JIGGENS: King Charles has big shoes to fill

Article content

With the recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II, we’re going to have become accustomed to some new realities from this point on.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.

JIGGENS: King Charles has big shoes to fill Back to video

For the past 70 years, it’s her likeness we’ve seen on Canadian currency. We’re used to hearing “God save the Queen” sung as Britain’s national anthem. And it has always been Prince Charles.

Queen Elizabeth is the only monarch that 90 per cent of Canadians have ever known in their lifetime. It’s almost as if that was meant to be everlasting. Seventy years is an awful long reign and is the longest of any British monarch.

King Charles III’s reign will be a fraction of his mother’s. If he’s blessed with good health, he should be the sitting monarch for at least a dozen years. Yet less than 25 per cent of Canadians wish to see King Charles depicted on their currency, according to a recent poll conducted by Pollara. This compares to 56 per cent who don’t want to see his likeness on Canadian currency.

Reasons weren’t given, but perhaps those polled figure he doesn’t measure up to his mother, and replacing her likeness with his at this time might be too premature. Or maybe Canadians are still less than forgiving about his decades ago breakup with Princess Diana in favour of “the other woman” Camilla Parker Bowles.

One of the most surprising results to come from this poll suggests only one-third of Canadians believe Canada should remain a constitutional monarchy. Keep in mind that only 1,325 people were surveyed in the poll, so its results can perhaps be taken with a grain of salt.

Nevertheless, it’s time to get used to referring to the current monarch as King Charles and to adjust the title and lyrics of Canada’s royal anthem to “God Save the King.” We used to sing O Canada and God Save the Queen in elementary school before the start of classes each day. I’m not sure if they still do that anymore. If so, my grandchildren will be singing the same version of the royal anthem that was sung by my parents when they were in school.

I’m fortunate to have seen Queen Elizabeth in person twice. The first time was in Germany as a kindergarten pupil when my father was stationed there while serving with the Canadian Armed Forces. I remember standing along her parade route waving a tiny Canadian flag along with my fellow students as her motorcade passed by.

The second occasion was in the fall of 1984 when she and Prince Philip attended a ceremony in Brantford to mark the 200th anniversary of the Mohawk Chapel – the first Anglican church in Upper Canada. I was sent to cover this historic event as a member of the press and remember the huge security presence there, including members of the RCMP, Ontario Provincial Police and City of Brantford police.

Like many others, I’ve watched hours and hours of news coverage following the passing of the Queen, plus a handful of documentaries. About a year ago, I began to binge watch Netflix’s The Crown, but abandoned it after only the first four episodes. It wasn’t for lack of interest – I thought it to be very good and compelling – but rather a lack of time. Recent events have renewed my interest in the series, and I’m sure I’ll be just one of millions ultimately responsible for boosting viewership of The Crown over the next while.

So far, King Charles has spoken eloquently to the people of Britain and elsewhere since his mother’s passing. He has big shoes to fill but seems off to a good start.