Iron Lady of British politics Margaret Thatcher: biography, political activities and interesting facts

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:40

Margaret Thatcher is one of the most famous politicians of the 20th century. Her tenure as British Prime Minister lasted 3 terms, for a total of 11 years. It was a difficult time - then the country was in a deep socio-economic crisis, England was called the "sick man of Europe." Margaret managed to revive the former authority of foggy Albion and ensure the preponderance of forces in favor of the conservatives.

“Thatcherism” in politics

This term refers to the attitudes that were characteristic of Margaret Thatcher in ideology, morality, politics. She tried to implement them when she was prime minister.

Its main characteristic can be called “the right to inequality”. The politician argued that it is natural for a person to move towards something good, better than he has at the moment. Thatcher advocated freeentrepreneurship and initiative for profit. However, at the same time, she denounced the "lust for money for the sake of money."

For "Thatcherism" equality is a mirage. And the right to inequality, in turn, pushes a person to stand out, improving himself and improving the quality of his own life. That is why she did not condemn we alth, but on the contrary, called on all citizens of the country to make efforts to increase it in order to further increase the level of living.

Childhood

Margaret Thatcher (Roberts) was born in 1925 on October 13 in Grantham, near London in a northerly direction. Her family lived modestly, without frills, one might say, ascetically for the lifestyle of the people of Western Europe. There was no running water in the house, the amenities were also outside. The family had two daughters, Muriel, the eldest, and Margaret, 4 years younger than her.

The eldest looked like her mother in everything - Beatrice, the youngest was an exact copy of Alfred's father. She was known as his favorite, so from early childhood, the parent began to instill in her all the qualities that later helped her in adult life and turned her into a symbol of the era of conservatism in Great Britain of the 20th century.

At the age of 5, Margaret began taking piano lessons, and 4 years later she won a poetry competition. At the award ceremony, the headmaster told Margaret that she was very lucky, to which she replied: "It's not luck, it's merit." From an early age, she grew up as a debater, so she was a permanent member of the debating club and in her early years onshe answered the questions posed with full meaningful answers, unlike her peers, who “get off” with interjections alone.

Father is ideal for Margaret

Alfred had a primary education, but was distinguished by a craving for new knowledge, as a result of which he did not spend a day without reading. He instilled this quality in his daughter. They went to the library together and borrowed two books for a week to read them one by one.

It was the father who instilled in little Margaret the quality of being different from everyone else. He inspired her that a person should “lead”, and not be “led”. For this it was necessary to work from day to day, thinking about the future and about their position in society. Alfred said many times: don't act just because others are doing it.

Father was her ideal, little Margaret believed that he knew everything. Her characteristic feature was the thirst for knowledge. She had a craving for new information, experience. Margaret went to council meetings with her father, acquiring a taste for politics, theatricality, and eloquence. She was 10 then.

Margaret Thatcher remembered her father's instructions for many years, and walked with them through life. It was he who brought up in the child those foundations that today the whole world calls the capacious term "Thatcherism".

Versatile Education Thatcher

Growing up, Margaret remained as conservative as in early childhood. The reason for this was the views on the life of her beloved dad. He was a representative of Protestantism, with all the ensuing consequences, in addition to being a grocer businessman. She never attended dances or movie screenings, but she began working early in the warehouse of the Roberts family store, where she learned the basics of business and profit.

At the same time, she showed determination - for 4 years she learned Latin, for admission to the most prestigious women's college in Oxford - Somerville. Her roommate recalled that Margaret got up when it was still dark and tried to learn something. The second course of study was difficult: she fell in love with the son of an earl, but his mother cruelly rejected the girl, saying that the daughter of a simple grocer was no match for her son.

The ambitious girl increasingly understood that politics was winning her soul. Margaret Thatcher actively participated in political debates and during these years joined the Conservative Association, and in 1946 became its first woman president.

In 1947 she graduated from Oxford College with a bachelor's degree in chemistry. I immediately found a job as a Celluloid Plastics Research Fellow in Mannington.

In 1953, she received a law degree and for the next 5 years she mastered it in practice, having worked as a lawyer. A little later, she became a specialist in the field of taxation, having studied this industry to perfection.

Thus, the education of the future politician turned out to be quite versatile: she knew the basics of building a business, was fluent in information about legislation andtaxes, in addition, she was well versed in scientific processes, and most importantly, Margaret Thatcher nurtured the reforms already in those days when she was still far from the chair of the prime minister.

Political debut

Oddly enough, but after graduation, Margaret knew perfectly well where she would continue her studies - at Oxford. Why there? Yes, because all the future ministers of Great Britain studied at this educational institution. There she did not waste time in vain, joining the KAOU - the Conservative Association of the University of Oxford. From this began her ascent to the political Olympus.

Even then she had a desire to run for a class-representative body, but for this it was necessary first to become the president of KAOU. And Thatcher became one in 1946. This status began to take a lot of time, she slept 3-4 hours a day. The moment came when she had to choose between politics and education - she chose the first. Therefore, it is no wonder that Margaret Thatcher, in the past an excellent student and student, defended her diploma with a "satisfactory" degree, and she was awarded a bachelor's degree in the 2nd class.

Denis Thatcher is a guide to big politics

In 1948, Margaret's candidacy was approved to participate in the parliamentary elections, however, Dartford has historically been dominated by Labor, as the city was industrial. Therefore, she lost her first elections, but this even more motivated the woman to further vigorous activity.

In the samewhile she met Denis Thatcher (she is known all over the world by the name of her husband). In 1951, he proposed to her. The man was 33 years old and slightly older than her. Denis was a businessman and therefore could provide his young wife with everything necessary. Now she could devote herself entirely to politics, and the reforms of Margaret Thatcher (Great Britain badly needed them at that moment) had been hatching for a long time.

