The king came, walking among commoners seated on the floor, their feet bare or clad in compression stockings. His velvet and fur cloak was so long he stepped backwards from his polished black limousine, so two young attendants might hold aloft the train.

"Long live his majesty, long live the queen," cried some among the hundreds of Tongans gathered outside the church for a glimpse of their newly-minted monarch. Queen Nanasipau'u stepped behind him, with two waiting ladies in blue.

Their mid-morning coronation on Saturday was a largely Christian affair, Pachelbel's Canon coupled with traditional hymns from the Kingdom of Tonga. Crystal chandeliers shone from the ceiling of the Centenary Church, in the capital Nuku'alofa, for rows of royals and dignitaries, including Australian Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove.

Some in the congregation sported bicorn hats and silk breeches. Others wore black ostrich feathers. Or swords. Or three-piece suits.