King Charles III to Deliver Uncommon Canada Address

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    King Charles III is preparing to visit Canada with a clear objective: to emphasize Canada’s sovereignty as a nation independent from the United States. This visit was initiated after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested the possibility of the U.S. annexing Canada, leading newly elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to invite the monarch. Charles will deliver a speech from the throne on Tuesday, setting out the Canadian government’s agenda as Parliament reconvenes. The British monarch is the head of state in Canada, which remains part of the British Commonwealth.

    Charles’ visit is an uncommon event as it is rare for the monarch to personally deliver the speech from the throne in Canada. During her 70-year reign, Queen Elizabeth II only undertook this responsibility twice, the last occasion being in 1977. Although Canadians are generally indifferent toward the monarchy, Prime Minister Carney is keen on emphasizing the distinctions between Canada and the U.S., and he believes the king’s visit highlights Canada’s sovereignty. Unlike the United States, which fought a revolution to gain independence from Britain, Canada formally became a separate entity in 1867, yet it retained a constitutional monarchy and a British-style parliamentary system.

    Former Quebec Premier Jean Charest commented on the importance of the visit, stating, “We’re different. We are not the United States. It sounds simple, but that’s what the visit says. We don’t have the same institutions. We don’t have the same history. We are a different country with a different choice in terms of how we built ourselves, and King Charles tells that story.” This will mark King Charles’ first visit to Canada as monarch, although he made 19 prior visits as prince. Recently, he has demonstrated solidarity with Canada, notably by wearing Canadian military medals during a visit to a Royal Navy aircraft carrier.

    Robert Bothwell, a historian, regards the king’s speech in Parliament as “a gesture of solidarity and identity that can be construed to be a gesture of support.” Nevertheless, the new U.S. Ambassador to Canada, Pete Hoekstra, argued that sending messages through this visit might be unnecessary. “We’re thrilled that the king will be here. If there’s a message in there, you know, there’s easier ways to send messages. Just give me a call. Carney can call the president at any time,” he remarked. “But I know what the implication is. It’s, oh about … the 51st state, it’s over. And, you know, move on.”

    The speech from the throne outlines the legislative plan for a new session of Parliament. While the king reads the speech, it is crafted by Canada’s prime minister and his team, as the king acts as a nonpartisan head of state. Typically, the governor general, the monarch’s representative in Canada, reads the speech. This position upholds a constitutional but mostly ceremonial role. According to Daniel Béland, a political science professor at McGill University, “King Charles is unlikely to comment directly on the 51st state issue. Yet, his introductory remarks could feature broad statements about Canada’s integrity and sovereignty. At least this is what many Canadians would like him to do.”

    In attendance at the speech will be former Canadian prime ministers and governor generals. Following the address, King Charles will pay his tributes at the National War Memorial, followed by a flyby organized by the Royal Canadian Air Force. Even though the monarchy has historically been unpopular among Quebec’s French-speaking population, and some nationalist voices have criticized the government’s decision to invite the king, Charest insists that “Whether the separatists work themselves into a lather over this frankly, I don’t care. I don’t think Quebecers will care a lot. They may not like the monarchy or whatever they’d like to read into it, but British institutions have served us very well.”