1953 became a "white" life period for her. The Thatchers had twins, and four months after that, Margaret passed the final exam and became a lawyer. She chose the tax sphere as a specialization in her practice, having studied it thoroughly, which will be very useful for politics in the future.

Summing up the chapter, Denis played a huge role in Margaret's political growth. It was after the wedding that she could completely devote herself to her favorite business - politics.

Road to Parliament

In the late 1950s, Margaret began to carry out parliamentary elections with new energy. The hardest part was finding a constituency to run for. She started with Kent, but there she became the second, which closed her way to Parliament. In another district of the same county, the situation was similar. At the same time in Finchley there was a refusal of a candidate to run for Parliament. Work has begun! Applicants for this place were 200 people. A written competition was held, as a result of which 22 participants were selected. Then an oral presentation was held, after which only 4 candidates remained, including Margaret Thatcher. She was elected as a constituency candidate, which meant she was effectively elected to Parliament.

In 1959, she got into the English Parliament - the path to big politics was open. That time was very unfavorable for the Conservatives, difficulties began in the economy, Prime Minister Macmillan fell ill and resigned. And the parliamentary elections of 1964 “seated” the conservatives to the opposition bench. And Margaret herself in the same year was appointed shadow minister for housing.

Party leader

70s were difficult for the economy and domestic situation in the UK. In the post-war period, the country began to retreat in its development and was no longer included even in the top ten leaders, although it was always at the forefront.

In 1974, the question of choosing the head of the Conservatives was raised. Margaret Thatcher put forward her candidacy, becoming a rival for the current leader E. Heath. The election shocked him: out of 276 - 130 votes were cast in favor of Thatcher and only 19 for Heath, after which he withdrew his candidacy. But instead, Margaret had new rivals. The most serious of which was Whitelaw. The second round of elections was held on February 11, 1975, which reflected Thatcher's undoubted advantage: 146 elected people voted for her, while Whitelaw received 79 votes.

It was a very difficult time for the Conservatives, they were defeated twice in parliamentaryelections, the number of party members fell sharply, a party crisis ensued. It was clear that the party needed "new blood". And Thatcher, like no one else, coped with this difficult mission.

Iron Lady of British politics Margaret Thatcher

She first became prime minister in 1979. It was a difficult election: right up to the very end, no one was sure that the Conservatives would win, but the final figures showed that 339 out of 635 seats in parliament were assigned to the Conservatives. Margaret understood that now she would be able to embody the ideas that she had been nurturing in her head for more than one year. A new era has begun in the political life of Great Britain.

The period of Thatcher's premiership was very tense: an economic and social crisis erupted in the country. The share of British industry in the world economy fell by a quarter after the Second World War. Businesses suffered losses and wages fell sharply. And entrepreneurs were forced to lower the quality of the product produced in order to reduce the cost. The economic crisis has already begun to develop into a political one, corrupting the country from the inside.

The hard hand and the authoritarian regime of Margaret Thatcher helped Great Britain and all the English people feel the taste of victory and revive the former power of the state.

Margaret was always straightforward and firm in dealing with issues at all levels. She fought hard against trade unions, "whiners" and parasites. Many were repelled precisely by her rigidity, but still the majority followed her because of this very decisiveness in the decisionproblems. Therefore, she was re-elected twice as Prime Minister.

No prime minister of the 20th century has held office for such a long time. She became a symbol of an entire era of renaissance in Britain, being at the helm of the country.

Reforms and achievements Thatcher

Margaret herself did not call herself a woman - she said: I am a politician, and a politician has no gender. She showed courage where men lacked it.

It was under her that the conflict in the Falkland Islands with Argentina was unleashed. Great Britain and specifically Thatcher showed their determination in this matter by sending troops there, after which the Argentine forces were forced to leave the islands. This little war was another political victory for the Iron Lady. By the way, the very nickname was given to her by the Russians. In her own country, Margaret was called much less poetic for her unyielding character, for example, "Battering Ram" or "Armored Tank".

Interestingly, it was during Thatcher's time that Great Britain's rapprochement with the USSR took place, while M. Gorbachev and his wife were on a government visit to London. Margaret called her Soviet colleague "Gorby" and on many issues they were in solidarity, although there were differences.

The reforms initiated by the Iron Lady boiled down to three main postulates:

• tax reduction for big business;
• privatization of public sector facilities;
• significant reduction in payroll.

The latter, of course, was extremely unpopular withthe bulk of the people, but played a positive role in the fading economy of the country.

The problem of Ulster was important in those years. Margaret Thatcher showed deep political wisdom, calmness, but at the same time remarkable determination. She proposed that Ulster (Northern Ireland) be granted independence from England if a referendum showed that a majority of the population would vote for this decision. However, this was not destined to come true: as a result, Ulster is under the auspices of the United Kingdom to this day. It should be noted that the IRA (Irish Republican Army) even organized an assassination attempt on the prime minister by detonating a bomb, but Margaret was not injured, unlike other figures of the Conservative Party.

Departure of the Prime Minister

In 1990, M. Thatcher resigned. A whole era has passed with her. The Iron Lady managed to restore the United Kingdom to its former power and brilliance, returning it back to the ranks of the leaders of the world economy and politics. This merit will remain forever in the memory of the English people, and the name of Margaret Thatcher is forever imprinted in the political history of Great Britain. On April 8, 2013, the Iron Lady passed away. Many people ask: how old is Thatcher? Margaret lived a long, interesting life, reaching the age of 87. The farewell procession was held in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II, members of her family, as well as political figures of a bygone era.