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Monarchy of Canada

The monarchy of Canada, also known as the Canadian monarchy, is a constitutional system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of Canada, forming the core of the country's Westminster style parliamentary democracy. The terms Crown in Right of Canada, Her Majesty in Right of Canada, or The Queen in Right of Canada may also be used to refer to the entire executive of the government of Canada. Though the Canadian Crown has its roots in the French and British Crowns, it has evolved over the centuries to become a distinctly Canadian institution, represented by unique symbols, and sometimes being colloquially dubbed the Maple Crown; a term first coined by Governor General Lord Grey in 1905.

The present monarch is Elizabeth II officially titled Queen of Canada (Reine du Canada) who has reigned since February 6, 1952. She, her consort and other members of the Canadian Royal Family undertake various public and private functions across Canada and on behalf of the country abroad. However, the Queen is the only member of the Royal Family with any constitutional role, holding ultimate executive authority, though her Royal Prerogative remains bound by laws enacted by her in parliament and by conventions and precedents, leaving the day-to-day exercise of executive power to her Cabinet. While several powers are the sovereign's alone, most of the royal constitutional and ceremonial duties in Canada are carried out by the Queen's representative, the Governor General; as such, the Governor General can sometimes be referred to as the de facto head of state. In each of Canada's provinces the monarch is represented by a lieutenant governor. The territories are not sovereign, and thus do not have a viceroy.

The Canadian monarch, besides reigning in Canada, separately serves as monarch for each of fifteen other Commonwealth countries known as Commonwealth realms. This developed from the former colonial relationship of these countries to Britain, but they are now independent and the monarchy of each is legally distinct.

International and domestic aspects

Further information: Commonwealth realm: The Crown in the Commonwealth realms

Canada, as one of the Commonwealth realms, is in personal union with fifteen other states within the 53-member Commonwealth of Nations, Though they have the same person as their respective monarch, each country is sovereign and independent of the others, meaning the Canadian monarchy has both a separate and a shared character, and the monarchy has also thus ceased to be an exclusively British institution, although it has often been called British since this time (in both legal and common language) for reasons historical, political, and of convenience. On all matters of the Canadian state, the monarch is advised solely by Canadian federal Ministers of the Crown, and, effective with the Constitution Act, 1982, no British or other realm government can advise the monarch on any matters pertinent to Canada.

Given these arrangements, it is considered impossible for the monarch of Canada to receive an ambassador from, or send an ambassador to, any country of which he or she is also monarch; essentially sending an ambassador to him or herself. Instead, the practice of sending High Commissioners developed, wherein an individual is sent to be a representative in one realm of the government in another.

Title and style

The shared and domestic aspects of the Crown are also highlighted in the sovereign's Canadian title, currently Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom, Canada and Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith (Elizabeth Deux, par la grâce de Dieu, Reine du Royaume-Uni, du Canada et de ses autres royaumes et territoires, Chef du Commonwealth, Défenseur de la Foi). The sovereign's role specifically as Queen of Canada, as well as her status as monarch of other nations, is communicated by mentioning Canada separately from, but along with, the Queen's other lands. Typically, the sovereign is styled Queen of Canada, and is addressed as such when in Canada or performing duties on behalf of Canada abroad. Also, although the Queen's Canadian titles include "Defender of the Faith/Défenseur de la Foi," neither the Queen nor any of her governors has any religious role in Canada; there have never been any established churches in Canada.

Finance

The sovereign only draws from Canadian coffers for support in the performance of her duties when in Canada or acting as Queen of Canada abroad; Canadians do not pay any money to the Queen, either towards personal income or to support royal residences outside of Canada. This applies equally to other members of the Royal Family. Normally, tax dollars pay only for the costs associated with the Governor General and ten Lieutenant Governors in the exercise of the powers of the Crown, including travel, security, residences, offices, ceremonies, and the like.

The provincial and federal governments keep records of expenditures associated with the Crown, but no official report on the full cost of the monarchy is compiled. Every three years, the Monarchist League of Canada issues a survey, based on the various federal and provincial budgets, expenditures and estimates, that outlines a yearly cost for the functioning of the Crown. The 2005 survey found that the institution cost Canadians roughly $49 million in 2004. Previous surveys found that the overall cost of the Canadian Crown was $22 million in 1999, and $34 million in 2002. (This does not take into account the inflation of the Canadian Dollar over these years.)

