Hundreds of people braved the rain in Medway to watch the moment King Charles III was coronated yesterday.

The weather failed to dampen the mood as crowds sat in the lawns of Rochester Castle dressed in red, white and blue, cheering when the Archbishop of Canterbury crowed the new monarch.

They watched the historical moment as it was screened live sat under a sea of umbrellas.

Iza Oshea, 28, who watched wrapped in a Union flag – with a temporary tattoo of the King on her cheek, said: “We do not care about the rain, to watch it with the castle in the background is so cool, we love the King.”

There was groups hosting picnics, food and drink stalls, face painting, stilts walkers and other performers throughout the afternoon.

Those wanting to keep dry were invited into Rochester Cathedral to watch the ceremony where they enjoyed a massive community picnic on the Jubilee Oak table – a 5,000 year old black oak tree table dedicated to HM Queen Elizabeth II for her Platinum Jubilee.

An open top bus covered with the Union Jack also arrived at the celebrations with local families, deputy lieutenant of Kent Peter Gilbert, the Bishop of Rochester The Right Reverend Dr Jonathan Gibbs, Medway Council leader Alan Jarrett and town crier Mike Billingham.

With a mix of outfits, and plenty of Union flag hats, Mr Gilbert, 64, stood out from the crowd in his military dress.

He said: “I joined the Territorial Army when I was 17, and I spent essentially my whole life serving Queen Elizabeth II, so I feel very grateful, right at the end of my career to have the chance to serve the King.”

Of his favourite moment during the service, he added: “Before I was in the armed services, I was a cathedral chorister…so that moment when they came into the Abbey to the sound of Parry’s I Was Glad was absolutely extraordinary.”

Even those who were self-declared non-royalists had fun.

Joe Monahan, 40, who had come down from Hull to visit his family, said: “I am not a massive royalist but I have enjoyed the atmosphere.”

Mr Monahan, who was wrapped in a Union flag, added: “I quite like the pompousness of it all, the stupid costumes, I like it.

“The gospel choir was great, I enjoyed watching them, seeing a bit of diversity in there because obviously the royal family in the past did not have a lot of diversity.”

Across the county, street parties and screenings took place and more celebrations are set for the rest of the bank holiday weekend.

King Charles III was crowned at his coronation inside Westminster Abbey before a congregation of around 2,000 yesterday.

The ceremony, led in-part by the Archbishop of Canterbury, was attended by the royal family, the government, heads of state, royals from around the world, celebrities, sports people and representatives from charities, the NHS and veteran organisations.

It was both a religious ceremony and an act of tradition that cemented the new monarch's role as head of the Church of England and marked the transfer of titles and powers to them.

He ascended the throne when his mother, Queen Elizabeth, died last September.

The centuries-old ceremony is believed to have attracted a global TV audience into the billions whil hundreds of thousands lined the route between the abbey and Buckingham Palace.

In the afternoon, the King and Queen Consort traveled back to the palace and appeared on its famous balcony with other members of the Royal Family to watch a military flypast.