On this day in history: Margaret Thatcher died
On 8 April 2013, Margaret Thatcher, Britain’s first female prime minister died at 87 years of age.
Margaret Thatcher died of a stroke at age 87 in London, UK. Thatcher was the longest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century serving from 1979 to 1990. She curbed the power of Britain’s labor unions, privatised state-owned industries and led her nation to victory in the Falklands War.
Thatcher was a close ally of U.S. President Ronald Reagan and played a pivotal role in ending the Cold War. She was a controversial figure nicknamed the Iron Lady. Her devotees lauded her for championing the free market and for her conservative policies that revitalised the British economy.
Critics, however, believed that these initiatives hurt the nation’s lower classes. People today still have polarised ideas of her time as the British Prime Minister. To this day, she remains the only female prime minister that has ever served in Britain.
Thatcher’s life was told in a Hollywood film titled The Iron Lady starring Meryl Streep in 2011. Streep went on to win an Oscar for her role.
Watch the trailer for the film:
