The Crown and the Canadian Forces

The petition to restore the royal prefix to the Canadian navy and air force in time for the naval centennial in 2010 is now well over 3,000 signatures.

Reading the hundreds of comments and emails that I have received over the past 6 months, it is clear to me that the backbone of this grassroots effort stems from our veterans, as well as retired members of the Canadian Forces, including numerous retired flag officers, such as Rear-Adm. Somers, who commanded Canada's Expeditionary Force during the First Gulf War.

One of our most prized signatories has to be Mr. Veteran himself, Cliff Chadderton of War Amps, who is - how coincidental is this - signature number 1944. Cliff fought in the Second World War, and 1944 was the year that he lost his leg while in command of a company of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, battling for the Scheldt Estuary in Belgium and Holland. Needless to say, we are truly honoured to have his signature and the hundreds of Royal Canadian Legion endorsments like him.

There may be those who perceive a weight of inevitability of Canada becoming a republic following the demise of Her Majesty, and that this therefore constitutes a waist of effort in the longer run. I don't believe this to be the case, and I certainly don't believe there are many here who would relish the idea. For one thing, it would mean the complete destruction of the regimental heritage of our Armed Forces, of which the military is fiercely loyal. For another thing, it is extremely difficult to change the constitution: It is far more likelier that Canada would evolve into some form of crowned republic, than a completely rewritten presidential one, if at all. Certainly, that is the preference of the country's multicultural elite, who favour breaking ties with the royals, and allowing the Governor-General to represent the Crown as head of state. The Globe and Mail last year incorrectly called this "patriating the monarchy", but patriation means inviting a different royal to be Canada's head of state, not abolishing the royals altogether, which is what they were proposing. That is a crowned republic, not a patriated monarchy.

I don't mean to bore readers here with this stuff, only to highlight that the Canadian Crown is the controlling authority of the Canadian Forces, and any changing of this fact would have serious esprit de corps consequences for serving members. I contend that it is doubtful that we'll become a constitutional republic in the foreseeable future. So why not shore up our military heritage and sign the petition!