Listed here are the monarchs who reigned over the French and British colonies of Canada, followed by the Dominion of Canada, and finally the present-day sovereign state of Canada. The date of the first claim by a monarch over Canada varies, with most sources giving the year as 1497, when John Cabot made landfall somewhere on the North American coast, and claimed the land for England on behalf of King Henry VII. However, some sources instead put this date at 1535 when the word "Canada" was first used to refer to the French colony of Canada, which was founded in the name of King Francis I. Monarchical governance subsequently evolved under a continuous succession of French, British, and eventually uniquely Canadian sovereigns. Since the first claim by Henry VII, there have been 33 sovereigns of Canada, including two sets of co-sovereigns. While Canada became a Dominion within the British Empire upon Confederation in 1867, the concept of a fully independent Canada sharing the person of the sovereign with the United Kingdom and other countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, only emerged gradually over time through constitutional convention, and was officially confirmed with the passage of the Statute of Westminster in 1931. Since then, the Canadian Crown has been legally distinct from those of the other Commonwealth realms, with its own separate and distinct monarch. Although the term king of Canada was used as early as the beginning of the reign of George VI, it was not until 1953 that the monarch's title was made official, with Elizabeth II being the first monarch to be separately proclaimed as Queen of Canada, as per the Royal Style and Titles Act.
The Canadian monarchs' consort—his or her spouse—has no constitutional status or power, but is a member of the Canadian Royal Family. In the United Kingdom, all female consorts have had the right to and have held the title of Queen Consort; as Canada does not have laws or letters patent under the Great Seal of Canadalaying out the styles of any Royal Family members besides the monarch, royal consorts are addressed in Canada using the style and title as they hold in the UK. After informal discussions among the various Commonwealth prime ministers between 1954 and 1957, it was decided that Prince Philip, husband of Elizabeth II, would not be granted the title of Prince Consort. Since Confederation, two sovereigns have reigned over Canada without a consort: Victoria, whose husband, Albert, died before Confederation, and Edward VIII, who married Wallis Simpson after his abdication. Though Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, will technically become queen consort in the United Kingdom, Clarence House has stated that, due to public opinion regarding her relationship with the Prince of Wales, she will be styled there as Princess Consort.
