Pierre Elliot Trudeau

Introduction Pierre Trudeau will always be remembered in Canada His flamboyance as our 15 th prime minister such as his pirouette behind Queen Elizabeth II’s back, being accused of using an obscenity leading to “fuddle duddle”, the October Crisis, and many more have left a mark in the politics of Canada

Bio Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau was born October 18, 1919 in Montreal, Quebec to Charles-Émile Trudeau, a French Canadian businessman and lawyer, and Grace Elliott, who was of French and Scottish descent He had an elder sister, Suzette and a younger sibling Charles Jr They lived on Rue Durocher and he started elementary school at Academie Querbes At the age of 12, his father sold his 30 gas stations to Imperial Oil for $1.4 million ($18 million today). They moved to Mount Royal and Trudeau entered the College Jean-de-Brebeuf Later, his father died and it was a traumatic loss for Pierre

Life in the 30’s to 40’s When WWII started, Trudeau had resisted enlistment and rejected conscription. He earned a law degree at the Université de Montréal in 1943 The National Resources Mobilization Act later conscripted him into the Canadian Officers' Training Corps He championed anti-conscription and was expelled from the corps for lack of discipline. When the war ended, he studied and received a master’s in political economy at Harvard University He studied at the Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris, and finally worked towards Earned his doctorate at the London School of Economics In 1943, he entered the Quebec bar

His Travels In 1948, he decided to travel around the world He did try to study Spanish in Mexico but ended up hitchhiking He was imprisoned in Yugoslavia for not having a visa Studied in London, Paris Got caught in crossfire in Jerusalem He travelled around India by boat Travelled around China He encountered desert bandits in Iraq but outsmarted them. In Moscow, he was followed everywhere by KGB agents

Return He started as a lawyer in Montreal He was an active vocal supporter of the workers in the Asbestos Strike. In the 50’s, he co-founded and edited a journal, the Cité Libre He along with several others became leading figures who opposed Duplessis’s rule. Pierre Trudeau worked briefly in the Privy Council Office of PM St. Laurent as an economic policy advisor from 1949 to At first, Trudeau supported the CCF but he joined the Liberals for his change for a liberal position

Return (II) From , Trudeau was the associate Professor of Law at University of Montreal and researcher at the Institut de recherches en droit public. Along with his friends Gérard Pelletier and Jean Marchand, these "three wise men" deicided to run for the Liberals in the 1965 election. Trudeau was elected in the safe Liberal riding of Mount Royal

Return (III) Trudeau was appointed as the parliamentary secretary during the time of PM Pearson He spent much of the next year traveling the world, representing Canada at international meetings and events In 1967, he was appointed as the Justice Minister. Trudeau introduced the Criminal Law Amendment Act, Trudeau also liberalized divorce laws at the federal level.

Return (IV) When Pearson deicide to step down, Trudeau ran for the leadership of the Liberal Party. After four ballots, Trudeau won the leadership of the Liberal party with the support of 51% of the votes at April. He had defeated many senior candidates in the ballots

Rise To Power Pierre Trudeau’s rise to power was unlike any other. One of the circumstances for his election to the office was the craze of “Trudeaumania”( a term coined by journalist Lubor J. Zink). Later to be “Trudeauphobia” This occurred around 1968 His bravery at the 1968 annual Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day parade in Montreal He won the 1968 Canadian federal election with 154 seats He became Prime Minister in April 20 th, 1968

Acts, Crisis, and Issues In 1969, he first passed the Official Languages Act in 1969 In 1970, Canada was hit by the October Crisis. Later he uses the War Measures Act In 1970, he pushed and succeeds in making Canada free of nuclear weapons Also in 1970, Trudeau made an amendment to the Canada Elections Act Afterwards, the Public Order Act was passed

Acts, Crisis, and Issues (II) Trudeau kept Canada firmly in NATO but seeked self-independence He established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China In 1971, he tried to establish the” Opportunities for Youth” programs Trudeau’s party was elected in 1972 as a minority government with the NDP The result was the government going left.

Acts, Crisis, and Issues (III) The Energy Supplies Emergency Act In 1974, the House of Commons passed a motion of no confidence in his government In 1974, another federal election occurred with Trudeau with a majority government He faced with inflation and during the election; He mocked the Progressive Conservatives about wage price control In 1975; Trudeau introduced his own wage and price control system Trudeau got Canada into the G7 in 1976 In 1975, the Petroleum Administration Act passed

Fall of Trudeau A worsening economy by inflation and rising oil prices Growing national debt Increasing public antipathy towards Trudeau's perceived arrogance Large budget deficits High unemployment Western Alienation

Work Cited Sandra Phinney. (2006) Jack Fruit Press LTD Editor: Susan Hughs Canadian Prime Ministers Warts&All: The Prankster who never flinched John English. (2009) Alfred A. Knopf Canada. Just Watch Me “The Pierre Trudeau Homepage” CBC.ca - Top Ten Greatest Canadians- Pierre Trudeau (2010) “First among equals The Right Honourable Pierre Elliot Trudeau” Pierre Elliot Trudeau Life Biography (2001) Richard W. Pound. Third Edition (2005) Fitzhenry&Whiteside. Fitzhenry and Whiteside Book of Canadian Facts and Dates

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Analysis My analysis on Pierre Trudeau is that he did act on Canada`s interests.