Behind the Scenes

William Clifford Clark, federal deputy minister of finance from 1932 to 1952, had a profound impact on Canadian history. An important intellectual figure during the first half of the twentieth century, he was leader of 'The Ottawa Men,' a group of federal civil servants who shaped a new liberal vision of the nation. Robert A. Wardhaugh chronicles Clark's contributions to Canada's modern state in Behind the Scenes, which reconstructs the public life and ideas of one of Canada's most important bureaucrats. The Department of Finance sat at the centre of critical federal decisions and debates. From this axis, Clark's wide-ranging contributions to Canadian policy were nothing short of phenomenal: he was the driving force behind the creation of the Bank of Canada and he spearheaded national housing policy. Clarke also managed the economy during the Great Depression and during the Second World War and he was instrumental in forging Canada's international economic role in the postwar era.