who was the british monarch when canada became a country
List of Canadian monarchs Listed here are the monarchs who reigned over the French and British colonies of Canada, followed by the British Dominion of Canada, and finally the present-day sovereign state of Canada.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] 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 (likely either modern-day Newfoundland or Nova Scotia), and claimed the land for England on behalf of King Henry VII.[11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] However, some sources instead put this date at 1534 when the word "Canada" was first used to refer to the French colony of Canada,[19] which was founded in the name of King Francis I.[20][21] Monarchical governance subsequently evolved under a continuous succession of French, British, and eventually uniquely Canadian sovereigns.[4][5][17][21][22][23][24][25] Since the first claim by Henry VII,[26] there have been 33 sovereigns of Canada, including two sets of co-sovereigns.[27][28][29][30][31][32][33]