Liberal Canadians were a little different pre Pierre Trudeau. Still interested in building Canada as a separate independent nation, but still recognizing the ties to Britain. The period the Order of Canada comes from explains the structure. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
This stamp is a fairly straightforward view of the medal, seen in the highest of the three grades. The red maple leaf is only on the highest companion level. Interesting that the red maple leaf was designed in the same era as a symbol of Canada independent of the Empire. Yet the Medal awards the status of being a companion of the British Monarch. Reflective of the confused time.
Todays stamp is issue A363, a 12 cent stamp issued by Canada on June 30th, 1977. It was a single stamp issue honouring the 10th anniversary of the of the establishment of the Order of Canada. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 25 cents whether it is mint or used.
It was decided to offer a medal to outstanding Canadian citizens in the mid 1960s. Before that, a smaller number of Canadians were recognized as part of the British Honours system. The government of the time was Liberal, under then Prime Minister Lester B Pearson. A committee of Canadians would recommend a list of potential honorees to the British Governor General of Canada who then approves them on the authority of the Queen. The three levels of the medal represent the Monarch (Companion), The Governor General (Officer), and everyone else (Member). About 100 medals are handed out every year. It is safe to say that if the medal had come into being 5 years later, under Prime Minister Trudeau with his greater Quebec sensibilities, the British Royals would have been bypassed.
The award is not always well received. One or two percent of the awards are refused. Usually because of divided loyalty regarding potential Quebec independence or Jewish Heritage. The committee works to be inclusive of those from Quebec and people of First Nation heritage, which is what Canada calls Indians. However the Medal is relinquished if the honouree is convicted of a crime. The nature of the Medal sees it going to many political activists and occasionally a controversial one sees older awards being returned in protest. The medals are officially property of the Queen but are allowed to be passed down within families as an heirloom. Occasionally one comes up for sale. One bought at an estate sale for $45 and then put on eBay for resale. Bidding hit $750,000 before eBay pulled the auction.
The award can be seen as a short step away from Britain but some time there is a circle back around. It has been more recently decided that being awarded the medal entitles the recipient to have a Canadian Family Crest designed for those that don’t already have one. The Queen signed off on a Canadian Heraldic Authority in 1987, so Canadians no longer had to apply to the existing ones in England, Scotland, and Ireland. Sounds pretty silly, but I have a representation of my (British) family crest hanging on the wall, so who am I to judge.
Well my drink is empty and so I will patiently wait till tomorrow when there will be another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.