Succession

Succession is by male-preference primogeniture governed by the provisions of the Act of Settlement, 1701, and the Bill of Rights, 1689. This legislation limits the succession to the natural (i.e. non-adopted), legitimate descendants of Sophia, Electress of Hanover, and stipulates that the monarch cannot be a Roman Catholic, nor married to one, and must be in communion with the Church of England upon ascending the throne, clauses that have led to legal challenge. Though these constitutional laws, as they apply to Canada, now lie within the control of the Canadian parliament, via adopting the Statute of Westminster Canada agreed not to change its rules of succession without the unanimous consent of the other realms, unless explicitly leaving the shared monarchy relationship; a situation that applies symmetrically in all the other realms, including the United Kingdom, and which has been likened to a treaty amongst these countries. Thus, Canada's line of succession remains identical to that of the United Kingdom; however, there is no provision in Canadian law that states the King or Queen of Canada must be the same person as the King or Queen of the United Kingdom; if the United Kingdom were to breach the convention set out in the preamble to the Statute of Westminster and change the line of succession to the British throne without Canada's consent, the alteration would have no effect on the reigning sovereign of Canada or his or her heirs and successors. As such, the rules for succession are not fixed, but may be changed by a constitutional amendment.

Upon a demise of the Crown (the death or abdication of a sovereign) it is customary for the accession of the new monarch to be publicly proclaimed by the Governor General, on behalf of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada, which meets at Rideau Hall after the accession. Ted McWhinney theorised that failure to make this proclamation would result in an empty throne for Canada, leaving the Governor General as full head of state; however, the proposal was met with criticism from legal experts. Regardless of any proclamations, the late sovereign's heir immediately and automatically succeeds, without any need for confirmation or further ceremony; hence arises the phrase "The King is dead. Long live the King!" Following an appropriate period of mourning, the monarch is also crowned in the United Kingdom, though this ritual is not necessary for a sovereign to reign; for example, Edward VIII was never crowned, yet was undoubtedly king during his short time on the throne. All incumbent viceroys, judges, civil servants, legislators, military officers, etc., are not affected by the death of the monarch, as per the 1927 Act Respecting the Demise of the Crown, though they are required to re-take the Oath of Allegiance. After an individual ascends the throne, he or she typically continues to reign until death. Monarchs are not allowed to unilaterally abdicate; the only Canadian monarch to abdicate, Edward VIII, did so with the authorization of the Canadian government granted in His Majesty's Declaration of Abdication Act, 1936. A special Act of Canadian Parliament – the Succession to the Throne Act, 1937 – later confirmed this in law.

Personification of the state

Prior to the reign of George VI, when Canadians were still, both by law and personal view, British subjects, the monarchy was viewed as a predominantly or purely British institution. However, paralleling the changes in constitutional law and the evolution of Canadian nationalism, the cultural role of the monarchy in Canada altered. Since that time, the federal and provincial governments have recognized and promoted the sovereign's role as monarch of Canada as separate to his or her position as monarch of the United Kingdom. The first shifts were seen during the 1939 royal tour of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, when Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King desired that the King perform duties specifically as King of Canada, and travel to the United States in the same capacity. and John Diefenbaker directed Queen Elizabeth II to do the same in order to demonstrate Canada's sovereignty from the United Kingdom. Also, from the beginning of Elizabeth's reign onwards, royal symbols in Canada were altered or new ones created to make them distinctly Canadian, such as the sovereign's Canadian royal standard, instituted in 1962, and the augmentation of the Royal Arms of Canada in 1994.

Today the sovereign is regarded as the personification, or legal personality, of the Canadian state, described by the Department of Canadian Heritage as the "personal symbol of allegiance, unity and authority for all Canadians," a concept akin to that expressed in the statement by King Louis XIV: "l'État, c'est moi", or, "I am the state. Elizabeth II said in 1973: "But it is as Queen of Canada that I am here, Queen of Canada and of all Canadians, not just of one or two ancestral strains. I want the Crown to be seen as a symbol of national sovereignty belonging to all. It is not only a link between Commonwealth nations, but between Canadian citizens of every national origin and ancestry," while Robertson Davies stated in 1994: "the Crown is the consecrated spirit of Canada. Therefore, the state is referred to as Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada (French: Sa Majesté la Reine du chef du Canada), and likewise for the provinces. (e.g., in Right of Ontario, etc.). For example, if a lawsuit is filed against the federal government, the respondent is formally described as Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, or simply Regina. Likewise, in a case in which a party sues both the province of Saskatchewan and the federal government, the respondents would formally be called Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Saskatchewan and Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada. All Canadians live under the authority of the Crown, and anyone born in Canada, whether to citizens or to landed migrants, is recognised as a natural-born subject of the Crown, as per common law.

As such, the monarch is the owner of all state lands (called Crown land), buildings and equipment (called Crown held property), state owned companies (called Crown Corporations), and the copyright for all government publications (called Crown copyright), as well as guardianship of foster children (called Crown wards), either as Queen in Right of Canada or of a relevant province, in his or her position as sovereign, and not as an individual. Government staff are also employed by the monarch; the Supreme Court found in the 1980 case Attorney General of Quebec v. Labrecque that civil servants in Canada are not contracted by an abstraction called "the state," but rather they are employed by the monarch, who "enjoys a general capacity to contract in accordance with the rule of ordinary law. This situation is similar for the governors, judges, members of the Canadian Forces, police officers, and parliamentarians, who all technically work for the monarch. In this role, the monarch is the locus of oaths of allegiance; it states in the Rules & Forms of the House of Commons of Canada that "allegiance to the King means allegiance to the Country. Hence, many employees of the Crown are required by law to recite the Oath of Allegiance before taking their posts, though the 2003 Public Services Modernization Act ended the requirement of civil servants to swear allegiance to the Queen. Also, by the Citizenship Act, new citizens also must swear allegiance to the monarch in the Oath of Citizenship, in reciprocation to the sovereign's Coronation Oath, wherein he or she promises "to govern the Peoples of ... Canada ... according to their respective laws and customs".

