Delving into the history of Canada’s prime ministers

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Canadians in their 20s and 30s might not know what Lester Pearson, who was prime minister from 1963 to 1968, did “in terms of establishing national health care and establishing our own distinct Canadian flag,” Stewart said.

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“If you look at somebody like Alexander Mackenzie, he was prime minister for one term after Sir. John A. Macdonald, but he established the Supreme Court in Canada and he also established the secret ballot,” Stewart said of the Liberal who was prime minister from 1873 to 1878.

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“Everything that a prime minister does is laying a foundation for building the country and sometimes they’re a little bit minor but still have a role to play when you look at the grand scheme.”

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When the rocky relationship between Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump creeps into conversation, Archibald notes there’s a lot we can learn by examining how other prime ministers have handled relations with their American counterparts.

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Canada’s 12th prime minister, St. Laurent, had “quite close working relationships” with both Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower, she said.

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“He played golf, for example, with Eisenhower at Augusta National Golf Club in 1956 and he came back to the House of Commons and talked about how the golf course was a great place for diplomacy because they were talking politics in between shots and in the golf cart on the way to the next hole,” Archibald said.

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Prime Ministers Institute co-founders and directors J.D.M. Stewart and Joanne Archibald. Photo by Peter J Thompson/ National Post

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St. Laurent even attended a performance by Truman’s daughter, Margaret, a classical coloratura soprano, in Ottawa, she said.

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“Harry Truman wrote a letter back to Louis St. Laurent saying how much he appreciated that Louis St. Laurent and his wife, Jeanne, went to support Margaret Truman in her performance in Ottawa. So, you can really see the personal connections between these leaders and the way in which that shapes their relationship.”

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If we look at “previous examples of really nasty relationships,” those between John F. Kennedy and Diefenbaker stand out for their generational clash, as does the discord between Pierre Trudeau and Richard Nixon, Stewart said.

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“If you look at Nixon’s speech to Parliament in 1972, he throws a lot of cold water on the relationship and says we need to get by the sentimental past and just look at both these countries that have different interests and different identities,” Stewart said. “He took all the sugar off and said we’re not always going to get along. So, he didn’t really push the rhetoric of the great relationship between the two countries.”

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The new institute, to be known by its initials PMI, is a program of the Canadian Institute for Historical Education, a registered charity dedicated to promoting historical literacy through research, education, and engagement in the public square.

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The PMI is supported by leading historians, journalists, and thinkers from across the country.

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The institute is not located in a building but will be a virtual organization committed to in-person public engagement. It plans to partner with civic and academic institutions to engage with the public about political history and its relevance to today.

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The institute will launch its first public event on Tuesday, Nov. 24, at 6 p.m. at the Royal Canadian Military Institute in Toronto when it hosts a panel discussion on Prime Ministers and 24 Sussex Drive.

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