The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian
state order and the second-highest
honour
Honour (British English) or honor (American English; see spelling differences) is the idea of a bond between an individual and a society as a quality of a person that is both of social teaching and of personal ethos, that manifests itself as a ...
for merit in the system of
orders, decorations, and medals of Canada
The orders, decorations, and medals of Canada comprise a complex system by which Canadians are honoured by the country's sovereign for actions or deeds that benefit their community or the country at large. Modelled on its British predecessor, ...
, after the
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by ...
.
To coincide with the
centennial of
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Dominion ...
, the three-tiered order was established in 1967 as a fellowship that recognizes the outstanding merit or distinguished service of
Canadians
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
who make a major difference to Canada through lifelong contributions in every field of endeavour, as well as the efforts by non-Canadians who have made the world better by their actions. Membership is accorded to those who exemplify the order's Latin
motto
A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mo ...
, , meaning "they desire a better country", a phrase taken from
Hebrews 11:16.
The three tiers of the order are Companion, Officer, and Member; specific individuals may be given extraordinary membership and deserving non-Canadians may receive honorary appointment into each grade.
, the reigning Canadian monarch, is the sovereign of the order and the
Governor General
Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy ...
administers the order on behalf as Chancellor and Principal Companion. Appointees to the order are recommended by an advisory board and formally inducted by the governor general or the sovereign. , 7,212 people have been appointed to the Order of Canada,
including scientists, musicians, politicians, artists, athletes, business people, film stars, benefactors, and others. Some have resigned or have been removed from the order, while other appointments have been controversial. Appointees are presented with insignia and receive the right to
armorial bearings
A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in it ...
.
Creation
The process of founding the Order of Canada began in early 1966 and came to a conclusion on 17 April 1967, when the organization was instituted by Queen Elizabeth II, on
the advice of the
Canadian prime minister,
Lester B. Pearson, who was assisted with the establishment of the order by
John Matheson. The
snowflake
A snowflake is a single ice crystal that has achieved a sufficient size, and may have amalgamated with others, which falls through the Earth's atmosphere as snow.Knight, C.; Knight, N. (1973). Snow crystals. Scientific American, vol. 228, no. ...
design for the order was suggested by the diplomat
John G. H. Halstead
John Gelder Horler Halstead (27 January 1922 – 9 February 1998) was a Canadian diplomat and academic.
Early career
Halstead was born in Vancouver into a middle-class family. In 1943, he graduated from the University of British Columbia, and jo ...
. The association was officially launched on 1 July 1967, the
100th anniversary of
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Dominion ...
, with Governor General
Roland Michener being the first inductee to the order, to the level of Companion, and on 7 July of the same year, 90 more people were appointed, including former Governor General
Vincent Massey
Charles Vincent Massey (February 20, 1887December 30, 1967) was a Canadian lawyer and diplomat who served as Governor General of Canada, the 18th since Confederation. Massey was the first governor general of Canada who was born in Canada afte ...
, former Prime Minister
Louis St. Laurent
Louis Stephen St. Laurent (''Saint-Laurent'' or ''St-Laurent'' in French, baptized Louis-Étienne St-Laurent; February 1, 1882 – July 25, 1973) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 12th prime minister of Canada from 19 ...
, novelist
Hugh MacLennan, religious leader
David Bauer, novelist
Gabrielle Roy
Gabrielle Roy (March 22, 1909July 13, 1983) was a Canadian author from St. Boniface, Manitoba and one of the major figures in French Canadian literature.
Early life
Roy was born in 1909 in Saint-Boniface (now part of Winnipeg), Manitoba, and ...
, historian
Donald Creighton, feminist politician and future senator
Thérèse Casgrain, pioneering neurosurgeon
Wilder Penfield
Wilder Graves Penfield (January 26, 1891April 5, 1976) was an American-Canadian neurosurgeon. He expanded brain surgery's methods and techniques, including mapping the functions of various regions of the brain such as the cortical homunculu ...