Past Ontario chairman of the Monarchist League of Canada Gary Toffoli stated: "The Queen is the legal embodiment of the state at both the national and the provincial levels. There is no other legal embodiment. That is why the oath is taken to the Queen. It is not taken because she is an admirable person in her own right or because it is a nice tradition to maintain. It is taken to the Queen because she is our sovereign and it is the role of the Queen, recognized by the constitutional law of Canada, to embody the state.

Constitutional role

Canada's constitution is made up of a variety of statutes and conventions that are either British or Canadian in origin, which gives Canada a similar parliamentary system of government to the other Commonwealth realms, wherein the role of the Queen and the Governor General is both legal and practical. The Crown is regarded as a corporation, in which several parts share the authority of the whole, with the Queen as the person at the centre of the constitutional construct, meaning all powers of state are constitutionally reposed in the monarch, who is represented in the federal sphere by the Governor General appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Prime Minister of Canada and in the provincial areas by lieutenant governors appointed by the Governor General upon the advice of the Prime Minister, usually in consultation with the relevant provincial premier, and the monarch is informed of the Prime Minister's decision before the Governor General gives Royal Assent. Most of the Queen's domestic duties are performed by these vice-regal representatives, though she is briefed through regular communications from her Canadian ministers, and holds audience with them whenever possible.

All institutions of government are said to act under the sovereign's authority; the vast powers that belong to the Crown are collectively known as the Royal Prerogative. Parliamentary approval is not required for the exercise of the Royal Prerogative; moreover, the consent of the Crown must be obtained before either of the houses of parliament may even debate a bill affecting the sovereign's prerogatives or interests. While the Royal Prerogative is extensive, it is not unlimited; for example, the monarch does not have the prerogative to impose and collect new taxes such an action requires the authorization of an Act of Parliament. Further, the constitution instructs that any change to the position of the monarch, or the monarch's representatives in Canada, requires the consent of the Senate, the House of Commons, and the legislative assemblies of all the provinces. The government of Canada is also thus formally referred to as Her Majesty's Government.

Executive (Queen-in-Council)

In Canada's constitutional system, one of the main duties of the Crown is to appoint a prime minister, who thereafter heads the Cabinet and advises the monarch and Governor General on how to execute their executive powers over all aspects of government operations and foreign affairs. Though the monarch's power is still a part of the executive process the operation of the Cabinet is technically known as the Queen-in-Council (or Governor-in-Council) the advice tendered is typically binding. Since the death of Queen Anne in 1714, the last monarch to head the British Cabinet (when almost all of Canada was still French colonial territory), the monarch reigns but does not rule; in Canada, this has been true since the Treaty of Paris ended the reign of Canada's last absolute monarch, King Louis XV. This means that the monarch's role, and thereby the viceroys' role, is almost entirely symbolic and cultural, acting as a symbol of the legal authority under which all governments and agencies operate, while the Cabinet directs the use of the Royal Prerogative, which includes the privilege to declare war, maintain the Queen's peace, and direct the actions of the Canadian Forces, as well as to summon and prorogue parliament, and call elections. However, it is important to note that the Royal Prerogative belongs to the Crown, and not to any of the ministers, though it may sometimes appear that way, and the royal figures may unilaterally use these powers in exceptional constitutional crisis situations, such as when Governor General Julian Byng refused a request by Prime Minister Mackenzie King for a dissolution of parliament and call for new elections, resulting in the King-Byng Affair. Also, Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, John C. Bowen, in 1937 refused to grant Royal Assent to three bills passed by William Aberhart's Social Credit government on the grounds that they were unconstitutional, and Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan Frank Lindsay Bastedo reserved Royal Assent to a bill in 1961, passing it on, instead, to the Governor General for consideration. There are also a few duties which must be specifically performed by, or bills that require assent by, the Queen. These include signing the appointment papers of Governors General, the confirmation of awards of Canadian honours, and the approval of any change in her Canadian title. On occasion the monarch must personally act directly in partisan affairs. For example, this occurred when Queen Elizabeth II directed, on the advice of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, that the number of Senate seats be increased to assure passage of the GST.

