As the Queen marks seventy years on the throne, this engaging work examines Canada’s constitutional monarchy. As Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her Platinum Jubilee in 2022 and nears the conclusion of her reign, much discussion and debate has taken place about the monarchy in Canada. A Resilient Crown examines a broad range of issues related to Canada’s constitutional monarchy, its present state, and its future. Topics include Crown-Indigenous relations; the foundational place of the Crown in Canada’s system of government; the viceregal offices and the role of the administrator; the Crown and francophone Canada; the prime ministers and the Queen; royal tours; and Queen Elizabeth herself. Drawing from academics, serving and retired public servants, and well-known commentators, this book brings together a rich collection of essays that delve into the Crown in Canada today.

The Canadian Crown is a unique institution that has been integral to our ideals of democracy from its beginning in 16th-century New France. Canadians enjoy one of the most stable forms of government on the planet, but there is a crisis in our understanding of the role the Crown plays in that government. Media often refer to the governor general as the Canadian head of state, and the queen is frequently misidentified in Canada as only the British monarch, yet she has been queen of Canada since 1952. Even government publications routinely cast the Crown as merely a symbolic institution with no impact on the daily lives of Canadians — this is simply not true. Errors such as these are echoed in school textbooks and curriculum outlines. Canada’s Constitutional Monarchy has been written to counter the misinformation given to Canadians, reintroducing them to a rich institution integral to our ideals of democracy and parliamentary government. Nathan Tidridge presents the Canadian Crown as a colourful and unique institution at the very heart of our Confederation, exploring its history from its beginnings in 16th-century New France, as well as its modern relationships with First Nations, Honours, Heraldry, and the day-to-day life of the country.

The Crown in Canada has had a profound influence in shaping a country and a constitution that embraces the promotion of political moderation, societal accommodation, adaptable constitutional structures, and pluralistic governing practices. While none of these features themselves originated through legislative or constitutional action, David E. Smith, Christopher McCreery, and Jonathan Shanks propose that all reflect the presence and actions of the Crown. Examining how a constitutional monarchy functions, Canada’s Deep Crown discusses how the legal and institutional abstractions of the Crown vary depending on the circumstances and the context in which it is found. The Crown presents differently depending on who is observing it, who is representing it, and what role it is performing. With a focus on the changes that have taken place over the last fifty years, this book addresses the role of the Crown in dispersing power throughout Canada’s system of government, the function the sovereign, governor general, and lieutenant governors play, and how the demise of the Crown and transition to a new sovereign is likely to unfold.

Historical and contemporary perspectives on the monarchy in Canada.

The Crown is not only Canada’s oldest continuing political institution, but also its most pervasive, affecting the operation of Parliament and the legislatures, the executive, the bureaucracy, the courts, and federalism. However, many consider the Crown to be obscure and anachronistic. David E. Smith’s The Invisible Crown was one of the first books to study the role of the Crown in Canada, and remains a significant resource for the unique perspective it offers on the Crown’s place in politics. The Invisible Crown traces Canada’s distinctive form of federalism, with highly autonomous provinces, to the Crown’s influence. Smith concludes that the Crown has greatly affected the development of Canadian politics due to the country’s societal, geographic, and economic conditions. Praised by the Globe and Mail’s Michael Valpy as “a thoroughly lucid, scholarly explanation of how the Canadian constitutional monarchy works,” it is bolstered by a new foreword by the author speaking to recent events involving the Crown and Canadian politics, notably the prorogation of Parliament in 2008.

Stephen Harper's Conservative government has reversed the trend of its predecessors by giving the Crown a higher profile through royal tours, publications, and symbolic initiatives. Based on papers given at a Diamond Jubilee conference on the Crown held in Regina in 2012, Canada and the Crown assesses the historical and contemporary importance of constitutional monarchy in Canada. Established and emerging scholars consider the Canadian Crown from a variety of viewpoints, including the ways in which the monarch relates to Quebec, First Nations, the media, education, Parliament, the constitution, and the military. They also consider a republican option for Canada. Editors D. Michael Jackson and Philippe Lagassé provide context for the essays, summarize and expand on the issues discussed by the contributors, and offer a perspective on further study of the Crown in Canada. Contributors include Richard Berthelsen, Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Bolt (Office of the Judge Advocate General), James W.J. Bowden, Stephanie Danyluk (Whitecap-Dakota First Nation), Linda Cardinal (University of Ottawa), Phillip Crawley (CEO, The Globe and Mail), John Fraser (Massey College), Carolyn Harris (University of Toronto), Robert E. Hawkins (University of Regina), Ian Holloway (University of Calgary), Senator Serge Joyal, Nicholas A. MacDonald, Christopher McCreery (Office of Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia), J.R. (Jim) Miller (University of Saskatchewan), Peter H. Russell (University of Toronto), David E. Smith (Toronto Metropolitan University), and John D. Whyte (University of Regina).

More than ever Canada’s constitutional monarchy should be treasured as a distinct asset for the nation. Following Queen Elizabeth II’s historic Diamond Jubilee in 2012, there is renewed interest in the institution of the Crown in Canada and the roles of the queen, governor general, and lieutenant governor. Author D. Michael Jackson traces the story of the monarchy and the Crown and shows how they are integral to Canada’s parliamentary democracy. His book underscores the Crown’s key contribution to the origins, evolution, and successful functioning of Canadian federalism, while the place of the monarchy in francophone Canada and the First Nations receives special attention. Complex issues such as the royal prerogative, constitutional conventions, the office of lieutenant governor, and Canada’s honours system are made readily accessible to the general reader. Jackson examines the option of republican governance for Canada and concludes that responsible government under a constitutional monarchy is far preferable. He further argues that the Crown should be treasured as a distinct asset for Canada.