A chiral diamine alkaloid, (−)‐sparteine (Sp), has been found to be very effective as a ligand for Grignard reagents when used for the enantiomer‐selective polymerization of racemic RS‐1‐phenylethyl methacrylate. The enantiomeric excess of the initially polymerized monomer is 93%, and at about a 60% conversion, nearly optically pure R‐monomer is recovered. This enantiomer selectivity is today the highest in polymer chemistry. Triphenylmethyl methacrylate (TrMA) is a unique monomer that gives a highly isotactic polymer even during radical polymerization. When TrMA is polymerized with the Sp complex with n‐butyllithium in toluene at −78 °C, an optically active, isotactic polymer [poly(triphenylmethyl methacrylate) (PTrMA)] with a one‐handed helical conformation is obtained. The helical structure is maintained even at room temperature in solution. Analogous helical polymethacrylates that show various conformational changes have also been found. One‐handed helical PTrMA exhibits high chiral recognition to a variety of racemates as a chiral stationary phase (CSP) for high‐performance liquid chromatography. This finding has led to the development of very powerful CSPs based on polysaccharides, such as cellulose and amylose. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 4480–4491, 2004