In accordance with convention, the monarch or Governor General, to maintain the stability of government, must appoint as prime minister the individual most likely to maintain the support of the House of Commons: usually the leader of the political party with a majority in that house, but also when no party or coalition holds a majority (referred to as a minority government situation), or other scenarios in which the Governor General's judgement about the most suitable candidate for prime minister has to be brought into play. The Governor General also appointes to Cabinet the other ministers of the Crown, who are, in turn, accountable to the democratically elected House of Commons, and through it, to the people. The Queen is informed by her viceroy of the acceptance of the resignation of a prime minister and the swearing-in of a new prime minister and other members of the ministry, and she remains fully briefed through regular communications from her Canadian ministers, and holds audience with them where possible.

Members of various executive agencies, and other officials are appointed by the Crown. The commissioning of lieutenant governors, privy councillors, senators, the Speaker of the Senate, Supreme Court justices, and Superior and County Court judges in each province also falls under the Royal Prerogative, though these duties are specifically assigned to the Governor General by the Constitution Act, 1867, save for the appointment of judges to the Courts of Probate in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Public inquiries are also commissioned by the Crown through a Royal Warrant, and are called Royal Commissions.

Foreign affairs

The Royal Prerogative also extends to foreign affairs: the sovereign or Governor General negotiates and ratifies treaties, alliances, and international agreements. As with other uses of the Royal Prerogative, no parliamentary approval is required; however, a treaty cannot alter the domestic laws of Canada; an Act of Parliament is necessary in such cases. The Governor General, on behalf of the Queen, also accredits Canadian High Commissioners and ambassadors, and receives diplomats from foreign states. These tasks were solely in the domain of the sovereign until 1977, when, at the direction of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, Queen Elizabeth II agreed to allow the Governor General to perform these duties on her behalf, and in 2005 the Letters of Credence and Recall were altered so as to run in the name of the incumbent governor general, instead of following the usual international process of the letters being from one head of state to another. In addition, the issuance of passports falls under the Royal Prerogative, and, as such, all Canadian passports are issued in the monarch's name.

Parliament (Queen-in-Parliament)

The sovereign, along with the Senate and the House of Commons, is one of the three components of parliament, called the Queen-in-Parliament. The authority of the Crown therein is embodied in the mace for each house, which both bear a crown at their apex. The monarch and viceroy do not, however, participate in the legislative process save for the granting of Royal Assent. Further, the Constitution Act, 1867, outlines that the Governor General alone is responsible for summoning the House of Commons, though it remains the monarch's prerogative to prorogue, and dissolve parliament, after which the writs for a general election are usually dropped by the Governor General at Rideau Hall. The new parliamentary session is marked by the State Opening of Parliament, during which either the monarch or the Governor General reads the Speech from the Throne. As the monarch and viceroy cannot enter the House of Commons, this, as well as the bestowing of Royal Assent, takes place in the Senate chamber; Members of Parliament are summoned to these ceremonies from the Commons by the Crown's messenger, the Usher of the Black Rod, after he knocks on the doors of the lower house that have been slammed closed on him, to symbolise the barring of the monarch from the Commons.

All laws in Canada are enacted only with the viceroy's, or sovereign's, granting of Royal Assent; usually done by the Governor General or relevant Lieutenant Governor, with the Great Seal of Canada or the appropriate provincial seal. Thus, all federal bills begin with the phrase "Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows, There is some debate over whether the monarch is constitutionally allowed to personally grant Royal Assent to provincial bills, however, he or she can do so for the federal parliament (as George VI did in 1939), and the Governor General may defer Royal Assent to the sovereign. A Lieutenant Governor of a province may similarly defer to the Governor General, who may in turn defer to the monarch, who has the power to disallow any bill, within a time limit specified by the constitution. Recently, activists opposed to Bill C-38 lobbied Queen Elizabeth II to disallow the legislation after it was passed by parliament. However, it received Royal Assent from Beverley McLachlin, then Deputy of the Governor General, on July 20, 2005. Territorial legislatures, unlike their provincial counterparts, are subject to the oversight of the Government of Canada.

Courts (Queen-on-the-Bench)

The sovereign is deemed the fount of justice, and is responsible for rendering justice for all subjects, known in this role as the Queen on the Bench. However, he or she does not personally rule in judicial cases; instead, judicial functions are performed in his or her name. Hence, the common law holds that the sovereign "can do no wrong"; the monarch cannot be prosecuted in his or her own courts for criminal offences. Civil lawsuits against the Crown in its public capacity (that is, lawsuits against the government) are permitted; however, lawsuits against the monarch personally are not cognizable. In international cases, as a sovereign and under established principles of international law, the Queen of Canada is not subject to suit in foreign courts without her express consent. The sovereign, and by extension the Governor General, also exercises the royal prerogative of mercy, and may pardon offences against the Crown, either before, during, or after a trial.

