145 Facts About Pierre Trudeau

Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau was a Canadian politician, statesman, and lawyer who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1984.

Pierre Trudeau was then an associate professor of law at the Universite de Montreal.

Pierre Trudeau was originally part of the social democratic New Democratic Party, but then joined the Liberal Party in 1965, believing that the NDP could not achieve power.

Pierre Trudeau then succeeded Pearson and became prime minister of Canada.

Pierre Trudeau won a fourth election victory shortly afterwards, in 1980, and eventually retired from politics shortly before the 1984 election.

Pierre Trudeau is the most recent prime minister to win four elections and to serve two non-consecutive terms.

In domestic policy, Pierre Trudeau's government responded to the 1970 Quebec terrorist crisis by controversially invoking the War Measures Act, facilitated Canada's conversion to the metric system, pioneered official bilingualism and multiculturalism, established Via Rail, and passed the Access to Information Act and the Canada Health Act.

In economic policy, Pierre Trudeau's government expanded social programs, introduced the capital gains tax, and oversaw major increases in deficit spending.

Pierre Trudeau presided over Canada's entry into the G7, and in 1982 he patriated the Canadian constitution and established the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, actions that achieved full Canadian sovereignty.

Pierre Trudeau distanced Canada from the United States, maintained cordial relations with the Soviet Union, and formed strong ties with China and Cuban leader Fidel Castro, putting him at odds with other capitalist Western nations.

Pierre Trudeau spoke out against the Meech Lake and Charlottetown accords, arguing they would strengthen Quebec nationalism.

Pierre Trudeau 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.

In 1659, the first Pierre Trudeau to arrive in Canada was Etienne Pierre Trudeau or Truteau, a carpenter and home builder from La Rochelle.

Pierre Trudeau was born at home in Outremont, Montreal, Quebec, on October 18,1919, to Charles-Emile "Charley" Trudeau, a French-Canadian businessman and lawyer, and Grace Elliott, who was of mixed Scottish and French-Canadian descent.

Pierre Trudeau had an older sister named Suzette and a younger brother named Charles Jr.

Pierre Trudeau remained close to both siblings for his entire life.

Already in his late teens, Pierre Trudeau was "directly involved in managing a large inheritance".

Pierre Trudeau graduated from College Jean-de-Brebeuf in 1940 at the age of twenty-one.

Pierre Trudeau consulted several people on his options, including Henri Bourassa, the economist Edmond Montpetit, and Father Robert Bernier, a Franco-Manitoban.

Pierre Trudeau described a speech he heard in Montreal by Ernest Lapointe, minister of justice and Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King's Quebec lieutenant.

Pierre Trudeau continued his full-time studies in law at the Universite de Montreal while in the COTC from 1940 until his graduation in 1943.

The Harvard dissertation remained unfinished when Pierre Trudeau briefly entered a doctoral program to study under the socialist economist Harold Laski at the London School of Economics.

Pierre Trudeau was influenced by Nikolai Berdyaev, particularly his book Slavery and Freedom.

Pierre Trudeau used his British passport instead of his Canadian passport in his travels through Pakistan, India, China, and Japan, often wearing local clothing to blend in.

Pierre Trudeau was "appalled at the narrow nationalism in his native French-speaking Quebec, and the authoritarianism of the province's government".

When he returned to Montreal in 1949, Pierre Trudeau quickly became a leading figure opposing Duplessis's rule.

Pierre Trudeau actively supported the workers in the Asbestos strike which opposed Duplessis in 1949.

Pierre Trudeau was the co-founder and editor of Cite Libre, a dissident journal that helped provide the intellectual basis for the Quiet Revolution.

Pierre Trudeau wrote in his memoirs that he found this period very useful when he entered politics later on, and that senior civil servant Norman Robertson tried unsuccessfully to persuade him to stay on.

An associate professor of law at the Universite de Montreal from 1961 to 1965, Pierre Trudeau's views evolved towards a liberal position in favour of individual rights counter to the state and made him an opponent of Quebec nationalism.

Pierre Trudeau admired labour unions, which were tied to the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation, and tried to infuse his Liberal Party with some of their reformist zeal.

