The history of monarchy in Canada stretches from pre-colonial times through to the present day. The date monarchy was established in Canada varies; some sources say it was when the French colony of New France was founded in the name of King Francis I in 1534, while others state it was in 1497, when John Cabot made landfall in what is thought to be modern day Newfoundland or Nova Scotia, making a claim in the name of King Henry VII. Europeans in the 16th and 17th centuries often considered the territories belonging to different aboriginal groups to be kingdoms. Nevertheless, the present Canadian monarchy can trace itself back to the Anglo-Saxon period and ultimately to the kings of the Angles and the early Scottish kings; monarchs reigning over Canada have included those of France (to King Louis XV in 1763), those of the United Kingdom (to King George V in 1931), and those of Canada (to King Charles III as King of Canada today). Canadian historian Father Jacques Monet said of Canada's Crown, "[it is] one of an approximate half-dozen that have survived through uninterrupted inheritance from beginnings that are older than our Canadian institution itself."
Canada's first European monarchs instigated, funded, and supported the exploration and settlement of the country. After the Glorious Revolution in 1689, the sovereigns had their powers constrained by the tenets of constitutional monarchy and responsible government, thereby having less, and then no say in colonization, or policy, in general, the Crown coming to function as the guarantor of Canada's continuous and stable governance and as a nonpartisan safeguard against the abuse of power. Concurrent with constitutional developments, the Canadian colonies of France were, via war and treaties through the 18th century, ceded to King George III; four colonies were confederated by Queen Victoria in 1867 to form the Dominion of Canada, with other colonies and territories joining over the decades up to 1949; and Canada became a fully independent kingdom through the Statute of Westminster, 1931—enacted by King George V—and then the Constitution Act of 1982—brought into force by Elizabeth II, the Queen of Canada.
Pre-colonial While no indigenous North Americans in what is now Canada had what would be seen today as an official monarchy, some aboriginal peoples, before their first encounters with French and British colonisers, were governmentally organised in a fashion similar to the occidental idea of monarchy. Europeans often considered territories belonging to different aboriginal groups to be kingdoms—such as along the north shore of the St Lawrence River, between the Trinity River and the Isle-aux-Coudres, and the neighbouring kingdom of Canada, which stretched west to the Island of Montreal—and the leaders of these communities were referred to as kings, particularly those chosen through heredity. Many had chieftains, whose powers varied from one nation to the next; in some instances, the chief would exercise considerable authority and influence on the decisions of the group, while, in others, he was more of a symbolic or ceremonial figure. In the latter cases, considering that many First Nations societies were governed by unwritten customs and codes of conduct, wherein the chieftain was bound to follow the advice of a council of elders, the form of government would have closely resembled a modern constitutional monarchy.
Hereditary chieftainship continues today; though, the chiefs are not sovereign and only have jurisdiction over traditional territories that fall outside of band-controlled reservation land; on reservation land, it is "up to the community's tolerance, or its politics, on how much [the hereditary chiefs are] involved in governance." The hereditary chiefs often serve as knowledge-keepers, responsible for the upholding of a First Nation's traditional customs, legal systems, and cultural practices.
Establishment of European colonies
The first French colonies in North America were established in the name of King Henry IV, one at Acadia (today Nova Scotia), founded three years into the 17th century, and the second at Port Royal, named to honour Henry. By 1610, the first British settlements were established on Newfoundland, which had been claimed in 1583 for Queen Elizabeth I. The following year, Henry Hudson embarked on the first trading voyage that led to the formation of the Hudson's Bay Company by royal charter from King Charles II; with it, the King claimed an area that covered what is now Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Minnesota, North Dakota, and more and called the area Rupert's Land, after Prince Rupert, who helped to form the HBC.
The French monarch also moved quickly and it was in 1602 that Aymar de Chaste was appointed as Viceroy of Canada to represent King Henry IV. In 1615, Quebec City was, on the recommendation of Samuel de Champlain, made a royal capital of the French empire in the Americas, with Champlain—who had previously been representative of, or lieutenant governor to, most viceroys of Canada—installed as the first viceregal representative of the King in New France.
Some 60 years later, New France was designated as a royal province of France itself and the governor general acted as the monarch's stand-in. One of the king's decrees was to send the (daughters of the King) to the province. As the population expanded, infrastructure such as the (King's Highway) was built and, through the 18th century, the kings gave financing to the construction of cities like Île-Royale and Louisbourg; the names of these locations reflecting their royal patronage.
As Europeans moved inland, they encountered the aboriginal peoples. Relations with them were originally considered to be between European and North American monarchs; though, for the French, that later changed to be one between sovereign and subject and, for the British, between European and aboriginal nations under one monarch, leading to the incorporation of treaties with the Crown into the political culture of Canada.
