Margaret Thatcher 1925-2013

Margaret Thatcher, who served as the United Kingdom's first female Prime Minister, died today at age 87 after a stroke.  Known as the "Iron Lady", a sobriquet bestowed by the Soviet media, Thatcher was the leader of Britain's Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990, and Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990, when she was ousted from both positions in favor John Major.  During her time in office, the United Kingdom's government moved rightward, privatizing some of their state-run businesses, and won a war against Argentina over the Falkland Islands in 1982.  She was also a major ally of American President Ronald Reagan during the waning years of the Cold War, and later advised his successor George H. W. Bush "this is no time to go wobbly" as he considered his response to Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait in 1990.  After stepping down, she was named a Baroness and served in the House of Lords.

Margaret Roberts was born in 1925 in Grantham in central England.  Her father was a grocer and a Methodist lay minister.  She received a degree in chemistry at Oxford University and worked as a research chemist before becoming a barrister.  She may have helped to invent what came to be known as "soft-serve" ice cream.  She married local businessman Denis Thatcher in 1951, and gave birth to fraternal twins Carol and Mark two years later.  In 1959, she was elected to the House of Commons for the first time.  She stopped making public appearances in 2002 after suffering a stroke, making an exception to attend Reagan's funeral in 2004, and later had several smaller stokes.  Her husband Denis, 11 years her senior, died in 2003. Funeral services will be held at St. Paul's Cathedral, followed by a private cremation.

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