The world says goodbye to political icon and Britain’s first female Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. According to her spokeswoman, Thatcher suffered a stroke Monday and passed away at the Ritz Hotel in London. She was 87 years-old.
Although she didn’t believe it herself, Thatcher became the first woman to reign as Prime Minister. Just six years before winning the political position she said, “I don’t think there will be a woman prime minister in my lifetime.” Throughout her political career she stood by her beliefs stating, “There is no such thing as society.” From 1975 to 1990, she served as the leader of the Conservative Party. Known for her tough personality in politics, she was called the “Iron Lady.” The Soviet press was responsible for helming the nickname after a 1976 speech in which she declared that “the Russians are bent on world dominance.”
Thatcher’s foundation site states: Margaret Thatcher’s political career has been one of the most remarkable of modern times. Born in October 1925 at Grantham, a small market town in eastern England, she rose to become the first (and for two decades the only) woman to lead a major Western democracy. She won three successive General Elections and served as British Prime Minister for more than eleven years (1979-90), a record unmatched in the twentieth century.
The British Prime Minister’s office has announced that Thatcher’s funeral will take place at St. Paul’s Cathedral, with full military honors, followed by a private cremation. Read more about Thatcher’s remarkable life at http://www.margaretthatcher.org