, painter
Arthur Lismer, public health leader
Brock Chisholm, former political leader
M. J. Coldwell, disability advocate
Edwin Baker, painter
Alex Colville, and ice hockey superstar
Maurice Richard. During a visit to
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, United Kingdom, later in 1970, Michener presented the Queen with her Sovereign's badge for the Order of Canada,
which she first wore during a banquet in
Yellowknife
Yellowknife (; Dogrib: ) is the capital, largest community, and only city in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake, about south of the Arctic Circle, on the west side of Yellowknife Bay near the ...
in July 1970.
From the Order of Canada grew a
Canadian honours system
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source o ...
, thereby reducing the use of
British honours (i.e. those administered by the Queen in her
UK Privy Council
The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of ei ...
). Among the civilian
awards
An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration.
An aw ...
of the Canadian honours system, the Order of Canada
comes third, after the
Cross of Valour and membership in the
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by ...
,
which is within the personal gift of
Canada's monarch. By the 1980s,
Canada's provinces began to develop their own distinct honours and decorations.
Grades
The Canadian monarch, seen as the
fount of honour, is at the apex of the Order of Canada as its Sovereign, followed by the governor general, who serves as the fellowship's Chancellor. Thereafter follow three grades, which are, in order of precedence: ''Companion'' (french: Compagnon), ''Officer'' (french: Officier), and ''Member'' (french: Membre), each having accordant
post-nominal letters that members are entitled to use. Each incumbent governor general is also installed as the Principal Companion for the duration of his or her time in the viceregal post and continues as an extraordinary Companion thereafter.
Additionally, any governor general, viceregal consort, former governor general, former viceregal consort, or member of the
Canadian Royal Family may be appointed as an extraordinary Companion, Officer, or Member. Promotions in grade are possible, though this is ordinarily not done within five years of the initial appointment, and a maximum of five honorary appointments into any of the three grades may be made by the governor general each year. , there have been
25 honorary appointments.
[
There were originally, in effect, only two ranks to the Order of Canada: ''Companion'' and the '' Medal of Service''. There was, however, also a third award, the ''Medal of Courage'', meant to recognize acts of gallantry. This latter decoration fell in rank between the other two levels, but was anomalous within the Order of Canada, being a separate award of a different nature rather than a middle grade of the order. Without ever having been awarded, the Medal of Courage was on 1 July 1972 replaced by the autonomous Cross of Valour and, at the same time, the levels of Officer and Member were introduced, with all existing holders of the Medal of Service created as Officers. Lester Pearson's vision of a three-tiered structure to the order was thus fulfilled.
]Companions of the Order of Canada
Companion may refer to:
Relationships Currently
* Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance
* A domestic partner, akin to a spouse
* Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach
* Companion (caregiving), a careg ...
(post-nominals: ''CC'', in french: Compagnon de l'ordre du Canada) have demonstrated the highest degree of merit to Canada and humanity, on either the national or international scene. Up to 15 Companions are appointed annually, with an imposed limit of 165 living Companions at any given time, not including those appointed as extraordinary Companions or in an honorary capacity. , there are 146 living Companions. Since 1994, substantive members are the only regular citizens who are empowered to administer the Canadian Oath of Citizenship.
Officers of the Order of Canada (post-nominals: ''OC'', in french: Officier de l'ordre du Canada) have demonstrated an outstanding level of talent and service to Canadians, and up to 64 may be appointed each year, not including those inducted as extraordinary Officers or in an honorary capacity, with no limit to how many may be living at one time. , there were 1,049 living Officers.
Members of the Order of Canada (post-nominals: ''CM'', in french: Membre de l'ordre du Canada) have made an exceptional contribution to Canada or Canadians at a local or regional level, group, field or activity. As many as 136 Members may be appointed annually, not including extraordinary Members and those inducted on an honorary basis, and there is no limit on how many Members may be living at one time. , there were 2,281 living Members.
