Luxurious carriages, expensive jewels, guests in ceremonial dress and a large mobilization of law enforcement to ensure the event goes off without incident: the pomp of the coronation of King Charles III ignites Britons in the midst of the UK’s spending crisis. Great Britain Great Britain, especially since this time taxpayers will largely cover the costs of the event.

Unlike royal weddings, coronation ceremonies are paid for with public funds.

The cost of the event has not been disclosed, but there are estimates that say between 50 and 100 million pounds (57 – 114 million euros), to which are added costs related to security.

Double the cost of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation.

Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation was the most expensive ceremony ever held by a monarchy at the time, costing £1.57 million, or the equivalent of £56 million today, according to the New York Times. This time around, the higher price tag is being pushed to a security need that wouldn’t have been such a big concern a decade ago.

Charles’ grandfather, George VI, was crowned at a cost of £454,000 in 1937, which would be £24.8 million today.

According to a YouGov poll in April, 51% of Britons think the government should not fund coronations.

The total amount of money spent is not specified, but “the actual figures will be made public at a later date”, assured the spokesman of the Buckingham Palace. He wanted to balance those costs with the “huge economic stimulus” the event would provide. “Such a national event, a major state event, generates enormous global interest, which brings in more money than the associated costs,” he assured.

According to the British Beer and Pub Association, the coronation will generate £120 million in revenue for pubs who will be able to open longer hours for the event. The hotel sector, in turn, estimates revenues of £1 billion.

Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden recently assured that both the king and the government would ensure that the coronation celebrations were free of extravagance and excess. It has been announced that the ceremony will be more sober than the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, with around 2,000 people expected to attend the ceremony at Westminster Abbey, compared with 8,000 70 years ago.

The palace representative also said that the event was prepared “taking into account the fact that this is a time of economic hardship for many people, so savings were made in key areas – for example, the reuse of many objects/elements of the ceremony, rather than ordering brand new”.

It is Britain’s third high-profile event in less than a year, following the Queen’s platinum jubilee (70 years on the reign) in June and her funeral last September.