Fifty years ago this spring, Pierre Trudeau became Prime Minister of Canada and Trudeaumania swept the nation. Representing a sharp break with Canada’s political past, Trudeau reflected the unconventionality of the Sixties and the convergence of celebrity and politics. Trudeau’s record, however, reveals the political substance beneath his public persona. Over his remarkable fifteen and a half years in office, he led Canada through its greatest constitutional crisis, weathered a period of exceptional social and economic change and advocated strongly for government solutions to pressing national concerns.
Led by John English, an award-winning historian and former federal MP, this course will course will take you on an unforgettable journey through the life and times of a Canadian icon. We'll relive the political excitement of the 1960s and 70s while exploring how and why Trudeau’s image and legacy continue to endure.
The Director of the Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History at Trinity College, John English is the author of the two-volume biography Just Watch Me: The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, which was chosen as one of the ten best biographies of the decade in 2010 by Indigo and one of the twenty-five most influential Canadian books by the Literary Review of Canada in 2017.
May 24: Trudeaumania
What was Trudeaumania? Was it a unique moment, a sudden Canadian transformation? Did John Kennedy make Trudeau possible and, for the Liberals, necessary? What lasting impact did Trudeaumania have on Canadian politics? Critics and supporters agree that, with Trudeau, the style was the man and a source of enduring fascination.
May 31: Trudeau and Quebec
Trudeau entered federal politics in 1965, when Quebec separation and the dissolution of Canada were correctly regarded as possible and, if animosity grew, likely. Trudeau’s place in history depends on one’s view of his handling of the October Crisis, and this lecture will focus on his approach to this pivotal moment, his successes and his failures.
June 7: Trudeau and the World
Trudeau considered himself a “Citizen of the World,” yet he was fiercely attached to his province, and expressed indifference to international diplomacy. Although most foreign policy analysts have criticized his handling of external relations, Canadians consider him a central figure in creating the outward facing country we know today.
June 14: Trudeau and the Constitution
Trudeau’s interest in the Canadian constitution has been described as a “magnificent obsession.” Many consider the constitutional reforms of the early 1980s and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom to be his greatest achievement—they have had a more profound influence than Trudeau himself imagined and, in some cases, desired.
Further Viewing | In the Name of All Canadians — Thursday, June 14, 1:00 PM
June 21: Trudeau and the Economy
When he left office in 1984, most editorials excoriated Trudeau’s economic policies, including his National Energy Program and ballooning deficits. Too often these critics ignored Canada’s external challenges and the profound changes facing the world economy. Nixonomics, Reaganomics, and the end of the post-war boom created a new context that Trudeau recognized more clearly than most.
June 28: The Trudeau Legacy
While his Liberal successors rejected many of his policies, Canadians rank Trudeau highest among post World War II Prime Ministers. His emphasis on multiculturalism and human rights is celebrated internationally, and his son is now Prime Minister. What does Pierre Trudeau still mean to Canada and Canadians?