Insignia
Upon admission into the Order of Canada, members are given various insignia of the organization, all designed by Bruce W. Beatty, who "broke new ground in the design of insignia of Orders within The Queen's realms" and was himself made a member of the order in 1990; Beatty attended every investiture ceremony between 1967 and early 2010. The badge belonging to the Sovereign consists of a jewelled, 18- carat gold crown of rubies, emerald
Emerald is a gemstone and a variety of the mineral beryl (Be3Al2(SiO3)6) colored green by trace amounts of chromium or sometimes vanadium.Hurlbut, Cornelius S. Jr. and Kammerling, Robert C. (1991) ''Gemology'', John Wiley & Sons, New York, p ...
s, and sapphire
Sapphire is a precious gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum, consisting of aluminium oxide () with trace amounts of elements such as iron, titanium, chromium, vanadium, or magnesium. The name sapphire is derived via the Latin "sap ...
s, from which is suspended a white, enamelled, hexagonal snowflake design, with six equal leaves and diamonds between each. At the centre is a disc bearing a maple leaf in pavé-laid rubies on a white enamel background, surrounded at its edge by a red enamel ring (annulus) bearing the motto of the order. The Chancellor wears the badge of a Companion and is, upon installation as governor general, granted a livery collar for wear at Order of Canada investiture ceremonies.
The badges for inductees are of a similar design to the sovereign's badge, though without precious stones, and slight differences for each grade. For Companions, the emblem is gilt with a red enamel maple leaf in the central disk; for Officers, it is gilt with a gold maple leaf; and for Members, both the badge itself and the maple leaf are silver. All are topped by a St. Edward's Crown, symbolizing that the order is headed by the sovereign, and the reverse is plain except for the word ''CANADA''.
The ribbon is white and bordered in red stripes, similar to the Canadian national flag; the chest ribbon is the same for each grade, save for a metallic maple leaf in the centre, the colour of which matches that on the badge of the grade that the wearer was appointed to. For civilian wear, a lapel pin is worn on the jacket, which is designed as a miniature of the medallion.
Wear of the insignia is according to guidelines issued by the Chancellery of Honours, which stipulate that the badges be worn before most other national orders, that is, at the end of an individual's medal bar closest to the centre of the chest or at the wearer's neck, with only the Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
, the Cross of Valour, and the badge of the Order of Merit
The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by ...
permitted to be worn before the badges of the Order of Canada. Those in the grades of Companion or Officer may wear their badges on a neck ribbon, while those in the Member group display their insignia suspended by a ribbon from a medal bar on the left chest. Protocol originally followed the British tradition, wherein female appointees wore their Order of Canada emblem on a ribbon bow positioned on the left shoulder. These regulations were altered in 1997, and women may wear their insignia in either the traditional manner or in the same fashion as the men.
With the patriation
Patriation is the political process that led to full Canadian sovereignty, culminating with the Constitution Act, 1982. The process was necessary because under the Statute of Westminster 1931, with Canada's agreement at the time, the British parl ...
in 1988 of oversight of heraldry
Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known bran ...
from the UK to Canada through the Canadian Heraldic Authority
The Canadian Heraldic Authority (CHA; french: Autorité héraldique du Canada) is part of the Canadian honours system under the Monarchy of Canada, Canadian monarch, whose authority is exercised by the Governor General of Canada. The authority i ...
, the constitution of the Order of Canada was amended to include the entitlement of all inductees to petition the Chief Herald of Canada for personal armorial bearings (coats of arms), should they not already possess any. Companions may receive supporters
In heraldry, supporters, sometimes referred to as ''attendants'', are figures or objects usually placed on either side of the shield and depicted holding it up.
Early forms of supporters are found in medieval seals. However, unlike the coro ...
, and all members may have the escutcheon
Escutcheon may refer to:
* Escutcheon (heraldry), a shield or shield-shaped emblem, displaying a coat of arms
* Escutcheon (furniture), a metal plate that surrounds a keyhole or lock cylinder on a door
* (in medicine) the distribution of pubic ha ...
(shield) of their arms encircled with a red ribbon bearing the order's motto in gold, and from which is suspended a rendition of the holder's Order of Canada badge. The Queen, Sovereign of the Order of Canada, approved the augmentation of her royal arms for Canada with the order's ribbon in 1987.
On the grant to Bishop's College School
Bishop's College School or BCS is an English-language non-profit independent school, independent boarding school, boarding College-preparatory school,
prep school in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada for students in Grades 7 to 12.Thomson, Ashley; Laf ...
, Québec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirteen p ...
, the Sovereign's insignia of the Order was depicted below the Royal Arms of Canada, the only time the badge has been incorporated into a grant document.
Possession and sale
The constitution of the Order of Canada states that the insignia remain property of the Crown
The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has differen ...