In addition, the monarch also serves as a symbol of the legitimacy of courts of justice, and of their judicial authority. An image of the Queen or the Arms of Her Majesty in Right of Canada is always displayed in Canadian courtrooms; exceptions are the courts of British Columbia, the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador, and some of the courts of Ontario, where the Arms of Her Majesty in Right of the United Kingdom are displayed as a symbol of the judiciary. Itinerant judges will display an image of the Queen and the Canadian flag when holding a session away from established courtrooms; such situations occur in parts of Canada where the stakeholders in a given court case are too isolated geographically to be able to travel for regular proceedings.

Provinces

The Canadian monarchy is a federal one in which the Crown is unitary across the country, with the headship of state being a part of neither the federal nor provincial jurisdictions, meaning the sovereignty of the provinces is passed on not by the Governor General or the Canadian parliament, but through the Crown itself. This means that, though unitary, the Crown is "divided" into eleven legal jurisdictions; into eleven "crowns" one federal and ten provincial. The Fathers of Confederation viewed this system of constitutional monarchy as a bulkwark against any potential fracturing of the Canadian federation.

A Lieutenant Governor serves as the Queen's representative in each province, carrying out all the monarch's constitutional and ceremonial duties of state on her behalf. The Commissioners of Canada's territories of Nunavut, Yukon, and Northwest Territories are appointed by the Governor-in-Council, at the recommendation of the federal Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, but, as the territories are not sovereign entities, the commissioners are not representatives of the sovereign.

Cultural role

Royal presence and duties

Members of the Royal Family have been present in Canada since the late 1700s, on military maneuvers, for official tours, or as the vice-regal representative of the British, and later Canadian monarch. Today, though the monarch and the rest of the Royal Family live predominantly in the United Kingdom, members visit regularly enough that, on occasion, royal tours of Canada are also referred to by monarchists as "Royal Homecomings". It was also in Canada that the tradition of the royal walkabout was initated by Queen Elizabeth, in 1939, when she spontaneously broke from the royal party and walked over to speak directly to gathered veterans; since that time, the walkabout has become a core feature of most public royal events. Usually important milestones, anniversaries, or celebrations of Canadian culture will warrant the presence of the monarch, while other royals will be asked to participate in lesser occasions. In these instances, when acting at the direction of the Canadian Cabinet, they are doing so as monarch of Canada and members of the Canadian Royal Family, respectively, and will carry out two types of duties:

Official duties involve the sovereign representing the state at home or abroad, or other Royal Family members participating in a government organised ceremony either in Canada or elsewhere. At present, the Department of Canadian Heritage, specifically the Chief of Protocol, is responsible for organizing official events in Canada that involve the Royal Family, as part of the State Ceremonial and Canadian Symbols Program. A household to assist and tend to the monarch also forms part of the royal party. The sovereign and/or his or her family have participated in events such as various centennials and bicentennials; Canada Day; the openings of Pan American, Olympic, and other games; anniversaries of First Nations treaty signings; award ceremonies; D-Day commemorations; anniversaries of the monarch's accession; and the like. Also, though the sovereign and his or her family more frequently represent the UK abroad, as directed by the British Cabinet, and typically the Governor General, as representative of the monarch, will undertake state visits and other foreign duties on behalf of Canada, the Royal Family will take part in Canadian events overseas; for instance, King Edward VIII dedicated the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in France; George VI and his wife visited the United States as King and Queen of Canada; and Queen Elizabeth II has undertaken duties on behalf of Canada in the US, the United Kingdom, and France. Other royals have participated in Canadian ceremonies or undertaken duties abroad, such as Prince Charles at the anniversary of D-Day in France, and Prince Edward at the anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele in Belgium, and Prince Andrew meeting with Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

Unofficial duties are performed by Royal Family members on behalf of Canadian organizations of which they may be patrons, through their attendance at charity events, visiting with members of the Canadian Forces as Colonel-in-Chief, or marking certain key anniversaries. The invitation and expenses associated with these undertakings are usually borne by the associated organization. In 2002 members of the Royal Family were present at a total of 117 Canadian engagements, 57 events in 2003, 19 in 2004, and 76 in 2005.

Apart from Canada, the Queen and other members of the Royal Family regularly perform public duties in the other fifteen nations of the Commonwealth in which the Queen is head of state. As the Crown within these countries is a legally separate entity from the Canadian Crown, it is funded in these countries individually, through the ordinary legislative budgeting process. This situation, however, can mean the monarch and/or members of the Royal Family will be promoting one nation and not another; a situation that has been met with criticism.

Symbols, associations, awards

The main symbol of the monarchy is the sovereign herself, described as "the personal expression of the Crown in Canada. Thus, her image appears on currency, and in portraits in public buildings, and she is mentioned in, and the subject of, songs, toasts, and salutes. A crown is also used to illustrate the monarchy as the locus of authority, appearing on decorations and honours, provincial and national coats of arms, and police force and Canadian Forces regimental and maritime badges and rank insignia.

