On Monday, September 19, Canada will mark the passing of Queen Elizabeth II with a national day of mourning and a national memorial ceremony in the nation’s capital.
The events, which will take place on the same day as the Queen’s state funeral at Westminster Abbey, will include a memorial parade through downtown Ottawa, a service at Christ Church Cathedral and a flyover of planes from CF-18 fighter over Parliament Hill.
With plans finalized, federal officials released new details about the event – the timing of which they delayed from what was originally planned so as not to overlap with events in London – and how Canadians can participate.
Aware of the heightened security on Parliament Hill around major events since the convoy protests this winter, officials said plans were underway to ensure that these commemorations honoring the life and contributions of longest reigning monarch in Canada can take place in “a family environment”. “
“Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II witnessed great moments in our history and touched the lives of many Canadians. The commemorative ceremony we are preparing will be dignified and warm, just like Her Majesty the Queen,” Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez said in a statement inviting Canadians to watch the ceremony, calling it “a shared moment to pause. and reflect across the country.
Here’s everything you need to know about Monday’s events.
COMMEMORATIVE PARADE
The day’s events will begin with a memorial parade at approximately 12:10 p.m. ET and will last 40 minutes as it travels the 2.2 kilometer route.
The parade will begin at the Cartier Square Armoury, a military training center located next to Ottawa City Hall along the Rideau Canal, which currently serves two regiments, the Governor General’s Foot Guards and the Camerons. Highlanders of Ottawa.
The parade, made up of members of the Canadian Armed Forces and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, will pass the National Aboriginal Veterans Monument and the National War Memorial on Elgin Street, before turning onto Wellington Street towards Cathedral.
According to Canadian Heritage, the two RCMP Musical Ride detachments each have 13 horsemen, and the military contingent will be a 100-person honor guard made up of navy, army, air force and special forces personnel. .
A member of the National Sentinel Program will carry Her Majesty’s Personal Canadian Flag, and 32 members of the Central Band of the Canadian Armed Forces, supported by the Royal Canadian Air Force Pipes and Drums and the Band of the Governor General Foot Guards , will also participate.
A 96-gun salute – one shot for each year of Queen Elizabeth II’s life – will be fired during the parade. This salute will take place on LeBreton Flats, just west of downtown and across from the Canadian War Museum.
People are urged to gather along the parade route to watch, with plans underway to set up barricades and close roads for security reasons.
Screens will also be installed in the Garden of the Provinces and Territories on Wellington Street so that spectators can follow the events throughout the morning.
CATHEDRAL SERVICE
The hour-and-fifteen-minute service at Christ Church Cathedral is by invitation only, with federal officials saying they are expecting 600 guests.
The Anglican Cathedral is where many state funeral services have taken place and where memorial services for Queen Elizabeth in 2002 and for Prince Philip in 2021 took place.
Due to start at 1 p.m. ET, officials haven’t released full details of who will be attending, but confirmed guests include former prime ministers Brian Mulroney and Joe Clark.
Mulroney and former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson will deliver remarks at the ceremony, after officials told reporters there would be a speech by a “prominent Canadian”.
The cathedral is likely to be filled with dignitaries, members of the diplomatic corps, representatives of various religious communities and charities with which Queen Elizabeth II had a close connection. All MPs were also invited.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Governor General Mary Simon and their spouses will not be present, as they are traveling as part of the Canadian delegation, alongside more than a dozen prominent Canadians, including former prime ministers, governors general and members of the Order of Canada — in London for the state funeral.
In Ottawa, the memorial procession through the cathedral led by a piper will include honorary bearers and representatives from each of Her Majesty’s 16 military regiments.
Officials said the ceremony will involve religious and non-religious elements, reflecting the diversity of religions seen in Canada.
The Dean of Christ Church Cathedral in Ottawa, the Reverend Elizabeth J. Bretzlaff, and the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa, the Reverend Shane AD Parker, will officiate at the service. Prayers will be read by the Canadian Secretary to King Donald Booth and the Canadian Armed Forces Chaplain, Brigadier General. Guy Belisle.
A tribute will also be paid by Algonquin Spiritual Advisor and Ottawa English Poet Laureate Albert Dumont.
The ceremony will also include hymns and songs, a tribute video featuring an original piece composed by the Canadian Armed Forces for the occasion, musical interludes by Canadian artists including violinist David Baik, singer Patricia Cano and the saxophonist Marcus Ali.
Canadian talents Ginette Reno and Rufus Wainwright will each perform a song, and the national anthem will be performed by singer and comedian Kim Richardson. There will also be a minute of silence in memory of Queen Elizabeth II.
For anyone wishing to watch across Canada, the ceremony will be televised live and streamed online.
Canadian Heritage is also committed to posting the full program online on the day of the ceremony.
At the end of the ceremony, the church bells will ring and there will be a flypast of Royal Canadian Air Force CF-18s in the “Missing Persons Formation” moving over Parliament Hill, towards the cathedral.
POST-GRIEVING PERIOD
The Canadian flags that have been flown at half-mast on all federal buildings and establishments in Canada and abroad, including the Peace Tower, should be raised at sunset on the day of the funeral.
While Canada’s official period of mourning will end after Monday, a series of changes are yet to come for Canadian institutions.
Since King Charles III has been proclaimed Head of State of Canada, certain procedural and ceremonial adjustments have already been made.
For example, Canada’s Royal Anthem, “God Save The Queen” became “God Save The King”. The Queen’s Privy Council is now the King’s Privy Council, and the official title of the Official Opposition is now “Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition”.
The protocol states that the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II should remain until the day after the funeral, but these images in buildings across the country should then be removed and replaced with the portrait of the new sovereign, once it becomes available. , which may take some time. .
The royal monogram – the Queen’s personal monogram that is used on badges of Canadian orders, medals and badges – will also eventually be replaced by the personal monogram of King Charles III.
In the future, although Canadian currency that bears the image of Queen Elizabeth II is legal tender, it is possible that in the future the federal government may order the Royal Canadian Mint to design and circulate new coins and banknotes featuring a portrait of the king.