Britain’s King Charles and Queen Camilla leave after visiting the Canada House Trafalgar Square in London on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.Arthur Edwards/The Associated Press
King Charles III is set to have his first official visit to Canada as monarch next week, after Prime Minister Mark Carney invited him to deliver the Throne Speech to open up Parliament.
Senior Canadian government officials have said the King’s speech will be a show of Canada’s sovereignty, at a time where Canadians feel threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump’s 51st State comments.
Pageantry, spectacle and hockey to mark King Charles’s visit to Ottawa
Throne speeches, setting out the government’s priorities, are usually delivered by the governor-general, the monarch‘s representative in Canada. Tuesday will mark the third time in Canadian history that a monarch has delivered the Throne Speech in Ottawa. The last time was in 1977, when Queen Elizabeth II read the speech as part of her Silver Jubilee tour. In 1957, she did so to mark her first visit to Canada as Queen.
And while some Canadians are planning to welcome the King when he arrives in Ottawa, others don’t feel the same way. This week, the Bloc Québécois is planning to once again table a bill to scrap the centuries-old requirement to pledge loyalty to the monarch before they take their seats in Parliament.
How do you feel about King Charles’ visit? Is it a show of force against Mr. Trump’s attacks on Canadian sovereignty? Or is it an outdated custom that Canada should have dropped years ago?
Send us your thoughts in the form below, or by sending us an e-mail at audience@globeandmail.com.
King Charles III is making his first official visit to Canada as monarch next week, and is set to deliver the Throne Speech to open Parliament. We want to know your thoughts. Are you welcoming the visit with open arms, do you think it’s an outdated custom, or are you somewhere in the middle? Let us know.