• The head of the state of Canada is the British monarch.
• A governor general, chosen by the prime minister, serves as the royal family’s representative.
• According to a survey, most Canadians would not be willing to do away with the monarchy.

Even though the monarchy had a rocky relationship with Canadians, who remained loyal to Queen Elizabeth II to the very end, analysts predict that her passing on Thursday will spark discussion over the monarchy’s future.

“Canada is a monarchist exception in the middle of a rather republican continent,” said Marc Chevrier, a politics professor at the University of Quebec in Montreal.

After the moment of sorrow, he continued, “the debates will resurface, Pandora’s box will open.”

The head of state of Canada is the British monarch, but even more so than in Britain, this position is essentially ceremonial. A governor general, chosen by the prime minister, serves as the royal family’s representative in this instance.

The announcement of a 10-day period of mourning came after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau praised Elizabeth’s reign and noted that she had been “queen for almost half of Canada’s existence.”

On the same day as her funeral in London, all flags have been lowered across the nation, and national memorial service is being arranged in Ottawa, the nation’s capital.

But the nation has grown more lukewarm regarding the monarchy when it comes to pomp.

According to Philippe Lagasse, an expert on the monarchy in Canada and a professor at Carleton University in Ottawa, “Even in English-speaking Canada, support for the monarchy has diminished over the years.”

A survey conducted in April found that a slim majority of Canadians — up to 71 percent in the French-speaking province of Quebec — would even be willing to do away with the monarchy, whose function nowadays is mostly ceremonial.

Sixty-seven percent stated they opposed Charles succeeding his mother as monarch of the country. He visited the nation in May of last year, and hardly anyone noticed.

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