In 1963, Trudeau criticized the Liberal Party of Lester B Pearson when it supported arming Bomarc missiles in Canada with nuclear warheads.

Pierre Trudeau was offered a position at Queen's University teaching political science by James Corry, who later became Principal of Queen's, but turned it down because he preferred to teach in Quebec.

In 1965, Pierre Trudeau joined the Liberal Party, along with his friends Gerard Pelletier and Jean Marchand.

Pierre Trudeau himself was elected in the safe Liberal riding of Mount Royal in Montreal.

Pierre Trudeau would hold this seat until his retirement from politics in 1984, winning each election with large majorities.

Pierre Trudeau doubted the feasibility of the NDP's centralizing policies and felt that the party leadership tended toward a "deux nations" approach he could not support.

Pierre Trudeau famously defended the segment of the bill decriminalizing homosexual acts by telling reporters that "there's no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation", adding that "what's done in private between adults doesn't concern the Criminal Code".

Pierre Trudeau paraphrased the term from Martin O'Malley's editorial piece in The Globe and Mail on December 12,1967.

Pierre Trudeau liberalized divorce laws, and clashed with Quebec Premier Daniel Johnson, Sr.

Nevertheless, at the April 1968 Liberal leadership convention, Pierre Trudeau was elected leader on the fourth ballot, with the support of 51 percent of the delegates.

Pierre Trudeau defeated several prominent and long-serving Liberals, including Paul Martin Sr.

Governor General Roland Michener ultimately ruled that it did not, and the government subsequently won an actual confidence motion, but the incident made it clear that the minority government Pierre Trudeau had inherited would not realistically last the full parliamentary term, and that he would soon need to call an early election in order to win a parliamentary majority.

Pierre Trudeau vigorously defended the newly implemented universal health care and regional development programs, as well as the recent reforms found in the Omnibus bill.

The next day, Pierre Trudeau handily won the 1968 election with a strong majority government; this was the Liberals' first majority since 1953.

Pierre Trudeau's Cabinet fulfilled Part IV of the Royal Commission's report by announcing a "Multiculturalism Policy" on October 8,1971.

The Pierre Trudeau government was generous in granting asylum to the refugees.

The White Paper was widely seen as racist and an attack on Canada's indigenous peoples, and prompted the first major national mobilization of indigenous activists against the federal government's proposal, leading Pierre Trudeau to set aside the legislation.

Pierre Trudeau presented a determined public stance during the crisis; when questioned by CBC Television journalist Tim Ralfe regarding how far he would go to stop the violence, Pierre Trudeau answered, "Just watch me".

Pierre Trudeau faced increasing challenges in Quebec, starting with bitter relations with Bourassa and his Quebec Liberal government.

Pierre Trudeau responded with increasing anger at what he saw as nationalist provocations against Ottawa's bilingualism and constitutional initiatives, at times expressing his personal contempt for Bourassa.

Pierre Trudeau's reserve was seen as dignified by contemporaries, and his poll numbers actually rose during the height of coverage, but aides felt the personal tensions left him uncharacteristically emotional and prone to outbursts.

Pierre Trudeau's government ran large budget deficits throughout its time in office.

In 1973, Pierre Trudeau's government amended the National Housing Act to provide financial assistance for new home buying, loans for co-operative housing, and low interest loans for municipal and private non-profit housing.

In 1976, Pierre Trudeau's government allowed for transfers of funds between the RHOSP.

In 1977, Pierre Trudeau's government established the financial program Established Programs Financing to help finance the provincially-run healthcare and post-secondary education system, through transfer payments, by cash and tax points.

In 1979, Pierre Trudeau's government restructured family allowances by increasing the role of the tax system in child support and decreasing the role of family allowances.

On September 4,1973, Pierre Trudeau requested that the Western Canadian provinces agree to a voluntary freeze on oil prices during the ongoing Arab oil embargo.

Nine days later, the Pierre Trudeau government imposed a 40-cent tax on every barrel of Canadian oil exported to the United States to combat rising inflation and oil prices.

