Back Pierre Trudeau Afrikaans بيير ترودو Arabic بيير ترودو ARZ Pierre Trudeau AST Pierre Trudeau Aymara Pyer Trüdo Azerbaijani Pierre Trudeau BCL П’ер Эліёт Трудо Byelorussian П’ер Трудо BE-X-OLD Пиер Елиът Трюдо Bulgarian
Pierre Trudeau | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Trudeau in 1975 | |
| 15th Prime Minister of Canada | |
| In office March 3, 1980 – June 30, 1984 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Governors General | |
| Deputy | Allan MacEachen |
| Preceded by | Joe Clark |
| Succeeded by | John Turner |
| In office April 20, 1968 – June 4, 1979 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Governors General |
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| Deputy | Allan MacEachen (1977–1979) |
| Preceded by | Lester B. Pearson |
| Succeeded by | Joe Clark |
| Leader of the Opposition | |
| In office June 4, 1979 – March 3, 1980 | |
| Preceded by | Joe Clark |
| Succeeded by | Joe Clark |
| Leader of the Liberal Party | |
| In office April 6, 1968 – June 16, 1984 | |
| Preceded by | Lester B. Pearson |
| Succeeded by | John Turner |
| Minister of Justice Attorney General of Canada | |
| In office April 4, 1967 – July 5, 1968 | |
| Prime Minister | Lester B. Pearson |
| Preceded by | Louis Cardin |
| Succeeded by | John Turner |
| Member of Parliament for Mount Royal | |
| In office November 8, 1965 – June 30, 1984 | |
| Preceded by | Alan Macnaughton |
| Succeeded by | Sheila Finestone |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau October 18, 1919 Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Died | September 28, 2000 (aged 80) Montreal, Quebec, Canada |
| Resting place | Saint-Rémi Cemetery, Saint-Rémi, Quebec |
| Political party | Liberal (from 1965) |
| Other political affiliations |
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| Spouse | |
| Children | 4, including Justin, Alexandre, and Michel |
| Parent |
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| Alma mater | |
| Occupation |
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| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Canada |
| Branch/service | Canadian Army |
| Years of service | 1943–1945 |
| Rank | Officer Cadet |
| Unit | Canadian Officers' Training Corps |
Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau PC CC CH QC FRSC (/ˈtruːdoʊ, truːˈdoʊ/ TROO-doh, troo-DOH, French: [pjɛʁ tʁydo]; October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1984. Between his non-consecutive terms as prime minister, he served as the leader of the Opposition from 1979 to 1980.
Trudeau was born and raised in Outremont, Quebec, a Montreal suburb, and studied politics and law. In the 1950s, he rose to prominence as a labour activist in Quebec politics by opposing the conservative Union Nationale government. Trudeau was then an associate professor of law at the Université de Montréal. He was originally part of the social democratic New Democratic Party, though felt they could not achieve power, and instead joined the Liberal Party in 1965. That year, he was elected to the House of Commons, quickly being appointed as Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson's parliamentary secretary. In 1967, he was appointed as minister of justice and attorney general. As minister, Trudeau liberalized divorce and abortion laws and decriminalized homosexuality. Trudeau's outgoing personality and charismatic nature caused a media sensation, inspiring "Trudeaumania", and helped him to win the leadership of the Liberal Party in 1968, when he succeeded Pearson and became prime minister of Canada.
From the late 1960s until the mid-1980s, Trudeau's personality dominated the political scene to an extent never before seen in Canadian political life. After his appointment as prime minister, he won the 1968, 1972, and 1974 elections, before narrowly losing in 1979. He won a fourth election victory shortly afterwards, in 1980, and eventually retired from politics shortly before the 1984 election. Trudeau is the most recent prime minister to win four elections (having won three majority governments and one minority government) and to serve two non-consecutive terms. His tenure of 15 years and 164 days makes him Canada's third-longest-serving prime minister, behind John A. Macdonald and William Lyon Mackenzie King.
Despite his personal motto, "Reason before passion",[1] Trudeau's personality and policy decisions aroused polarizing reactions throughout Canada during his time in office. While critics accused him of arrogance, of economic mismanagement, and of unduly centralizing Canadian decision-making to the detriment of the culture of Quebec and the economy of the Prairies,[2] admirers praised what they considered to be the force of his intellect[3] and his political acumen that maintained national unity over the Quebec sovereignty movement. Trudeau suppressed the 1970 Quebec terrorist crisis by controversially invoking the War Measures Act. In addition, Quebec's proposal to negotiate a sovereignty-association agreement with the federal government was overwhelmingly rejected in the 1980 Quebec referendum.
In economic policy, Trudeau expanded social programs, introduced the capital gains tax, and oversaw major increases in deficit spending. In a bid to move the Liberal Party towards economic nationalism, Trudeau's government oversaw the creation of Petro-Canada and launched the National Energy Program, both of which generated uproar in oil-rich Western Canada, leading to a rise in what many called "Western alienation". In other domestic policy, Trudeau pioneered official bilingualism and multiculturalism, fostering a pan-Canadian identity. Trudeau's foreign policy included making Canada more independent; he patriated the Constitution and established the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, actions that achieved full Canadian sovereignty. He distanced Canada from the United States and rather formed close ties with the Soviet Union, China, and Cuban leader Fidel Castro, putting him at odds with other capitalist Western nations.
In his retirement, Trudeau practised law at the Montreal law firm of Heenan Blaikie. He also successfully campaigned against the Meech Lake and Charlottetown Accords (which proposed granting Quebec certain concessions), arguing they would strengthen Quebec nationalism. Trudeau died in 2000. He is ranked highly among scholars in rankings of Canadian prime ministers, though he remains a divisive figure in Canadian politics and is viewed less favourably in Western Canada and Quebec. His eldest son, Justin Trudeau, became the 23rd and current prime minister, following the 2015 Canadian federal election; Justin Trudeau is the first prime minister of Canada to be a descendant of a former prime minister.
- ^ Kaufman, Michael T. (September 29, 2000). "Pierre Trudeau Is Dead at 80; Dashing Fighter for Canada". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 25, 2013. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
- ^ Fortin (2000-10-09), p. A17.
- ^ Mallick (2000-09-30), p. P04.