Victoria Day marks the reigning sovereign's official birthday in Canada. and there are hundreds of places named for Canadian monarchs and members of the Royal Family all across Canada; no individual has been more honoured in this way than Queen Victoria. There also exist hundreds of statues of, and monuments to, Canada's monarchs, usually on the grounds of government buildings or in large public parks. As well, the Royal Swans live in Ottawa; of two varieties (the Mute Swan, and Black Swan), the original six pairs of birds were a gift to the city from Queen Elizabeth II in 1967, to commemorate the Canadian Centennial. Since then, the number of Royal Swans has increased, such that they now occupy the waters of the Rideau River between Carlton University and Cummings Bridge.

Besides government and military institutions, a number of Canadian civilian organizations have association with the monarchy, either through their being founded via a Royal Charter (such as the Hudson's Bay Company, the city of Saint John, New Brunswick, Scouts Canada, and McGill University.), having been granted the right to use the prefix royal before their name (such as the Royal Ottawa Golf Club and the Royal Canadian Regiment), or because at least one member of the Royal Family serves as a patron.

Some charities and volunteer organizations have also been founded as gifts to, or in honour of, some of Canada's monarchs or members of the Royal Family, such as the Victorian Order of Nurses (a gift to Queen Victoria for her Diamond Jubilee in 1897), the Canadian Cancer Fund (set up in honour of King George V's Silver Jubilee in 1935), and the Queen Elizabeth II Fund to Aid in Research on the Diseases of Children.

A number of awards in Canada are issued in the name of previous or present members of the Royal Family.

History

The current Canadian monarchy can trace its ancestral lineage back to the Anglo-Saxon period, and ultimately back to the kings of the Angles and the early Scottish kings. The Crown in Canada specifically has grown over the centuries since parts of the territories that today comprise Canada were claimed under King Francis I in 1534, while others were claimed by Queen Elizabeth I in 1583; both of whom are blood relatives of the current monarch. Though the first French and British colonizers of Canada interpreted the hereditary nature of some indigenous North American chieftainships as a form of monarchy, it is generally accepted that Canada has been the territory of a monarch, or a monarchy in its own right, only since the establishment of New France.

Throughout the 18th century, via war and treaties, the Canadian colonies of France were ceded to King George III. The colonies were confederated by Queen Victoria in 1867 to form Canada as a kingdom in its own right, the Crown became uniquely Canadian after the passage of the Statute of Westminster in 1931, and the country was proclaimed fully independent, via constitutional patriation, by Queen Elizabeth II in 1982. That act is said to have entrenched the monarchy in Canada, due to the stringent requirements, as laid out in the amending formula, that must be met in order to alter the monarchy in any way.

The emergence of a distinct monarchy for Canada was demonstrated in the abdication of King Edward VIII in 1936 when Canada had to pass its own Succession to the Throne Act, which effected changes to the rules of succession in Canada so that they matched those within the other realms of the British Commonwealth as well as when King George VI and Queen Elizabeth travelled from Canada into the United States as King and Queen of Canada. As ease of travel increased, visits by the sovereign and other Royal Family members became more and more frequent, seeing the Queen Elizabeth II officiate at such important moments as the opening of the Saint Lawrence Seaway in 1959; the Canadian Centennial in 1967; the opening of the 1976 Olympics in Montreal; the patriation of the Constitution in 1982, the 500th anniversary, in 1997, of Cabot's landing at Bonavista; and more.

Through the 1960s and 1970s, the rise of Quebec nationalism and changes in Canadian identity created an atmosphere where the purpose and role of the monarchy came into question. Some references to the monarch and the monarchy were removed from the public eye, and moves were made by the federal government to constitutionally alter the Crown's place and role in Canada; but, provincial and federal ministers, along with loyal national citizen's organisations, ensured that the system remained essentially the same. Still, by 2002, the year of The Queen's Golden Jubilee: a Canadian Celebration, it was revealed in a poll that only 5% of Canadians were aware that the monarch was their head of state, though the royal tour and associated fêtes for the jubilee proved popular with Canadians.

Canadian Royal Family

The Canadian Royal Family is a group of people closely related to the monarch of Canada; it is a non-resident royal family, as those who comprise the group live predominantly in the United Kingdom; some members have lived in Canada for extended periods as viceroy, such as Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone. Members often perform ceremonial and social duties but, aside from the monarch, have no role in the affairs of government. Those who compose the Royal Family carry the style His or Her Majesty (HM), His or Her Royal Highness (HRH), or sometimes The Right Honourable (in French: Sa Majesté (SM), Son Altesse Royale (SAR), and Le très honorable), which usually results in the application of the term to the monarch, the consort of the monarch, the widowed consorts of previous monarchs, the children of the monarch, the male-line grandchildren of the monarch, and the spouses and the widowed spouses of a monarch's son and male-line grandsons.