In late October 1973, Pierre Trudeau's government adopted a motion from the New Democratic Party to establish a nationalized oil company.

Pierre Trudeau's government gave itself authority over Petro-Canada's capital budget and its corporate strategy, making the company its policy arm; the government wanted the company to be mainly active on the frontiers rather than Western Canada, where most Canadian oil is extracted.

In 1976, Pierre Trudeau appointed his friend, Maurice Strong, to become the first chair of the company.

In foreign affairs, Pierre Trudeau kept Canada in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, but often pursued an independent path in international relations.

Pierre Trudeau was the first world leader to meet John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono on their 1969 "tour for world peace".

Halstead stated that Pierre Trudeau viewed foreign policy as "only for dabbing", saying he much preferred domestic affairs.

However, Pierre Trudeau made it clear that he did not want an intensified Cold War as a result of the invasion, and worked to avoid a rupture with Moscow.

In March 1969, Pierre Trudeau visited Washington to meet President Richard Nixon.

Pierre Trudeau himself noted during a speech given before the National Press Club during the same visit that the United States was by far Canada's largest trading partner, saying: "Living next to you is in some way like sleeping with an elephant; no matter how friendly and even-tempered the beast, one is affected by every twitch and grunt".

In late March 1969, Pierre Trudeau's cabinet was torn by debate as ministers divided into pro-NATO and anti-NATO camps, and Pierre Trudeau's own feelings were with the latter.

Ultimately, the fact the United States would be more favourably disposed to a Canada in NATO and the need to maintain Cabinet unity led Pierre Trudeau to decide, despite his own inclinations, to stay in NATO.

On January 4,1973, Pierre Trudeau voted for a resolution in the House of Commons that condemned the American Christmas bombings against North Vietnam between 18 and 29 December 1972.

Pierre Trudeau continued his attempts at increasing Canada's international profile, including joining the G7 group of major economic powers in 1976 at the behest of US President Gerald Ford.

American-Canadian relations changed for the better when Pierre Trudeau found a better rapport with Ford's successor, Jimmy Carter.

Pierre Trudeau attached little importance to relations with the United Kingdom.

Britain's 1973 decision to join the European Economic Community confirmed Pierre Trudeau's view that the UK was a declining power that had little to offer Canada, while the way that Japan had replaced Britain as Canada's second-largest trading partner was taken as further confirmation of these views.

However, Pierre Trudeau was attached to the Commonwealth, believing it was an international body that allowed Canada to project influence into the Third World; he noted it was one of the few bodies that allowed leaders from the First and Third Worlds to meet on a regular basis.

In what was described as a "no holds-barred" style, Pierre Trudeau told Heath that the British arms sales to white supremacist South Africa were threatening the unity of the Commonwealth.

At a Commonwealth summit in Singapore between 14 and 22 January 1971, Pierre Trudeau argued that apartheid was not sustainable in the long run given that the black population of South Africa vastly outnumbered the white population, and that it was extremely myopic for Britain to support South Africa, given that majority rule there was inevitable.

However, Pierre Trudeau worked for a compromise to avoid a split in the Commonwealth, arguing that it needed to do more to pressure South Africa to end apartheid peacefully, and saying that a "race war" in South Africa would be the worse possible way to end apartheid.

Pierre Trudeau had an especially close friendship with the Social Democratic West German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, whom he greatly liked both for his left-wing politics and as a practical politician who was more concerned about getting things done rather than with ideological questions.

Pierre Trudeau hoped would be the Framework Agreement would be the first step towards a Canadian-EEC free trade agreement, but the EEC proved to be uninterested in free trade with Canada.

Pierre Trudeau established Canadian diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China before the United States did in 1979, and became the first Canadian Prime Minister to make an official visit to Beijing.

On 10 February 1969, the government announced its wish to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic, and Pierre Trudeau was mortified when the Chinese refused to respond at first, which made him look foolish.

Pierre Trudeau expected the negotiations to be a mere formality, but relations were not finally established until October 1970.

