is literally in the shadows, passively seated at a distance.

The Banqueting Hall at St James's Palace was made available to Tuxen to work in from 17 July 1911. However, by 4 October he was back in Copenhagen. Numerous sittings are recorded by the King and Queen in their diaries from late April, to early June 1912. The artist returned to Buckingham Palace at the end of June 1914 for the last time; there he added the missing portrait of Lord Kitchener, whom he had sketched previously in Egypt.

Text adapted from Laurits Tuxen: Portrait and History Painter, The National History Museum at Frederiksborg Castle, Denmark, 1990