It has been stated by the Canadian Royal Heritage Trust that Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, due to his having lived in Canada between 1791 and 1800, and his being father of Queen Victoria, is "the ancestor of the modern Canadian Royal Family". However, the concept of the Canadian Royal Family did not emerge until after the passage of the Statute of Westminster in 1931. Though the act came into effect during the reign of King George V, Canadian officials only began to overtly consider putting the principles of Canada's new status as an independent kingdom into effect during the late 1930s. At first, the monarch was the only member of the Royal Family to carry out public ceremonial duties solely on the advice of Canadian ministers; King Edward VIII became the first to do so when he dedicated the Vimy Memorial in July, 1936 one of his few obligations performed during his short reign. Over the decades, however, the monarch's children, grandchildren, cousins, and their respective spouses began to perform functions at the direction of the Canadian government, representing the monarch within Canada or abroad.

Despite the length of service, it was not until October 2002, when the term Canadian Royal Family was first used publicly and officially by a member of it: in a speech given to the Nunavut legislature at its opening, Queen Elizabeth II stated: "I am proud to be the first member of the Canadian Royal Family to be greeted in Canada's newest territory". Still, the Canadian media often still refer to the Royal Family as the British Royal Family.

Composition

Styles

Unlike in the United Kingdom, in Canada the sovereign is the only member of the Royal Family who has a title established through law. Though it would be possible for other members of the Royal Family to be granted distinctly Canadian titles (as is the case for the Duke of Rothesay in Scotland), they have always been, and continue to only be accorded the use of a courtesy title, which is the style they have been granted via Letters Patent in the United Kingdom.

However, in Canada these styles are also translated to French. The most senior members of the Royal Family are styled as follows:

His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh: Son Altesse Royale le prince Philip, duc d'Édimbourg
His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales: Son Altesse Royale le prince de Galles
His Royal Highness The Duke of York: Son Altesse Royale le duc d'York
His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex: Son Altesse Royale le comte de Wessex
Her Royal Highness The Countess of Wessex: Son Altesse Royale la comtesse de Wessex
Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal: Son Altesse Royale la princesse Royale

Popularity

The popularity of the Royal Family with Canadians, as well as individual members of it, has fluctuated over the years. Mirroring the mood in the United Kingdom, the family's lowest approval was during the mid-1980s to 1990s when the children of the monarch were enduring their divorces, and were the targets of negative tabloid reporting. Some recent poll results follow:

An EKOS Research Associates Poll conducted in May 2002, concluded that 35% of Canadians found the Royal Family boring, 52% saw them as interesting, with 12% stating neither. 44% said they were irrelevant, 46% said the opposite, and 8% said neither. 59% saw the Royal Family as tired, 22% deemed them vibrant, and 17% put them at neither.
A March 2005, Decima Research Poll found some interesting support levels for members of the Royal Family. 71% of Canadians had a favourable impression of the Royal Family. Only 20% had an unfavourable impression of the Royal Family. The poll found that 28% of Canadians saw the Queen as their favourite member of the Royal Family, Prince William was second with 26%, Prince Harry was third with 9%, Prince Charles was fourth with 6% and Prince Philip last with 2%.

Residences and royal household

The sovereign's primary official residence is Rideau Hall, in Ottawa; however, this is also, and predominantly, the official home of the Governor General. Rideau Hall is the site of most state banquets, investitures, swearing-in of ministers, and other ceremonies; moreover, visiting heads of state usually reside at the palace. Another principal residence of the Governor General is La Citadelle, in Quebec City. Each of these residences holds pieces from the Crown Collection, made up of antique and contemporary furniture and works of art from each province and territory of Canada, as well as Europe, Asia, and other regions, the majority of which came from donations to the Canada Fund. The provinces of British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island also maintain residences, used primarily by the respective lieutenant governor, though the monarch or other members of the Royal Family will reside there when in the province.

Though never used, Hatley Castle, in British Columbia was purchased by King George VI in Right of Canada in 1940 to use as his home during the course of World War II; it was used instead for Royal Roads Military College. Another war-time residence was the Emergency Government Headquarters, built at CFS Carp, completed in 1959 and decommissioned in 1994; the facility included a residential apartment for the sovereign or Governor General in the case of a nuclear attack on Ottawa.

The aforementioned buildings and artworks belong, or belonged, to the Crown; they are held in trust for future rulers, and cannot be sold by the monarch. However, monarchs have owned homes and land in Canada in a private capacity: King Edward VIII owned Bedingfield Ranch, near Pekisko, Alberta. Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, sister of Queen Elizabeth II, also owned Portland Island; the land was presented to her during a visit to the province in 1958. She held it until her death in 2002; however, she offered it on permanent loan to the Crown in Right of British Columbia in 1966, after lengthy correspondence between the Lieutenant Governor and Kensington Palace. The island and surrounding waters eventually became Princess Margaret Marine Park As it is convention to conceal royal wills from the public, it is unknown as to whom the island was bequeathed by the Princess after her passing.