In October 1973, Pierre Trudeau visited Beijing to meet Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong and premier Zhou Enlai, where Pierre Trudeau was hailed as "old friend", a term of high approval in China.

In 1976, Pierre Trudeau, succumbing to pressure from the Chinese government, issued an order barring Taiwan from participating as China in the 1976 Montreal Olympics, although technically it was a matter for the IOC.

Pierre Trudeau was known as a friend of Fidel Castro, the leader of Cuba.

Pierre Trudeau did press Castro in private to pull his troops out of Angola, only for Castro to insist that Cuba would do so only when South Africa likewise pulled its forces out of not only Angola, but South West Africa.

On September 1,1972, over four years into the Liberals' five-year mandate, Pierre Trudeau called an election for October 30.

In May 1974, the House of Commons passed a motion of no confidence in the Pierre Trudeau government, defeating its budget bill after Pierre Trudeau intentionally antagonized Stanfield and Lewis.

Pierre Trudeau finally did so, only two months from the five-year limit provided under the British North America Act.

The traditional Liberal rally at Maple Leaf Gardens saw Pierre Trudeau stressing the importance of major constitutional reform to general ennui, and his campaign "photo-ops" were typically surrounded by picket lines and protesters.

Pierre Trudeau soon announced his intention to resign as Liberal Party leader and favoured Donald Macdonald to be his successor.

The Liberal caucus, along with friends and advisors, persuaded Pierre Trudeau to stay on as leader and fight the election, with Pierre Trudeau's main impetus being the upcoming referendum on Quebec sovereignty.

The first challenge Pierre Trudeau faced upon re-election was the 1980 Quebec sovereignty referendum, called by the Parti Quebecois government of Rene Levesque.

Pierre Trudeau immediately initiated federal involvement in the referendum, reversing the Clark government's policy of leaving the issue to the Quebec Liberals and Claude Ryan.

Pierre Trudeau appointed Jean Chretien as the nominal spokesman for the federal government, helping to push the "Non" cause to working-class voters who tuned out the intellectual Ryan and Trudeau.

Pierre Trudeau described the origin of the name as Canadian.

Pierre Trudeau promised a new constitutional agreement should Quebec decide to stay in Canada, in which English-speaking Canadians would have to listen to valid concerns made by the Quebecois.

Alberta premier Peter Lougheed entered into tough negotiations with Pierre Trudeau, reaching a revenue-sharing agreement on energy in 1982.

Pierre Trudeau was backed by the NDP, Ontario Premier Bill Davis, and New Brunswick Premier Richard Hatfield and was opposed by the remaining premiers and PC leader Joe Clark.

At this meeting, Pierre Trudeau reached an agreement with nine of the premiers on patriating the constitution and implementing the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, with the caveat that Parliament and the provincial legislatures would have the ability to use a notwithstanding clause to protect some laws from judicial oversight.

The notable exception was Levesque who, Pierre Trudeau believed, would never have signed an agreement.

On February 29,1984, a day after what he described as a walk through the snowy streets of Ottawa, Pierre Trudeau announced he would not lead the Liberals into the next election.

Pierre Trudeau was frequently known to use the term "walk in the snow" as a trope; he claimed to have taken a similar walk in December 1979 before deciding to take the Liberals into the 1980 election.

Pierre Trudeau was succeeded by John Turner, a former Cabinet minister under both Trudeau and Lester Pearson.

Pierre Trudeau advised Governor General Jeanne Sauve to appoint over 200 Liberals to patronage positions.

Pierre Trudeau joined the Montreal law firm Heenan Blaikie as counsel and settled in the historic Maison Cormier in Montreal following his retirement from politics.

Pierre Trudeau wrote and spoke out against both the Meech Lake Accord and Charlottetown Accord proposals to amend the Canadian constitution, arguing that they would weaken federalism and the Charter of Rights if implemented.

Pierre Trudeau claimed in his speeches that giving Quebec the constitutional status of a "distinct society" would lead to the Quebec government deporting members of Quebec's English-speaking minority.

Pierre Trudeau continued to speak against the Parti Quebecois and the sovereignty movement with less effect.