, and requires any member of the order to return to the chancellery their original emblem should they be upgraded within the order to a higher rank. Thus, while badges may be passed down as family heirlooms, or loaned or donated for display in museums, they cannot be sold by any individual other than the monarch with the proper advice and consent of her ministers. Over the decades, however, a number of Order of Canada insignia have been put up for sale. The first was the Companion's badge of M. J. Coldwell, who was appointed in 1967; his badge was sold at auction in 1981, an act that received criticism from government officials.
In 2007, it was revealed that one of the first ever issued insignia of the Order of Canada, a Medal of Service awarded originally to Quebec historian Gustave Lanctot, was put up for sale via e-mail. Originally, the anonymous auctioneer, who had purchased the decoration for $45 at an estate sale in Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...
, attempted to sell the insignia on eBay
eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became ...
; however, after the bidding reached $15,000, eBay removed the item, citing its policy against the sale of government property, including "any die, seal or stamp provided by, belonging to, or used by a government department, diplomatic or military authority appointed by or acting under the authority of Her Majesty." Rideau Hall stated that selling medals was "highly discouraged"; however, the owner continued efforts to sell the insignia via the internet. Five years later, a miniature insignia presented to Tommy Douglas was put on auction in Ontario as part of a larger collection of Douglas artifacts. Douglas's daughter, Shirley Douglas
Shirley Jean Douglas (April 2, 1934 – April 5, 2020) was a Canadian actress and activist. Her acting career combined with her family name made her recognizable in Canadian film, television and national politics.
Early life
Douglas was born A ...
, purchased the set for $20,000.
Eligibility and appointment
Any of the three levels of the Order of Canada are open to all living Canadian citizens, except all federal and provincial politicians and judges while they hold office. The order recognizes the achievement of outstanding merit or distinguished service by Canadians
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
who made a major difference to Canada through lifelong contributions in every field of endeavour, as well as the efforts made by non-Canadians who have made the world better by their actions. Membership is thus accorded to those who exemplify the order's Latin motto
A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mo ...
, taken from of the Christian Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
, , meaning "they desire a better country." Each of the six to eight hundred nominations submitted each year, by any person or organization, is received by the order's Advisory Council, which, along with the governor general, makes the final choice of new inductees, typically by consensus rather than a vote; a process that, when conceived, was the first of its kind in the world. Appointees are then accepted into the organization at an investiture ceremony typically conducted by the governor general at Rideau Hall, although the sovereign or a provincial viceroy may perform the task, and the ceremony may take place in other locations. Since the 1991 investiture of Ted Rogers, Order of Canada instalment ceremonies have been broadcast on various television channels and the Internet; recipients are given a complimentary video recording of their investiture ceremony from Rogers Cable.
At certain periods, holders of the order were presented with other awards, usually commemorative medals. Thus far, two commemoratives have been given automatically to every living member of the Order of Canada: the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977 and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...
in 2012.
Advisory council
The task of the order's advisory council is to evaluate the nominations of potential inductees, decide if the candidates are worthy enough to be accepted into the order, and make recommendations to the governor general, who appoints the new members. The council is chaired by the chief justice of Canada
The chief justice of Canada (french: juge en chef du Canada) is the presiding judge of the nine-member Supreme Court of Canada, the highest judicial body in Canada. As such, the chief justice is the highest-ranking judge of the Canadian court sy ...
, and includes the clerk of the Privy Council, the deputy minister of Canadian Heritage, the chair of the Canada Council for the Arts, the president of the Royal Society of Canada, the chair of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada
Universities Canada (french: Universités Canada) is an organization that represents Canada's universities. It is a non-profit national organization that coordinates university policies, guidance and direction.
Formed in 1911, as the Association ...
, and five members of the order who sit on the council for a three-year period. If a nomination involves a non-Canadian citizen, the deputy minister of Foreign Affairs
''Foreign Affairs'' is an American magazine of international relations and U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership organization and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and ...
is invited by the Advisory Council to offer evaluation. Decisions of the council and new appointments to and dismissals from the Order of Canada are announced through the ''Canada Gazette
The ''Canada Gazette'' (french: Gazette du Canada) is the official government gazette of the Government of Canada. It was first published on October 2, 1841. While it originally published all acts of the Parliament of Canada, it later also publ ...