To assist the Queen in carrying out her official duties on behalf of Canada, she appoints various people to her Canadian household. Along with the Acting Canadian Secretary to the Queen, the monarch's entourage includes two Ladies-in-Waiting, the Canadian Equerry-in-Waiting to the Queen, the Queen's Police Officer, the Duke of Edinburgh's Police Officer, the Queen's Honorary Physician, the Queen's Honorary Dental Surgeon, and the Queen's Honorary Nursing Sister, the latter three being drawn from the Canadian Forces. There are also three Household Regiments specifically attached to the Royal Household: the Governor General's Foot Guards, the Governor General's Horse Guards, and the Canadian Grenadier Guards.

Although not specifically attached to any residences, there are two Chapels Royal in Canada, that are part of the Royal Household. Both in Ontario, the The Queen's Chapel of the Mohawks, built in 1785, is in Brantford, and Christ Church, Her Majesty's Royal Chapel of the Mohawks, founded in 1784 and rebuilt in 1843, is situated near Deseronto. Both were granted the status of Royal Chapel by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004.

The Crown and Aboriginal peoples

The Crown has a long relationship with the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples of Canada. As with the Māori and the Treaty of Waitangi in New Zealand, Canada's First Nations view their treaties as being agreements directly between them and the Crown, not with the ever-changing government of Canada. The Royal Proclamation of 1763 remains an important document, mentioned in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, outlining the Crown's responsibility to protect First Nations' territories, and act as a fudiciary between the government and aboriginal peoples in Canada. It is thus, and further outlined in the Constitution Act, 1867, solely the responsibility of the federal Crown to establish reserves and negotiate further treaties, though the maintenance of reserves may fall to the relevant provincial crown.

Over the centuries there have been literal and symbolic gestures to demonstrate the nation-to-nation relationship, from the commemoration by Queen Anne of the Four Mohawk Kings in 1710, to Queen Elizabeth II donating a piece of Balmoral granite engraved with the ciphers of Queen Victoria and herself to the First Nations University of Canada in 2005. The First Nations, in return, honour members of the Royal Family with ceremonies and traditional titles.

The Crown and the Canadian Forces

As the repository of all authority in Canada, the Crown sits at the pinnacle of the Canadian Forces. The monarch is the Commander-in-Chief of the entire forces, though the Governor General holds this title and usually exercises the duties on behalf of the sovereign. The monarch is also the Honorary Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The sovereign's position and role in the military is reflected by naval vessels bearing the prefix Her Majesty's Canadian Ship (HMCS) His Majesty's Canadian Ship during the reign of a king and all members of the forces must swear allegiance to the Queen and her heirs and successors. Members of the Royal Family are also Colonel-in-Chief of many Canadian regiments. As such, they have presided over military ceremonies both abroad and at home, including Troopings of the Colour, inspections of the troops, and anniversaries of key battles; whenever the sovereign or a member of her family is in Ottawa, they lay a wreath at the National War Memorial.

Debate

To date, there has been little national debate centring on the monarchy of Canada, in contrast to some other Commonwealth realms, where the issue has gained a relatively higher profile. Many Canadians, though, continue to be unaware that the Queen serves as their head of state; a 2002 EKOS poll found that only five percent of the population could correctly identify Elizabeth II as their head of state (the majority believing it to be the Prime Minister).

Where debate does exist, it tends to be a largely academic one, and several books have been written that explore the subject from a political science perspective. Unlike some other Commonwealth realms, Canada has never had a head of government who has been openly republican. Neither of Canada's two most prominent political parties, the Liberal Party or the Conservative Party, is officially in favour of abolishing the monarchy; though the latter makes support for constitutional monarchy a founding principle in its policy declaration. The New Democratic Party (NDP) has no official position on the role of the monarchy, while the leaders of the Bloc Québécois are vocally opposed to the Crown. Some politicians, having pledged allegiance to the Queen, have occasionally publicly voiced their opinion on the matter, following former-Deputy Prime Minister John Manley's 2002 statement that he was in favour of abolishing the monarchy.

Though it was not the case prior to the 1960s, shifting attitudes in Quebec nationalism have made it the one province that has recently shown significant republican sentiment; the Parti Québécois has, like its federal counterpart, at times expressed hostility to the institution of the monarchy. However, as the party views Quebec sovereignty as a more pressing concern, and sees the Crown as a purely federal institution (despite the existence of the Crown in Right of Quebec), it has recently tended to decline comment on the issue.

Canada has two special-interest groups representing the debate, who frequently argue the issue in the media: the Monarchist League of Canada and Citizens for a Canadian Republic. There are also other loyal organizations, such as the The United Empire Loyalists' Association of Canada, the Canadian Royal Heritage Trust, the Democratic Canadian Union, and the Orange Order in Canada.

Bibliography

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Notes

External links

Official sites from the Canadian government

Canadian government website for the Canadian Monarchy
Canada: A Constitutional Monarchy from the Government of Canada
2005 Royal Tour official website
Golden Jubilee Celebrations in Canada
Writing to the Canadian Royal Family