Respect between the British sovereign and indigenous chiefs was maintained, exemplified by gestures such as Queen Anne welcoming the "Four Mohawk Kings" at St James's Palace in 1710 and Anne paying for the construction of a chapel for the Mohawks (as they requested) and furnishing it with a reed organ and set of silver chalices (still held by the Mohawk Chapel in Brantford, Ontario) in 1712. Governor Frederick Haldimand, in the name of George III, granted land to the Six Nations of the Grand River after they lost their ancestral territories in what is now the state of New York during the American Revolution.
While the aboriginal chiefs aided the monarchs with their North American conflicts, affairs in Europe would also affect the dealings of the New World and, eventually, almost all of the French king's possessions in what was known as Canada were relinquished by him to the British Crown, providing Canada with one singular monarchy. But, this placement of French people under a British sovereign did not come without friction; the Acadians refused to affirm their allegiance to George III and insisted upon remaining Catholic, leading to their deportation in what became known as the Great Upheaval.
The American Revolution
Following the Treaty of Paris, concluding the Seven Years' War, King George III issued the Royal Proclamation of 1763, setting the Appalachian Mountains as the division between the Thirteen Colonies, to the east, and "Indian Reserve", to the west. Being the first legal recognition by the British Crown of aboriginal rights, the document is today viewed as fundamental for First Nations land claims and self-government in Canada.
The Quebec Act—shaped by the views of the anti-assimilationist Governor of Quebec, Guy Carlton and supported by King GeorgeAdapted from: —was passed in 1774, by which the Crown guaranteed the continued free practice of Catholicism, as well as restored the French system of civil law for issues relating to private law. This originated the tradition of Canadian constitutional law protecting linguistic, religious, and legal rights in Quebec.
The Royal Proclamation and Quebec Act were regarded by American colonists as two of the Intolerable Acts that eventually led to the outbreak of the American Revolution. But, the American hostility toward the spirit of those laws is what led most Québécois to rebuff the revolution; they fought, in provincial militias, alongside British soldiers repelling invasions by the republican revolutionaries. Others, though—especially the peasant habitants—aided the Americans.
The conflict resulted in some 46,000 United Empire Loyalists fleeing north from the United States, the King-in-Council granting each family of land in his various colonies, mostly in Nova Scotia, but, also in Quebec and what is today Ontario and Manitoba. At the same time, approximately 3,000 former slaves of African ancestry, known as Black Loyalists, moved to the Maritimes and thousands of Iroquois, Mohawks, and other aboriginals expelled from New York and other states resettled under the protection of the Crown in what is now southern Ontario. In all, so many arrived that, for administrative purposes, the colony of New Brunswick was split out of Nova Scotia and Upper Canada (today Ontario) split from the Province of Quebec (the remainder becoming Lower Canada, today Quebec). Since then, Ontario residents descended from these original refugees retain the post-nominals UE, standing for United Empire, and may employ coronets in their coats of arms.
The loyalists who settled in the Maritimes, however, found themselves among some residents aligned with the United States and its republican cause.
Royalty and rebellions
Prince William (later King William IV) arrived in the Canadas in July 1786, on board and in command of . The Prince spent time in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and the Province of Quebec, being the first member of the royal family to visit the latter and "making Canada's royal family one of the earliest families to call the country its home." Two of William's 10 illegitimate children with Dorothea Jordan eventually lived in Halifax: Mary, in 1830, and Amelia, from 1840 to 1846, while her husband served as Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia.
Four years later, William's brother, Prince Edward, served in Canada from 1791 until the turn of the 19th century on military duties and as Commander of British North American troops. The Prince lived at Quebec City and took a French-Canadian mistress, with whom it is speculated he had two children. In 1792, when a riot, fuelled by ethnic character, broke out at a poll during the first elections for the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada, Prince Edward said to the crowd, "part then in peace. I urge you to unanimity and accord. Let me hear no more of the odious distinctions of English and French. You are all His Britannic Majesty's beloved Canadian subjects." It was reportedly the first time the word Canadian was used to refer to all colonists, rather than only Francophones.
Edward also lived in Halifax, Nova Scotia, between 1794 and 1798 and, again, from 1799 to 1800, making a significant mark on the city through projects such as Fort George, the Halifax Town Clock, the Prince's Lodge, and St George's Church, which the King and Edward's brother, Prince Frederick, supported. Edward also initiated construction of fortifications on Prince Edward Island, which was named in his honour. In 1811, Edward sought to obtain the appointment as governor general of the Canadas, although failed to do so.