King Charles’ Coronation is the first British monarch’s coronation in the history of 70 years. The former coronation occurred for Queen Elizabeth II in 1952. Also, the new King Charles III will receive the title of Canada’s King, among others.
Reportedly, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will arrive in London to mark this significant day. Other crucial members accompanying him at the ceremony will include Rose Anne Archibald (Assembly of First Nations National Chief), Tapiriit Kanatami Natan Obed (President of Inuit), and Cassidy Caron (Metis National Council’s President).
The Privy Council’s Clerk, along with Janice Charette (Secretary to Cabinet), will also mark their attendance. Also, Canada’s delegation will involve younger leaders.
On May 6, an official ceremony will be held in Ottawa, Canada. Several community celebrations will occur in Canada on this day and on May 7, 2023.
Canada’s King exists due to the constitutional monarchy, further indicating that the Monarch symbolizes the Crown, the Head of the State. Logically, it’s the Crown that has the power to govern. However, the power is given to the government to practice on its behalf, keeping in mind the public interest.
King Charles’ Coronation- what is the significance of a King in Canada?
The parliamentary system in Canada has its core foundation in the British or Westminster tradition. The entire system comprises the Senate, the Crown, and the House of Commons. Once all three parties consent to the laws, their implementation begins.
Currently, the Crown acts as a pure symbol and has little role to play in the Canadian government. Also, there is the Governor General, a Canadian representative of the King, who marks his presence in various ceremonies. Besides this, they represent the country through their presence at international events and state visits.
Even during the elections, they take the responsibility to dissolve the parliament officially. Apart from this, the Governor General also has the legal authority to offer their Royal Assent for the bills. However, these are specific bills that get confirmation through Canada’s House of Commons and Senate.
A Governor General’s signature is mandatory while passing a law; however, they must stand neutral ground. Further, this also indicates that when a bill is finally passed, the Crown is responsible for signing it without further indulging in the law or giving suggestions.
Overall, this implies that the King and his representatives won’t participate directly in Canada’s governance, while their role will be more traditional.
Signing a Pledge of Allegiance to the Sovereign
Canada’s Citizenship Oath also involves signing a pledge of Allegiance to the King as a tradition or norm. Usually, IRCC tends to offer study guides to new immigrants who are going to undertake this oath. According to the oath, Canadians pledging to the King dictate their loyalty to an individual who represents the Canadians. However, it doesn’t confer to documents, including the flag, country, or constitution.
Furthermore, it states that all these components are within the control of the Sovereign as it covers all of them. The Sovereign personifies Canada, and Canada personifies the Sovereign.
King Charles’ Coronation- the outlook of Canadians about Monarchy
According to the norm, the Sovereign symbolizes all Canadians. However, the citizenship study guide states that presently only a small percentage of Canadians have shown their support toward King Charles and his monarchy.
The Angus Reid Institute claims that as far as the coronation is concerned, there is going to be a reduced level of support for a Monarchy system in contrast to the former years.
The survey dictates around 49 percent of Canadians believe that the Royal Family appears irrelevant to them, while 28 percent claim it is gradually becoming irrelevant.
Conversely, nearly 20 percent affirm that the Royal Family remains as relevant as it was earlier. Meanwhile, 3 percent are of the view that they are growing to be more influential.
The survey from the Angus Reid Institute last year depicted that 49 percent of Canadians share the view that the monarchy carries out orthodox belief systems.
Even though, at those times, the monarchy system might have started losing its significance, Queen Elizabeth’s individuality remained valuable to people.
Contrarily, the case is slightly opposite to that of King Charles III. Nearly 60 percent of Canada couldn’t recognize him as the King of Canada.
Only 35 percent of Canadians above the age of 54 years approved of him as the King of Canada, unlike the 60 percent.
Historical Significance of Monarchy in Canada
Canada has continued its monarchical system since 1534, while the first Canadian King was King Francis I (France). This resulted in Jacques Cartier arriving in the St. Lawrence River that very year to claim France’s land, being the first discoverer of Europe to be in Canada.
Consequently, Canada transitioned between France and England for several years, and both countries carried robust monarchies. In the end, after a conflict in the late 18th century, France lost Canada to Britain, which has since ruled as a monarchy.
From this phase until 1867, the British government, along with the Crown, took the responsibility to make the essential decisions on the process of governing the Canadian colonies. Even though the present provinces did function through their separate legislatures. Further, in 1867, Britain agreed to the British North America Act, enabling the four Canadian provinces to unite as Canada’s Dominion and undertake the maximum level of governance.
The Canadian government witnessed only a small role in Britain, with only a few changes between 1867 and 1982. This occurred at a time when the Constitution Act took effect legally and reflected Canada’s complete freedom from Britain. Additionally, the Constitution Act permits Canada to amend its constitution without the monarchy’s or Britain’s official consent.
Queen Elizabeth II signed the document while she was there in Canada.
