Canada's 27th Governor General Michaelle Jean is settling into her official residence in Ottawa, after an emotion-filled day topped by a passionate pitch for national unity.

In an elaborate ceremony televised nationwide Tuesday, Canadians watched Jean moved from tears to laughter as she celebrated her official appointment.

Taking square aim at critics who questioned her loyalty to Canada, Jean sought to lay nagging questions about her sympathy toward Quebec separatism to rest.

The time of 'two solitudes' has passed, she said. Now is the time to focus on promoting national solidarity.

"Today's world ... demands that we learn to see beyond our wounds, beyond our differences for the good of all," Jean added as she urged unity and tolerance.

As the opening musical performance echoed through the halls of Parliament, friends and dignitaries watched as tears streamed down the cheeks of the 48-year-old broadcaster, social activist and mother.

After swearing the oath of allegiance, Jean rose in the crowded senate Chamber to address her audience and the nation and could barely contain the emotions stirred by the momentous day's events.

"I am determined that the position I occupy as of today will be more than ever a place where citizens' words will be heard, where the values of respect, tolerance, and sharing that are so essential to me and to all Canadians, will prevail," the Haitian-born Montrealer said, visibly struggling to contain her tears.

"Those values, which are paramount for me, are linked inextricably with the Canada I love."

In 1968, Jean's family fled political persecution in Haiti and settled in rural Quebec.

Jean said her life story before and since is one that much of Canada's diverse population can relate to.

"The story of that little girl, who watched her parents, her family, and her friends grappling with the horrors of a ruthless dictatorship, who became the woman standing before you today, is a lesson in learning to be free," she said.

With her husband Jean-Daniel Lafond and six-year-old daughter Marie Eden looking on, Jean also used her national platform to direct some thinly-veiled criticism at Canada's power elite.

From isolated, inward-looking ethnic communities, to the politicians that have lost touch with their constituents, few escaped Jean's good-natured admonition.

"We must eliminate the spectre of all the solitudes and promote solidarity among all the citizens who make up the Canada of today," she said, casting the age-old Canadian debate as a dusty relic of another age.

The ceremony finished with a rousing gospel performance that had Jean clapping and smiling with the crowd. Then, when she finally emerged onto the front steps of Parliament, where the sun was beating down on the honour guard assembled for her inspection, the military commander-in-chief showed she was already comfortable in her new role.

Her first day as Governor General, which began with her arrival on Parliament Hill from her new residence at Rideau Hall, ended with a dinner for 900 at the Civic Centre in Ottawa.

New coat of arms

As one of the youngest people ever appointed to the office of Governor General, Jean has already shown her intention to make good on her ideology.

Her personal coat of arms shows two black mermaids blowing conch shells under the motto "Briser Les Solitudes" -- breaking down solitudes.

According to Rideau Hall, breaking the "solitudes," a term often used to describe French and English Canada, is at the heart of her objectives as vice regal.

In the centre of the coat of arms is a sand dollar, which her office says is a special talisman for Jean. The mermaids are from Haitian culture and are said to symbolize the vital role played by women in advancing social justice.

Although the announcement of her appointment stirred a countrywide controversy over her family's alleged links to Quebec separatists, Canadians appear to have already warmed to their new Governor General.

A CTV/Globe and Mail poll conducted before her swearing-in ceremony showed broad support, particularly among young Canadians and Quebeckers. In Jean's adopted province, 71 per cent of people polled said they thought she was a good choice for the job.

According to Prime Minister Paul Martin, his choice for Canada's new Governor General is a glowing example of what lies at the core of Canada: respect for all cultures, races and religions.

"Madame Jean is renowned for her compassion, her eagerness to listen and for her desire to act," he said.

The first black person and only the third woman to hold the highest title in Canada's constitutional order, Jean is taking over after Adrienne Clarkson's six-year term at Rideau Hall.

Clarkson, who is credited with breathing new life into the office of Governor General, was still defying convention by attending the service.

It was the first time in more than 100 years that an outgoing Governor General was present at the swearing-in of a successor.

During the ceremony Martin thanked Clarkson and her husband John Ralston Saul for their work over the past six years.

"With warmth intelligence and wit they have honoured this high office and made an indelible contribution to our nation," Martin said after a prolonged standing ovation in the Senate.