Margaret Thatcher

1925 - 2013

Born on October 13, 1925, in Grantham, England Margaret Thatcher served as the United kingdom’s first female prime minister from 1979 until 1990. Earning the nickname, “Iron Lady”, Margaret opposed Soviet communism and fought a war to keep control of the Falkland Islands. A nickname that Margaret embraced, nothing could tear her down.

In 1943, Margaret studied chemistry at Oxford University where she joined the Oxford Union Conservative Association- later becoming the president of the organization in 1946. After two failed campaigns to run for parliament, she took a break from politics, she married Denis Thatcher, had twins, and studied for the bar exam. After passing the exam in early 1954, she spent the next few years practicing law. In 1959, Margaret decided to run for parliament once more and won by a landslide. In the first bill she introduced, she focused on the importance of limiting wasteful government expenditures- a common theme throughout her career. By 1961, Margaret earned the position of parliamentary undersecretary in the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance. Defeating former Prime Minister Edward Heath, Margaret became the United Kingdom’s first female Prime Minister in 1975. As a key part of her legacy, during her second term as Prime Minister, she privatized British Telecom, British Gas, British Airways, Rolls-Royce, and several other state-owned companies. Remaining in parliament until 1992, Margaret entered the largely ceremonial House of Lords and began crafting her memoir which she published one year later.

Thatcher died of natural causes on April 8, 2013, at the age of 87.