''.
, the members of the advisory council are:
* Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...
, Chief Justice of Canada
The chief justice of Canada (french: juge en chef du Canada) is the presiding judge of the nine-member Supreme Court of Canada, the highest judicial body in Canada. As such, the chief justice is the highest-ranking judge of the Canadian court sy ...
(Chair)
* Ewan Affleck
Ewan Affleck, is a family physician in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. In 2013 he was named to the Order of Canada for his work in electronic medical records
An electronic health record (EHR) is the systematized collection of pat ...
* Shelley Brown
* Janice Charette, Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet
* Gregory Charles
* Zita Cobb
* Sharon Davis-Murdoch
* Marie Yvonne Delorme
* Alain-G. Gagnon, President of the Royal Society of Canada
* Meric Gertler, Chair of Universities Canada and President of the University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institu ...
* Isabelle Mondou, Deputy Minister of the Department of Canadian Heritage
* Jesse Wente
Jesse Wente is a First Nations Canadian arts journalist and chairperson of the Canada Council for the Arts. He is an Ojibwe member of Serpent River First Nation.
Background
Jesse Wente was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1974. His maternal gra ...
, Chair of the Canada Council for the Arts
Refusal
Few have declined entry into the Order of Canada; , 1.5 per cent of offered appointments to the order had been refused. The identities of those individuals who have declined induction since the 1970s are kept confidential, so the full list is not publicly known. Some, however, have spoken openly about their decisions, including Robert Weaver, who stated that he was critical of the "three-tier" nature of the order; Claude Ryan and Morley Callaghan
Edward Morley Callaghan (February 22, 1903 – August 25, 1990) was a Canadian novelist, short story writer, playwright, and TV and radio personality.
Biography
Of Canadian/English-immigrant parentage,Clara Thomas, ''Canadian Novelists 192 ...
, who both declined the honour in 1967; Mordecai Richler
Mordecai Richler (January 27, 1931 – July 3, 2001) was a Canadian writer. His best known works are '' The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz'' (1959) and '' Barney's Version'' (1997). His 1970 novel ''St. Urbain's Horseman'' and 1989 novel ...
, who twice declined; and Marcel Dubé
Marcel Dubé (January 3, 1930 – April 7, 2016) was a Canadian playwright. He produced over 300 works for radio, television, and stage. During his career he promoted the preservation and sanctity of the French language in Quebec.
__TOC__
Early ...
, Roger Lemelin and Glenn Gould, who all declined in 1970. However, all the above individuals, save for Gould and Weaver, later did accept appointment into the order. Others have rejected appointment on the basis of being supporters of the Quebec sovereignty movement
The Quebec sovereignty movement (french: Mouvement souverainiste du Québec) is a political movement whose objective is to achieve the sovereignty of Quebec, a province of Canada since 1867, including in all matters related to any provision o ...
, such as Luc-André Godbout, Rina Lasnier and Geneviève Bujold, while Alice Parizeau, another supporter of Quebec sovereignty, was criticized for accepting entry into the order despite her beliefs.
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
recipient Cecil Meritt cited the fact that he already held Canada's highest decoration as a reason not to be admitted to the Order of Canada. Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from El ...
, was in 1982 offered appointment to the order as an honorary Companion; however, he refused on the grounds that, as the consort of the Queen, he was a Canadian and thus entitled to a substantive appointment. In 1993, the Advisory Council proposed an amendment to the constitution of the Order of Canada, making the sovereign's spouse automatically a Companion, but Prince Philip again refused, stating that if he was to be appointed, it should be on his merits. Congruent with these arguments, he in 1988 accepted without issue a substantive induction as a Companion of the Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Go ...
. In 2013, the constitution of the Order of Canada was amended in a way that permitted the substantive appointment of Royal Family members and Prince Philip accepted induction as the first extraordinary Companion of the Order of Canada on 26 April 2013. Former Premier of Newfoundland Joseph Smallwood declined appointment as a Companion because he felt that, as a self-proclaimed Father of Confederation, he deserved a knighthood. Smallwood was never knighted and later accepted induction as a Companion.
