As at least six people have been arrested in central London in connection with a protest organised by Republic ahead of King Charles’s coronation, here are some details on who the campaign group are and their background in demonstrating at royal events.
What is Republic?
Republic was set up in 1983 and was formally established as a campaign group in 2006 to lobby for the abolition of the monarchy. It would see King Charles III replaced with an elected head of state, for example, a president.
It argues that a system where power and patronage is based entirely on a hereditary monarchy is unfair and goes against democracy. In a statement on its website, the group says: “Because we can’t hold King Charles and his family to account at the ballot box, there’s nothing to stop them abusing their privilege, misusing their influence or simply wasting our money.”
It often gains publicity around royal events, with an increase in coverage ahead of Charles’s marriage to Camilla in 2005 – and rises in support in the early part of the 2010s when Prince William, the Prince of Wales married Kate Middleton, now Princess of Wales.
What other protests has Republic done?
Republic was hoping about 2,000 protesters would demonstrate in Trafalgar Square on Saturday during the coronation, holding up placards saying: “Not my king” and wearing T-shirts with the same slogan.
It has previously campaigned at royal events, including the diamond jubilee in 2012, where dozens of them held banners saying “citizen, not subject” on the banks of the River Thames during the pageant, where a flotilla of 1,000 boats sailed down the Thames and were inspected by the queen and Prince Philip.
Five years ago, Smith wrote to Thames Valley police asking that peaceful protests by the group be allowed in Windsor on the day the Duke and Duchess of Sussex married.
What did they do for the Queen’s funeral?
Despite its history of demonstrations during national royal ceremonies, Republic did not protest in the aftermath of the queen’s death last year. It said it would not have been “appropriate”, but said it wanted to represent those who were not mourning and would instead protest at royal occasions, including the coronation of King Charles.
Smith told the Guardian that the organisation gained 1,000 new members in the 10 days of reflection between the monarch’s death and her funeral in September, as well as raising about £70,000.
What had Republic said in the run-up to the coronation?
Smith told the Times in the weeks before the coronation that it would be the “largest protest action” in Republic’s 40-year history. He said he wanted to avoid any Extinction Rebellion-style protests because they were unhelpful, however he said he had discussed their plans with the police. “We have assurances about how they intend to police the event and the limits of their powers.”
Who is Graham Smith?
Smith, who was among the activists arrested on Saturday morning ahead of Charles’s coronation, has been CEO at Republic since 2005 after working for political parties in the UK and Australia.
In the weeks before the coronation, the 49-year-old told Time magazine that the coronation was a “pointless vanity parade”. He said: “[It’s] costing a quarter of a billion pounds for Charles to parade along and have a hat put on his head when we’re in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis – so it really isn’t acceptable.”
