Canadians apathetic over coronation of King Charles

Study shows only 9 per cent of Canadians are excited about the crowning of the new monarch

King Charles III shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at Buckingham Palace, London, in September 2022. PA

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For 70 years, Queen Elizabeth II was a constant, benign presence in Canada, her face gracing banknotes as she bestowed countless honours on the country's most esteemed citizens.

But otherwise, she faded into the background — a vestige of a system that helped shape Canada’s early years but which is no longer front and centre.

Her death in September and the coming coronation of King Charles III have had a profound impact on how Canadians view the monarchy.

While few ever questioned the need for Queen Elizabeth, a recent poll by the Angus Reid Institute showed that a majority of Canadians do not support swearing allegiance to King Charles.

“There's no doubt about it,” said Philip Resnick, professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia.

“It is quite clear and the polls show that the younger generations — and I'm saying anyone 45 or under — this all sounds like stuff out of the Victorian era or out of the 20th century, anyway. It certainly is not a contemporary issue.”

Mr Resnick said the idea of King Charles becoming Canada’s next head of state seems “ridiculous and absurd” to Canadians.

The poll showed that only 9 per cent of Canadians are excited for the king's coronation and more than 60 per cent of those surveyed are not in favour of swearing an oath to him or having him displayed on Canada’s currency.

For Tom Freda, founder of Citizens for a Canadian Republic, a group that advocates an end to the monarchist system, it is not about who is getting crowned but about shucking off an outdated system.

“We don't think monarchy is appropriate for Canada in the 21st century,” Mr Freda told The National.

“For all intents and purposes, Canada is an independent country. But we don't have the ability to choose our own head of state.

“We still have this remnant of colonialism that most independent countries dealt with very early in their development as a nation.”

In Canada, Mr Freda said, the monarchy “has just hung on”.

But for Canada to become a republic, the constitution — known as the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which was created in 1982 by prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, father of Canada’s current leader — would have to be changed.

Canada's two-dollar coin, widely known as the 'toonie', still features Queen Elizabeth II's likeness. Photo: Public domain via Wikimedia Commons

That would require the Canadian Parliament and all 10 provinces and three territories to agree unanimously on the change.

It is a daunting challenge for any government and one that the current Liberal government appears uninterested in confronting.

“The political class does not seem to want to touch it at the moment,” Mr Resnick told The National. “They see it as kind of radioactive or a third rail.”

While that may be the case now, even staunch supporters of the monarchy realise that its days in Canada may be numbered.

“I think it's sad if it happened, but no, I wouldn't go home at night and cry myself to sleep,” said Carl Hulme, a British Canadian who owns Blimey's British Store and Gift Shop in Essex, Ontario, located to the south of Windsor.

Despite owning a store selling English products, Mr Hulme, who said business has picked up in the lead-up to the coronation, understood the winds may be changing in Canada.

But whether King Charles is Canada’s head of state or not, Mr Hulme said he would stay put.

“My home is here,” he told The National. “My kids are here.”

The idea of leaving the commonwealth is not unprecedented.

In November 2021, Barbados officially cut ties with the crown and in 1999, Australia held a referendum on the issue.

At the time, 54 per cent of voters chose to stay within the commonwealth, but Mr Resnick believes if Australia were to hold another referendum and choose to leave, Canada may follow.

“If it turns out Australia were to go down that path, I think we would as well,” he said.

Members of the military take part in a dress rehearsal for the coronation in London. Reuters