Resignation and removal
Resignations from the order can take place only through the prescribed channels, which include the member submitting to the Secretary General of the Order of Canada a letter notifying the chancellery of his or her desire to terminate their membership, and only with the governor general's approval can the resignation take effect. On 1 June 2009, the governor general accepted the resignations of astronomer and inventor René Racine, pianist Jacqueline Richard, and Cardinal Jean-Claude Turcotte
Jean-Claude Turcotte () (26 June 1936 – 8 April 2015) was a Canadian Roman Catholic cardinal. Upon his elevation into the cardinalate he was made the Cardinal-Priest of Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament and the Holy Canadian Martyrs. He was ...
; on 11 January 2010, the same was done for Renato Giuseppe Bosisio, an engineering professor, and Father Lucien Larré; and on 19 April 2010 for Frank Chauvin. It was also reported that other constituents of the Order of Canada had, in reaction to Henry Morgentaler
Henekh "Henry" Morgentaler, (March 19, 1923 – May 29, 2013), was a Polish-born Canadian physician and abortion rights advocate who fought numerous legal battles aimed at expanding abortion rights in Canada. As a Jewish youth during World War ...
's induction into their ranks, indicated that they would return or had returned their emblems in protest, including organizations such as the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) is a missionary religious congregation in the Catholic Church. It was founded on January 25, 1816, by Eugène de Mazenod, a French priest born in Aix-en-Provence in the south of France on August 1, ...
and Madonna House Apostolate doing so on behalf of deceased former members.
Members may be removed from the order if the Advisory Council feels their actions have brought the order into disrepute. In order for this to be done, the council must agree to take action and then send a letter to the person both telling of the group's decision and requesting a response. Anyone removed from the order is required to return their insignia. , seven people have been removed from the Order of Canada:[ Alan Eagleson, who was dismissed after being jailed for fraud in 1998; ]David Ahenakew
David Ahenakew (July 28, 1933 – March 12, 2010) was a Canadian First Nations (Cree) politician, and former National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations.
Ahenakew was born at the Sandy Lake Indian Reserve in Saskatchewan. He and his wi ...
, who faced calls for his removal due to antisemitic
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Ant ...
comments he made in 2002; T. Sher Singh, after the Law Society of Upper Canada found him guilty of professional misconduct and revoked his licence to practise law; Steve Fonyo
Stephen Charles Fonyo Jr. (June 29, 1965 – February 18, 2022) was a Canadian runner with an artificial leg who was a nationally renowned fundraiser for cancer research and treatment, and a former Member of the Order of Canada.
Journey for Live ...
, due to "his multiple criminal convictions, for which there are no outstanding appeals"; Garth Drabinsky, who was found guilty of fraud and forgery in Ontario and has been a fugitive from American law for related crimes; Conrad Black, who was convicted in the United States in 2007 of fraud and obstruction of justice; and Ranjit Chandra, whose scientific work was discredited by allegations of fraud. In 2013, Norman Barwin resigned from the order as a result of the Advisory Council moving forward with his pending removal due to his being found guilty of professional misconduct.
The Order's Advisory Council considered a request made in 2021 for the expulsion of Julie Payette, the 29th Governor General of Canada, from the order. Payette, an Extraordinary Companion, resigned from the viceregal post over allegations of harassment of personnel at Rideau Hall
Rideau Hall (officially Government House) is the official residence in Ottawa of both the Canadian monarch and their representative, the governor general of Canada. It stands in Canada's capital on a estate at 1 Sussex Drive, with the main ...
.
Controversial appointments
The advisory board attempts to remain apolitical and pragmatic in its approach to selecting new members of the Order of Canada, generally operating without input from ministers of the Crown
Minister of the Crown is a formal constitutional term used in Commonwealth realms to describe a minister of the reigning sovereign or viceroy. The term indicates that the minister serves at His Majesty's pleasure, and advises the sovereign o ...
; political interference has occurred only once, when in 1978 Paul Desmarais's investiture was delayed for six months by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau
Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau ( , ; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000), also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and ...
. However, some of the committee's selections have caused controversy. For instance, the admission in 2001 of sex educator Sue Johanson
Susan Johanson (née Powell; born March 13, 1930) is a Canadian sex educator, public speaker, and registered nurse.
