OTTAWA— On the eve of the arrival in Canada of Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, is pleased with the unveiling of two new Royal flags created by the Canadian Heraldic Authority and approved by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
“These new flags created for The Prince of Wales and The Duke of Cambridge are magnificent expressions of our constitutional monarchy and heritage,” said His Excellency. “As we prepare to welcome Their Royal Highnesses to experience this marvelous country, I am sure that many Canadians will take great interest in these new emblems. As head of the Canadian Heraldic Authority, I am delighted with the work of our Canadian heralds in preparing these designs.”
The two flags are based on Her Majesty The Queen’s personal flag for use in Canada, which uses the Royal Arms of Canada as its basis. Since the flag was adopted in 1962, Her Majesty The Queen has been the only member of the Royal Family to have a flag for use in Canada.
The flag of The Duke of Cambridge will be broken during the official welcoming ceremony of Their Royal Highnesses to Canada, at Rideau Hall, on Thursday, June 30, at 3:15 p.m. The general public is invited to the grounds as of 1 p.m. on that day, to participate in the launch of the 2011 Royal Tour.
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Good news but I can’t help but feel a bit envious. Whilst the Queen has her own personal flags for each of her realms, I don’t think any other member of the Royal Family does (someone can correct me if I’m wrong). For Prince William to have two personal flags for Canada is just amazing – would NEVER happen in Australia even if we had a “conservative” government.
ReplyDeleteDavid - one flag each for Charles and William.
ReplyDeleteI like the imagery of the Canadian ones but I'm not sure the principle would work with the Australian arms though - the label would basically be white on white which would look ridiculous. I prefer (for Australia) the UK standards for royals other than HMQ.
Mr Byers,
ReplyDeletePrince William doesn't have two personal flags for Canada as far as I'm aware.
However it does raise an interesting constitutional question.
Whereas each of the Commonwealth Realms naturally has a personal standard for their Queen, doesn't it then follow that the other members of the monarchy are equally entitled to standards in each of the realms as members of that realms royal family?
After all, one (generally) can't be sovereign without being the Prince of Wales, or a member of the royal family.
Personally I think its a good thing, in that it strengthens the royal family's connect to Canada (or NZ / Australia / Jamaica / PNG etc) beyond the individual who happens to be the sovereign.
Mac
Mac
Gentlemen,
ReplyDeleteWhereas Her Majesty has separate titles for each realm, the other members of the royal family are princes and princesses of the United Kingdom -- those who are princes and princesses.
There are styles, royal dukedoms, etc. in addition, and the Prince of Wales is nominal head of the non-sovereign principality of Wales. Prince Henry (Harry) is styled "of Wales," but he is not a prince of Wales. All are princes and princesses of the United Kingdom -- not of the other realms.
This is, for instance, different from the Swedish-Norwegian union, where every member of the royal family was a prince or princess of both Sweden and Norway.
It thus follows that the Queen has her own personal standard for all realms, but not the other members of the royal family.
That is not to say that junior members of the royal house cannot have their own standards in the realms other than the United Kingdom. These new standards are great. It is merely to say that it is not automatic.
Thanks for posting these; I hadn't managed to come across them. What's the latest about Prince Harry being made King of Canada, as reported recently in the Daily Telegraph? Don't get too excited; it's just a proposal...
ReplyDeleteSo a royal Prince is not a prince in any realm other than the UK?
ReplyDeleteI am not a constitutional lawyer, but I would argue the toss on this issue. The obvious example being if were the case, why are royal princes entitled to "royal" salutes in other commonwealth realms? Monarchy is a system, it is not just the individual at the apex.
I have this from a monarchy scholar.
ReplyDeleteEven though they do not have prince or princess titles of other realms than the UK, they are still members of the shared royal house.
Monarchy is a system, yes, and some things with it are peculiar, which is not an argument against it, even though republicans would use it as such -- without batting an eye.
Thank you all for informing me with your post.
ReplyDeleteWhilst the everyday "man in the street" has gone off the idea of a republic here in Australia, our politicians continue to undermine the Crown.
As I have posted many time here; Australians have a complex relationship with the crown (and Britain in general). We seem to be a country of levellers. Hating class (even thought we has divisions of class). A chip on the shoulder about Britain (yet love the Union Jack on our flag - well most of us).
What really brakes my heart is remembering a documentary I saw years ago about the Queen where Australia was described as "home of some of the Queen's most loyal subjects", how times have change.
Should there be any doubt, gentlemen, let me make it clear that I am not claiming that the junior members of the royal house are not princes or princesses in the other realms -- only that they do not have formal prince or princess titles of those realms.
ReplyDelete