King Charles is fine, but how would the $20 look with these Canadians on it?

OTTAWA-King Charles will replace the queen on Canada's $20 bill and the country's coins.

The federal government announced the change Saturday during coronation events in the nation's capital.

A news release from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the Bank of Canada has been directed to replace the likeness of the late Queen Elizabeth II with King Charles III during the next design process. It has also tasked the Royal Canadian Mint with designing coins depicting the new monarch that will go into circulation.

The reigning monarch has appeared on paper money and coins since the central bank and the Mint each began production in 1935 and 1908, respectively.

The announcement comes after speculation on whether Canada would follow the U.K.'s lead and honour the new monarch on its currency. Australia chose to go in another direction, opting for an Indigenous design for its five-dollar bill.

Canada Post also released its first regular-circulation stamp featuring King Charles as monarch. It continues the corporation's tradition dating back more than 170 years of issuing stamps depicting the Canadian sovereign.

The finance minister is responsible for approving the form and material of any new banknote, including the portrait subject, in accordance with the Bank of Canada Act.

Having the monarch on currency is a practice that goes back centuries to when coins were minted with the king's face on it in the Middle Ages, according to experts, and it signifies power and tradition.

This was a way of showing that all money in the kingdom was owned by the king and also a way of preventing fraud," said Justin Vovk, a royal historian and a PhD candidate in early modern history at McMaster University.

No one, including the monarchy, sees currency as belonging to the king anymore, (but) it is a symbolic reflection of the sovereign's relationship with Canada, according to Vovk.

He is not only King of the United Kingdom, but he is also King of Canada."

Yet a recent poll from the Angus Reid Institute finds that more than half of Canadians do not want their country to continue as a constitutional monarchy for generations to come. Almost 90 per cent of those surveyed are willing to embrace constitutional change to sever the country's royal roots, and more than 40 per cent say they don't care about the coronation.

The online April poll surveyed 2,000 adults. For comparison purposes, a sample of that size would have a margin of error of plus or minus two percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

There is a strong sense of indifference in Canada toward the monarchy, said Vovk, explaining that people are questioning the institution's relevance to their modern lives.

The question I'm hearing from most people on this particular topic is why even put him on the money?' I suspect there will be many people who would be less than thrilled to have Charles on Canadian money."

It would make sense for Canada to follow Australia's example, according to Vovk, and use its physical money as a way to honour homegrown Canadian history.

This is less a slight against the monarchy than it is to acknowledge the uniqueness that is Canada and its people," agreed Vovk.

I don't think having King Charles's image on currency would move the younger generation," said Diane Pacom, a sociologist and professor emeritus at the University of Ottawa.

They do not even know who he is, he does not have the strong presence his mother had, he is generally not well-liked," she said, adding his tumultuous marriage to Diana, Princess of Wales has played a role in this unlikability, as well as Queen Elizabeth II's long reign overshadowing Charles.

Only 37 per cent of Canadians say they view the 74-year-old king favourably, according to a recent poll by Ipsos.

On top of that, according to Pacom, the world is a different place now where money, as a tangible material, is losing its value in meaning.

Everything is moving toward virtual reality now, people use credit cards, digital currency. So it would be a nostalgic thing for people who grew up in a time when money was tangible, maybe it will be valuable to collectors. Younger people don't have the emotional, physical connection to money."

In the U.K., currency featuring King Charles III's effigy has been introduced last fall and will begin circulating in mid-2024.

In Canada, although the national currency has not changed, two different Canadian medallion designs have been officially approved for the coronation, and are available to collectors in both silver and bronze.

Some of the candidates

Who are some Canadians who could have adorned a new $20 bill, as an alternative to King Charles III? Here are some potential candidates (as selected by Star editors), some more obvious candidates and a chart-topping long-shot.

Lincoln Alexander (1922-2012): He was a veteran and he was a lawyer. He was the first Black Canadian to become an MP. He became minister of labour. He served as chair of the Workers Compensation Board of Ontario. And he served as lieutenant-governor of Ontario.

Cindy Blackstock, 59. She's a member of the Gitksan First Nation who has fought for child protection and Indigenous rights. She made significant contributions to the UN's work on Indigenous people. She has helped win major court rulings in support of the rights of Indigenous children.

Tom Longboat (1886-1949): He was an Olympian and one of the most successful athletes of the early 20th century. He was an Onondaga from Six Nations of the Grand River. He broke marathon records and pioneered training methods. And Longboat served on the Western Front in the First World War.

David Suzuki, 87: He's a geneticist and one of Canada's most prominent crusaders for the environment. He is best known for hosting the television show The Nature of Things." He has also widely written on environmental issues. During the Second World War, a young Suzuki was interned with his family in B.C.

Celine Dion, 55:. Or we could go in a different direction: celebrity. Dion is a world-renowned singer with an exceptional voice that has brought her international fame. She has won five Grammy awards and is an Officer of the Order of Canada. And Titanic" wouldn't have been the same without her.

With files from The Canadian Press

Irem Koca is an Ottawa-based general assignment reporter for the Star. Reach her via email: ikoca@thestar.ca

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