Monarchy of Canada

The monarchy of Canada is at the core of Canada's constitutional federal structure and Westminster-style parliamentary democracy. The monarchy is the foundation of the executive (Queen-in-Council), legislative (Queen-in-Parliament), and judicial (Queen-on-the-Bench) branches of both federal and provincial jurisdictions. The Queen of Canada (and head of state) has been Elizabeth II since February 6, 1952.

Although the person of the sovereign is shared with 15 other independent countries within the Commonwealth of Nations, each country's monarchy is separate and legally distinct. As a result, the current monarch is officially titled Queen of Canada and, in this capacity, she, her consort, and other members of the Canadian royal family undertake public and private functions domestically and abroad as representatives of Canada. However, the Queen is the only member of the royal family with any constitutional role. While some powers are exercisable only by the sovereign, most of the monarch's operational and ceremonial duties (such as summoning the House of Commons and accrediting ambassadors) are exercised by his or her representative, the governor general of Canada. In Canada's provinces, the monarch in right of each is represented by a lieutenant governor. As territories fall under the federal jurisdiction, they each have a commissioner, rather than a lieutenant governor, who represents the federal Crown-in-Council directly.

As all executive authority is vested in the sovereign, royal assent is required to allow for bills to become law and for letters patent and orders in council to have legal effect. While the power for these acts stems from the Canadian people through the constitutional conventions of democracy, executive authority remains vested in the Crown and is only entrusted by the sovereign to the government on behalf of the people. This underlines the Crown's role in safeguarding the rights, freedoms, and democratic system of government of Canadians, reinforcing the fact that "governments are the servants of the people and not the reverse". Thus, within Canada's constitutional monarchy the sovereign's direct participation in any of these areas of governance is normally limited, with the sovereign normally exercising executive authority only on the advice of the executive committee of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada, and the sovereign's legislative and judicial responsibilities largely carried out through parliamentarians as well as judges and justices of the peace. However, there are cases where the sovereign or their representative would have a duty to act directly and independently under the doctrine of necessity to prevent genuinely unconstitutional acts. As a result, the Crown today primarily functions as a guarantor of continuous and stable governance and a nonpartisan safeguard against abuse of power. The sovereign acts as a custodian of the Crown's democratic powers and a representation of the "power of the people above government and political parties".

Canada is one of the oldest continuing monarchies in the world. Initially established in the 16th century, monarchy in Canada has evolved through a continuous succession of French and British sovereigns into the independent Canadian sovereigns of today, whose institution is sometimes colloquially referred to as the Maple Crown.