Canadian academic administrator (1936?2020)
Aline Chretien
|
---|
Chretien in 2003
|
Born
| Aline Chaine
(
1936-05-14
)
May 14, 1936
|
---|
Died
| September 12, 2020
(2020-09-12)
(aged 84)
|
---|
Occupations
| - Academic administrator
- secretary
|
---|
Spouse
|
|
---|
Children
| 3, including
France
|
---|
Aline Chretien
(
nee
Chaine
; May 14, 1936 – September 12, 2020) was a Canadian academic administrator who was the wife of Canada's 20th prime minister,
Jean Chretien
. She previously worked as a secretary, payroll manager, and model. In her later life, she was a trained pianist with
The Royal Conservatory of Music
.
Early life and family
[
edit
]
Aline Chaine was born on May 14, 1936, in
Shawinigan
,
Quebec
, the eldest child of Yvonne (Bellemar) and Albert Chaine.
[1]
Her mother was a hairdresser; her father worked at a power plant.
[2]
She left school at age 16 and never attended university but took correspondence courses while working as a secretary.
[3]
She was also employed as a payroll manager and did some modelling for local clothing stores.
[2]
Chaine married lawyer Jean Chretien on September 10, 1957. They had two sons, Hubert and Michel Chretien (adopted), and one daughter,
France Chretien Desmarais
.
[4]
After her husband was elected to Parliament, she taught herself
English
,
Italian
, and
Spanish
, and became fluent in those languages in addition to her native
French
.
[3]
Spouse of the prime minister
[
edit
]
On November 5, 1995, an intruder,
Andre Dallaire
, broke into the prime minister's residence at
24 Sussex Drive
, in
Ottawa
,
Ontario
. Awakened next to her sleeping husband, Chretien confronted the intruder at their bedroom door. Seeing that he was armed with a large knife, she slammed the door and locked it, then woke her husband.
[4]
Jean Chretien often sought out his wife's advice.
[4]
Maclean's
magazine in 1996 listed her first among his most influential advisors, saying "Never mind calling her the
power behind the throne
?she shares the seat of power."
[5]
In the same magazine in 2000,
Allan Fotheringham
described Jean and Aline Chretien as the two "most powerful" politicians in Canada, above
Eddie Goldenberg
and
Jean Pelletier
.
[6]
Jean Chretien has publicly stated that his wife was his key advisor. He once joked that Canada was run exclusively by women: the
monarch
(
Queen Elizabeth II
), the
governor general
(
Adrienne Clarkson
), and the
chief justice
(
Beverley McLachlin
) were all women, and Madame Chretien was pulling the strings of the prime minister.
[7]
He made similar jokes often, once telling a reporter that he did not know when the next election would be because he had not yet asked Aline to set a date.
[8]
In her role as the prime minister's spouse, Chretien went to the memorial of the victim of the
W. R. Myers High School shooting
in 1999, along with
Alberta Premier
Ralph Klein
, Opposition Leader
Preston Manning
, and the
Attorney General of Canada
Anne McLellan
.
[9]
She was awarded her first honorary degree from
Laurentian University
in 2003.
[10]
Later years
[
edit
]
Chretien was active in a number of charitable organizations from the time that her husband was first elected to the
House of Commons of Canada
in 1963.
[4]
In addition to her keen interest in languages, she took piano courses during her 50s and became an advocate for
The Royal Conservatory of Music
in
Toronto
.
[2]
Jean Chretien purchased a grand piano for her using the
damages
he was awarded in a
libel
case against
The Globe and Mail
.
[11]
On September 22, 2010, Chretien was named as the first chancellor of
Laurentian University
, a bilingual educational institution in
Sudbury, Ontario
.
[12]
Chretien suffered from
Alzheimer's disease
.
[2]
She died on September 12, 2020, at her home in Lac des Piles near
Shawinigan
.
[4]
She was 84 and had celebrated her 63rd wedding anniversary two days before.
[2]
[13]
No cause of death was disclosed.
[13]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Je Me Souviens"
. 1993.
Archived
from the original on September 29, 2020
. Retrieved
September 15,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Galloway, Gloria (September 13, 2020).
"Aline Chretien rose from poverty to become an influential adviser to the prime minister"
.
The Globe and Mail
. Toronto.
Archived
from the original on September 29, 2020
. Retrieved
September 13,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
"Self-taught Aline Chretien brings passion for education to university post"
.
The Record
. September 24, 2010. Archived from
the original
on October 19, 2014
. Retrieved
October 19,
2014
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Barton, Rosemary; Zimonjic, Peter (September 13, 2020).
"Aline Chretien, wife of former PM Jean Chretien, has died at age 84"
.
CBC News
.
Archived
from the original on September 14, 2020
. Retrieved
September 13,
2020
.
- ^
"The opinions the PM heeds".
Maclean's
. Vol. 109, no. 42. October 14, 1996. pp. 18?19.
- ^
Fotheringham, Allan (December 11, 2000). "Aline, the power player".
Maclean's
. Vol. 113, no. 50. p. 68.
- ^
Winsor, Hugh (September 10, 2002).
"Forced jokes cap uneasy summit day"
.
The Globe and Mail
. Toronto.
Archived
from the original on September 29, 2020
. Retrieved
September 13,
2020
.
- ^
"Aline Chretien, epouse de l'ex-premier ministre Jean Chretien, est decedee"
. CBC News. September 13, 2020.
Archived
from the original on September 29, 2020
. Retrieved
September 13,
2020
.
(in French)
- ^
"Canada grieves along with Taber"
. CBC.ca. May 4, 1999. Archived from
the original
on January 23, 2007
. Retrieved
December 19,
2006
.
- ^
"Aline Chretien appointed chancellor of Laurentian University"
. saultstar.com. September 22, 2010. Archived from
the original
on November 2, 2014
. Retrieved
October 19,
2014
.
- ^
Bryden, Joan (November 12, 2003).
"Homecoming King"
.
The Walrus
. Toronto.
Archived
from the original on September 29, 2020
. Retrieved
August 20,
2020
.
- ^
"Aline Chretien named first chancellor of Laurentian University"
.
Toronto Star
. September 22, 2010.
Archived
from the original on October 22, 2012
. Retrieved
August 24,
2017
.
- ^
a
b
Bryden, Joan (September 13, 2020).
"Aline Chretien, wife and trusted adviser of former PM, dead at 84"
. CTV News. The Canadian Press.
Archived
from the original on September 29, 2020
. Retrieved
September 13,
2020
.