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The daughter of James Sinclair, a former Liberal member of the Parliament of Canada and fisheries minister, she attended Simon Fraser University where she obtained a degree in English literature. As an 18-year-old on vacation in Tahiti she met Pierre Trudeau, who was then Minister of Justice. Ms. Sinclair did not recognize him and she in fact thought little of their encounter but Trudeau was captivated by the carefree "flower-child" and would begin to pursue her.
Pierre Trudeau (1919-2000) was still a bachelor when elected Prime Minister of Canada in 1968. After keeping their dating from the press, to the shock of the nation, the Prime Minister married the 22-year-old Sinclair on March 4, 1971 in a private ceremony. This raised some eyebrows among conservative Canadians because of their thirty year age difference, but it was considered typical behavior for a prime minister who prided himself on his "progressive" views and youthful vigor. When asked about her role in a marriage to the most famous man in the country, Margaret Trudeau said, "I want to be more than a rose in my husband's lapel."
The Trudeaus had three sons, Justin (b. December 25, 1971), AlexandreAlexandre (Sacha) Trudeau (born December 25, 1973) is a Canadian journalist, and the son of former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and Margaret Trudeau. The second of three children born to Pierre and Margaret Trudeau during Pierre's term in office, Sacha T (Sacha) (b. December 25, 1973Events January events January 1 United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark enter the European Economic Community now known as the European Union January 3 Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) sells the New York Yankees for $10 million to a 12-person syndicate led), and MichelMichel Trudeau ( September 2, 1975 November 13, 1998) was the son of Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and his wife, Margaret Trudeau. Born in Ottawa, Ontario, he studied to become a microbiologist. He was killed in an avalanche while skiing at Briti (b. September 2September 2 is the 245th day of the year (246th in leap years). There are 120 days remaining. Events 31 BC Roman Civil War: Battle of Actium Off the western coast of Greece, forces of Octavian defeat troops under Mark Antony and Cleopatra. 1666 The Great, 1975Events January January 1 Watergate scandal: John N. Mitchell, H. Haldeman, John D. Ehrlichman are found guilty of the Watergate cover-up and are sentenced to 30 months to 8 years in jail on February 21 January 5 The Tasman Bridge in Tasmania, Australia, i-d. November 13November 13 is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 48 days remaining. Events 1775 American Revolutionary War: Patriot revolutionary forces under Col. Ethan Allen attack Montreal defended by British ] GeneralKing, 1998).
Though the couple initially appeared to have a very close and loving relationship, the marriage soon began to fall apart. Margaret resented Trudeau's constant work-related absences, and was forced to raise the three young children largely by herself. Beyond the normal extensive publicity that her high-profile position brought, on a few instances she made her own headlines. On one occasion she was criticized for not wearing a floor-length dress to an official White House dinner, and on another occasion she acted as Cuban president Fidel Castro's photographer-for-a-day. It has been reported that she once launched into an impromptu poetry recital during a state dinner with the President of Venezuela. Over time, the marriage disintegrated to the point that, as recounted in her book, Margaret had an affair with a U.S. Senator, believed by many to be Ted Kennedy who had visited the Trudeaus in Ottawa.
Suffering from bouts of depression and under severe emotional stress, she separated from her husband in 1977 and a single Margaret Trudeau became a much talked about jet-setter. She gave many "tell-all" interviews to Canadian and American magazines and appeared in two motion pictures. On the eve of the 1979 election, in which Trudeau was voted out of office, Margaret was dancing at Studio 54 nightclub in New York City. A photo of this was featured on many front pages across the country. She was also associated with Rolling Stone Mick Jagger. A lover of the poetry of William Blake, she used her public prominence to author two books.