Biography
Early life and career
Johanson was born Susan Powell in Toronto, Ontario, to Wilfrid Powell, a decorated British war ...
, host of the long-running ''Sunday Night Sex Show
The ''Sunday Night Sex Show'' was a live call-in Television in Canada, Canadian television show hosted by Sue Johanson, which ran from 1996 to 2005. It aired on the W Network and was one of their most popular programs. Every week, callers would li ...
'', as a Member stirred controversy among some of Canada's Christian organizations, as Johanson had taught teenagers methods of safe sex alongside abstinence. Similarly, the acceptance of birth control advocate Elizabeth Bagshaw and gay rights
Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality.
Notably, , ...
campaigner Brent Hawkes also incited debate.
Abortion-rights
The abortion debate is a longstanding, ongoing controversy that touches on the moral, legal, medical, and religious aspects of induced abortion. In English-speaking countries, the debate most visibly polarizes around adherents of the self-describ ...
activist Henry Morgentaler's appointment to the order on 1 July 2008 not only marked the first time the Advisory Council had not been unanimous in its decision, but also proved to be one of the most controversial appointments in the order's history. Opponents of Morgentaler's abortion activism organized protests outside of Rideau Hall on 9 July, while compatriots did the same in front of Government House in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland.
The city spans and is the easternmost city in North America ...
, the official residence of that province's lieutenant governor.
One former police detective, Frank Chauvin, along with a Catholic anti-abortion activist, filed suit against the Order of Canada Advisory Council, demanding that the minutes of the meeting relating to Morgentaler be made public. The appointment of Morgentaler prompted former Liberal Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...
(MP) Clifford Lincoln to write that the workings of the Advisory Council were "mysterious", citing what he theorized to be inbuilt partiality and conflict of interest as reasons why Margaret Somerville, whom Lincoln had twice nominated to the Advisory Council, was turned down for appointment, yet Morgentaler was accepted. Journalist Henry Aubin in the ''Montreal Gazette
The ''Montreal Gazette'', formerly titled ''The Gazette'', is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Three other daily English-language newspapers shuttered at various times during the second half of th ...
'' opined that the council's rejection of Somerville, her personal opposition to same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
, and the acceptance of Brent Hawkes, Jane Rule
Jane Vance Rule (28 March 1931 – 27 November 2007) was a Canadian writer of lesbian-themed works. Her first novel, ''Desert of the Heart'', appeared in 1964, when gay activity was still a criminal offence. It turned Rule into a reluctant m ...
, and Jean Chrétien, all regarded as supporting same-sex unions, as well as the appointment of a controversial figure such as Morgentaler, were all signs that the Advisory Council operated with partisan bias. Aubin also pointed to the presence on the council of members of the Royal Society of Canada, an organization into which Somerville was received.
Proposed amendments
At a 2006 conference on Commonwealth honours, Christopher McCreery, an expert on Canada's honours, raised the concern that the three grades of the Order of Canada were insufficient to recognize the nation's very best; one suggestion was to add two more levels to the order, equivalent to knighthoods in British orders. The order of precedence also came under scrutiny, particularly the anomaly that all three grades of the Order of Canada supersede the top levels of each of the other orders (except the Order of Merit), contrary to international practice.
In June 2010, McCreery suggested reforms to the Order of Canada that would avert the awkwardness around appointing members of the Canadian royal family as full members of the order: He theorized that the Queen, as the order's Sovereign, could simply appoint, on ministerial advice, anyone as an extra member, or the monarch could issue an ordinance allowing for her relations to be made regular members when approved. Similarly, McCreery proposed that a new division of the order could be established specifically for governors general, their spouses, and members of the royal family,[ a version of which was adopted in 2013.]
See also
* Appointment to the Order of Canada
* List of Companions of the Order of Canada
* Canadian order of precedence (decorations and medals)
The following is the Canadian order of precedence for decorations and medals. Where applicable, post-nominal letters are indicated.
Awards of valour
National orders
Provincial orders
Territorial orders
National decorations
National dec ...
Notes
References
Citations
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Further reading
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External links
Governor General's Order of Canada site
Order of Canada 50th anniversary history website
{{Canadian Honours System
1967 establishments in Canada
Awards established in 1967
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...