Pierre Trudeau remained active in international affairs, visiting foreign leaders and participating in international associations such as the Club of Rome.

Pierre Trudeau met with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and other leaders in 1985; shortly afterwards Gorbachev met US President Ronald Reagan to discuss easing world tensions.

Pierre Trudeau succumbed to several health complications at his Montreal home on September 28,2000.

Pierre Trudeau's death has been attributed to his prostate cancer, Parkinson's disease, a prior battle with pneumonia, as well as the depression felt following his son's death in 1998.

Pierre Trudeau's funeral took place on October 3,2000, at the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal.

Pierre Elliot Trudeau was interred in the Trudeau family mausoleum at St-Remi-de-Napierville Cemetery in Saint-Remi, Quebec.

Pierre Trudeau frequently displayed the logic and love of argument consistent with that tradition.

Pierre Trudeau studied philosophy under Dominican Father Louis-Marie Regis and remained close to him throughout his life, regarding Regis as "spiritual director and friend".

Pierre Trudeau meditated regularly after being initiated into Transcendental Meditation by the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.

Pierre Trudeau took retreats at Saint-Benoit-du-Lac, Quebec and regularly attended Hours and Mass at Montreal's Benedictine community.

On March 4,1971, while prime minister, Pierre Trudeau quietly married 22-year-old Margaret Sinclair, who was 29 years younger, at St Stephen's Catholic Church in North Vancouver.

Pierre Trudeau was involved with guitarist Liona Boyd for eight years during this time.

When his divorce was finalized in 1984, Pierre Trudeau became the first Canadian prime minister to become a single parent as the result of divorce.

In 1984, Pierre Trudeau was romantically involved with Margot Kidder in the last months of his prime-ministership and after leaving office.

In 1991, Pierre Trudeau became a father again, with Deborah Margaret Ryland Coyne, to his only daughter, Sarah.

Pierre Trudeau began practising judo sometime in the mid-1950s when he was in his mid-thirties, and by the end of the decade, he was ranked ikkyu.

Pierre Trudeau began the night of his famous "walk in the snow" before announcing his retirement in 1984 by going to judo with his sons.

Pierre Trudeau was a strong advocate for a federalist model of government in Canada, developing and promoting his ideas in response and contrast to strengthening Quebec nationalist movements, for instance the social and political atmosphere created during Maurice Duplessis' time in power.

Pierre Trudeau noted the ostensible conflict between socialism, with its usually strong centralist government model, and federalism, which expounded a division and cooperation of power by both federal and provincial levels of government.

Pierre Trudeau pointed out that in sociological terms, Canada is inherently a federalist society, forming unique regional identities and priorities, and therefore a federalist model of spending and jurisdictional powers is most appropriate.

Pierre Trudeau argues, "in the age of the mass society, it is no small advantage to foster the creation of quasi-sovereign communities at the provincial level, where power is that much less remote from the people".

Many politicians still use the term "taking a walk in the snow", the line Pierre Trudeau used to describe how he arrived at the decision to leave office in 1984.

Bilingualism is one of Pierre Trudeau's most lasting accomplishments, having been fully integrated into the Federal government's services, documents, and broadcasting.

Pierre Trudeau's vision was to see Canada as a bilingual confederation in which all cultures would have a place.

The Charter of Rights and Freedoms was one of Pierre Trudeau's most enduring legacies.

Bennett in 1970 argued that Pierre Trudeau's government is Quebec nationalist-oriented.

Pierre Trudeau implied that Quebec received special treatment from Ottawa as a result.

Pierre Trudeau is credited by many for the defeat of the 1980 Quebec referendum.

At the federal level, Pierre Trudeau faced almost no strong political opposition in Quebec during his time as prime minister.

Pierre Trudeau is a 2002 television miniseries which aired on CBC Television.

Pierre Trudeau chose the following jurists to be appointed as justices of the Supreme Court of Canada by the Governor General:.

Pierre Trudeau received several honorary degrees in recognition of his political career.

Pierre Trudeau was appointed a Companion of the Order of Canada on June 24,1985.

The first, Pierre Trudeau, depicts his years as prime minister.