Crown Imperial is an orchestral march by the EnglishcomposerWilliam Walton. Walton derived the march's title from the line "In beawtie berying the crone imperiall" from William Dunbar's poem "In Honour of the City of London". The march was first performed at the coronation of King George VI in 1937 and was substantially revised in 1953. Walton originally composed the march for performance at the coronation of King Edward VIII, scheduled for 12 May 1937, but Edward abdicated in 1936. The coronation was held on the scheduled day, with Edward's brother being crowned instead. Crown Imperial was also performed at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, along with another Coronation March written by Walton, Orb and Sceptre. Crown Imperial was performed more recently as a recessional piece to the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton on 29 April 2011. The march was criticized as "unrepresentative of the composer" and "frankly a pastiche" of the "pomp and circumstance" style upon its premiere. The association with Sir Edward Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance Marches has continued, although the work has become popular. Adams, for example, describes it as an homage to Elgar and "the finest and most infectious of Walton's essays in that genre." One nickname for the march was "Pomp and Circumstance March No. 6". The march falls into an ABABC form. The march opens in C major over Waltonesque long pedal points, which build energy. The following strain, an Elgarian trio section, moves into A-flat major. Then both march and trio reappear in C again and come to a conclusion in a small heroic coda. It has been arranged for organ by Herbert Murrill and can be found as such in A Walton Organ Album, compiled by Robert Gower and published by Oxford University Press. Christopher Palmer prepared a version of Crown Imperial for solo organ, brass, timpani and percussion, specifically for the Laurence OlivierMemorial Service in October 1989. The composer's autograph manuscript score is located at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, at Yale University.
