A biography of famed Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Information on his life, politics, career and influence.
"Pierre Elliott Trudeau: The very words convey
so many things to so many people; Statesman,
intellectual, professor, adversary, outdoorsman,
lawyer, journalist, author, Prime Minister.
But more than anything, he was Dad to me.
"--Eulogy of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, given by his eldest son, Justin.
Sixteen years after leaving The Office of the Prime Minister of Canada, Trudeau succumbed at the age of 80 to prostate cancer and Parkinson's Disease.
Pierre Elliott Trudeau was born on October 18, 1919 to a bilingual family. His father was French Canadian and his mother was of Scottish descent. He had a privileged childhood, but he used it for betterment of himself. His own personal motto was: Reason Before Passion. In 1943 he became a lawyer after studying law at the University of Montreal. He earned a Master of Arts degree from Harvard University and went to Europe for post-graduate work at the Ecole des Sciences Politiques in Paris from 1946-47 and then studied at the London School of Economics in 1947-48. Then he took a year to see Europe and Asia before returning to Canada.
Back in Canada, Trudeau accepted a position as desk officer in the Privy Council in Ottawa and specialized in labor laws. He became well known for supporting the labor unions in the Asbestos Strike of Quebec and also fought against the arrogant regime of Premier Maurice Duplessis of Quebec. He was also a co-founder of the paper, Cite Libre. In 1961 Trudeau was appointed associate professor of law at the University of Montreal.
He entered politics by winning a seat in the 1965 general election. His political career was off to a good start with his appointment as Parliamentary Secretary to Prime Minister Lester Pearson in 1966. After Pearson's resignation in 1967, Trudeau stood as a candidate in the leadership convention of April, 1968.
Trudeau, like John Kennedy in the United States, was a man who came to politics at the right time. His campaign fascinated Canadians and inspired the media term, Trudeaumania. He was voted leader on April 6, and became Canada's fifteenth Prime Minister.
On April 23 he dissolved Parliament and called a general election, which resulted in the first majority government since 1958. The next election in 1972 gave him the fifth minority government since Confederation. Beaten in a non-confidence motion in May 1974, another election had to be held. Trudeau's Liberals returned to power in July with a comfortable majority.
Taking the last election to a full five year term he called an election in May 1979. On May 22, 1979 Pierre Trudeau suffered his first defeat. He resigned later that year as Leader of the Opposition, but when the Progressive Conservative Party fell in a non-confidence vote, he was lured back and led the Liberal Party once again to majority government. He would resign for good on February 29, 1984. The President of the Liberal Party said of the date.
"I should have known he would pick that day."
On November 5, 1981, the provinces and the federal government reached an historic agreement over the patriation and substance of the Canadian Constitution. On April 17, 1982, the Constitution, with its endorsement of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, was brought home. Other achievements during his time as Prime Minister include:
The Official Languages Act, 1969
Implementation of the War Measures Act, 1970
Wage and Price Controls, 1975
Canadian Charter of Rights, 1982
Patriation of Canadian Constitution
The repatriation of the Constitution is perhaps the crowning achievement of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, a man of unique style and intellect, who dedicated more than a decade to the political life of his country.
Of his personal life, Trudeau was very guarded. In 1971 he married Margaret Sinclair. They had three children, Justin, Alexander (Sacha), and Michel. Michel would predecease him in 1998 in an avalanche accident. In 1977 he and Margaret divorced. Trudeau had another child, a daughter, Sarah, in 1992.
On the 28th of September, Pierre Elliott Trudeau dies of prostate cancer at the age of 80.
"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
He has kept his promises, and earned his sleep.
"--Eulogy of Pierre Elliott Trudeau by his son Justin.
Bibliography
Council, Irma. Canada's Prime Ministers : Governors General and Fathers of Confederation, Markham, ON : Pembroke Publishers, c1999.
Maclean's Magazine. Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Toronto : Rogers Media, Oct, 9, 2000, Vol. 113, no. 41.
