Crown in Canada Nathan Tidridge

During her historic installation address, Mary Simon, Canada’s first Indigenous Governor General, pledged that she would use her new role, “to hold together the tension of the past with the promise of the future, in a wise and thoughtful way.”

The Crown, due to its history in this land, embodies that tension. It is this very tension that makes the Crown not only relevant, but indispensable to the future of Canada. Restored through ceremony by the Sovereign and his representatives and made operational by governments acting in his name, the Honour of the Crown provides a path to reconciliation, but it also holds out the possibility of meaningful relationship through mutually respected symbols, recovered ceremonies and new protocols.

As we begin the reign of Charles III, Canada has an opportunity to restore – decolonize - the role of the Crown in this land, paraphrasing former Assemby of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde, as a caretaker and witness to the immutable relationships that sustain it.

All that it requires is the Government of Canada to allow these relationships to continue to be renewed in wise and thoughtful ways.

Episode One (Part One) of The Crown in Canada Podcast begins an exploration of the Crown's critical role in the Indigenous-Settler relationships of North America. Focusing on the Silver Covenant Chain, extended into what is now Canada by the Treaty of Niagara (1764), host Nathan Tidridge guides listeners through a history that was nearly forgotten by settlers and asks the question “What roles do the King and his Canadian representatives have in the Crown-Indigenous relationships threaded throughout this land?”

 

Bibliography:

Asch, Michael, ed. Aboriginal and Treaty Rights in Canada: Essays on law, equity, and respect for difference. Vancouver: UBC Press, 1997.

Borrows, John. “Wampum at Niagara: The Royal Proclamation, Canadian Legal History, and Self-Government,” in Aboriginal and Treaty Rights in Canada: Essays on law, equity, and respect for difference, ed. Michael Asch. Vancouver: UBC Press, 1997.

Bagehot, Walter. The English Constitution, and Other Political Essays. New York: D. Appleton & Company, 1877.

Bellegarde, Perry. “Crown-First Nations Treaty Relationships,” in Royal Progress: Canada’s Monarchy in the Age of Disruption, D. Michael Jackson ed. Toronto: Dundurn, 2020.

Hill, Rick W., and Nathan Tidridge. “The Crown, the Chain, and Peacekeeping: Diplomatic Traditions of the Covenant Chain,” in Royal Progress: Canada’s Monarchy in the Age of Disruption, D. Michael Jackson ed. Toronto: Dundurn, 2020.

Jackson, D. Michael, ed. A Resilient Crown: Canada’s Monarchy at the Platinum Jubilee, ed. D. Michael Jackson. Toronto: Dundurn Press, 2022.

Klassen, Pamela. “Spiritual Jurisdictions: Treaty People and the Queen of Canada” in Ekklesia: Three Enquires in Church and State. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2018.

McCreery, Christopher, Jonathan Shanks and David E. Smith. Canada’s Deep Crown: Beyond Elizabeth II, The Crown’s Continuing Canadian Complexion. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2022.

Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: calls to action. Ottawa: The Commission, 2015.

Tidridge, Nathan. “Decolonizing the Crown in Canada: Restoring the Queen at the Council Fire,” in The Canadian Kingdom: 150 Years of Constitutional Monarchy, D. Michael Jackson ed. Toronto: Dundurn, 2018.

———. The Queen at the Council Fire: The Treaty of Niagara, Reconciliation, and the Dignified Crown in Canada. Toronto:

Dundurn, 2015.

——— and John Fraser....

Following Part One’s exploration of the Crown's critical role in the Indigenous-Settler relationships of North America, Part Two of Episode One: Rooted in Treaty has host Nathan Tidridge joined by Dr. Alan Corbiere and Rick Hill Sr. for a wide-ranging conversation about Treaty, the Crown’s role and responsibilities, as well as the future.
Meeting in Gi-Chi-Twaa Gimaa Nini Mississauga Anishinaabek AName Amik (The King’s Anishinaabek Sacred Place) at Massey College, the history covered in Part One, including the Covenant Chain and Treaty of Niagara (1764), are is referenced as the discussion is linked to the Crown in the 21st century.

At the end of their talk, Tidridge offers a final question:

If you could say something to the King, if you could give him a teaching or give him give him some advice, you could speak to him right now, what would you say to him? What could he do that would be meaningful that would bring us forward as a society, if there is anything at all?

Following their answers, the group agrees to come together again following the coronation and future visit of King Charles III.

Dr. Alan Corbiere of M’Chigeeng First Nation on Manitoulin Island is a well-known historian and student of the history of Indigenous Peoples and the Anishinaabe Language. He also serves as an Assistant Professor at York University and has a Ph. D. History from York University, an MES from York University and a B. Sc., University of Toronto.

Rick Hill Sr. of the Tuscarora Nation, a member of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy is a Distinguished Fellow – Adjunct Professor at Mohawk College. He taught at the University at Buffalo for 20 years and was the Director of Public Programs at the National Museum of the American Indian. He was the founding coordinator of the Indigenous Knowledge Centre at Six Nations Polytechnic and currently teaches at Mohawk College.
ResourcesJohn Borrows, “Wampum at Niagara: The Royal Proclamation, Canadian Legal History, and Self-Government,” in Aboriginal and Treaty Rights in Canada: Essays on law, equity, and respect for difference, ed. Michael Asch. Vancouver: UBC Press, 1997.Hill, Rick W., and Nathan Tidridge. “The Crown, the Chain, and Peacekeeping: Diplomatic Traditions of the Covenant Chain,” in Royal Progress: Canada’s Monarchy in the Age of Disruption, D. Michael Jackson ed. Toronto: Dundurn, 2020.Tidridge, Nathan. “Decolonizing the Crown in Canada: Restoring the Queen at the Council Fire,” in The Canadian Kingdom: 150 Years of Constitutional Monarchy, D. Michael Jackson ed. Toronto: Dundurn, 2018.

———. The Queen at the Council Fire: The Treaty of Niagara, Reconciliation, and the Dignified Crown in Canada. Toronto: Dundurn, 2015.

——— and John Fraser. “An empowered GG could restore Crown’s role as Treaty partner.” Policy Options, May 15 2020. https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/may-2020/an-empowered-gg-could-restore-crowns-role-as-treaty-partner/Other resourcesGi-Chi-Twaa Gimaa Nini Mississauga Anishinaabek AName Amik (The King’s Anishinaabek Sacred Place) at Massey College: https://www.masseycollege.ca/the-chapel-royal/Institute for the Study of the Crown in Canada: www.iscc-iecc.caLearn more about

Season One teaser '... an explanation of what has been hidden in plain sight in the life of this country.'
 
 
 

We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of the Government of Canada, Canadian Heritage Community Projects Program on behalf of the 2022 Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in creating this podcast.