A strong if somewhat controversial leader
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Thatcher
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Thatcher
Former prime minister Baroness Thatcher dies peacefully at the age of 87 after suffering a massive stroke
* Known as the Iron Lady, she became Britain's first and only female Prime Minister
* Baroness Thatcher had suffered from poor health over the past decade
* Tory politician likely to have state funeral - first since Winston Churchill
* David Cameron: 'We've lost a great leader and a great Briton'
* Queen 'sad' about death and sends private message of sympathy to her family
Death: Former Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has died today after a massive stroke
Former Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher has died of a stroke today aged 87.
Britain's first and only female political leader passed away peacefully after a long battle with poor health.
Her spokesman Lord Bell said: 'It is with great sadness that Mark and Carol Thatcher announced that their mother Baroness Thatcher died peacefully following a stroke this morning'.
The Queen is sad to hear the news of the death of Baroness Thatcher and Her Majesty will be sending a private message of sympathy to the family, Buckingham Palace said today.
Prime Minister David Cameron said: 'It was with great sadness that l learned of Lady Thatcher’s death. We've lost a great leader, a great Prime Minister and a great Briton'.
He will return early from his visit to Europe this afternoon following the death of Baroness Thatcher, Downing Street said.
Britain’s first and only female prime minister, who won three consecutive general elections, had been in fragile health.
Baroness Thatcher suffered acute short-term memory loss and had a series of strokes over a decade.
Margaret Thatcher came to power in May 1979, at the end of the infamous Winter of Discontent, where Britain was crippled by a wave of national strikes.
She spent the next decade curbing the power of trade unions, signalling the end of an era when trade union leaders trooped in and out of 10 Downing Street, haggling and bargaining with her Labour predecessors.
Instead she stripped the unions of many of their powers with the aim of transferring them to managements and individual consumers.
Death: Former Prime minister Margaret Thatcher leaves Number 10 Downing Street for the last time after she was defeated by John Major in the Conservative Party leadership election of 1990
Mrs Thatcher successfully defied Arthur Scargill's nationwide and year-long miners' strike, which threatened to cripple Britain's entire economic base.
And as she transformed the nation - attempting to release the grip of the state on massive industries and public services alike - she became one of the most influential, talked-about, listened-to and dominant statesmen of the Western world.
When Argentina invaded the Falklands, she despatched a task force to the South Atlantic which drove the enemy off the islands in an incomparable military operation 8,000 miles from home.
She also helped bring an end top the Cold War with the help of her great friend, U.S. president Ronald Reagan.
Landmark moment: Mrs Thatcher arrives at No 10 Downing Street to take up office following the Conservative election victory in 1979
Election elation: Mrs Thatcher waves from the steps of No 10 Downing Street with husband Denis after become Britain's first female Prime Minister in 1979
Family outing: Lady Thatcher leaves for a lunch with her son Mark and daughter-in-law Sarah on her 86th birthday in 2011
In the end she spent 11 years in Downing Street, the longest run by any 20th century prime minister.
Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg said: 'Margaret Thatcher was one of the defining figures in modern British politics.
'Whatever side of the political debate you stand on, no-one can deny that as prime minister she left a unique and lasting imprint on the country she served.
'She may have divided opinion during her time in politics but everyone will be united today in acknowledging the strength of her personality and the radicalism of her politics.
'My thoughts are with her family and friends.'
On his Twitter feed, London Mayor Boris Johnson said: 'Very sad to hear of death of Baroness Thatcher. Her memory will live long after the world has forgotten the grey suits of today's politics.'
Royal relations: The Queen joins Margaret Thatcher at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in London for the former Prime Minister's 80th birthday in 2005
Past and present: Baroness Margaret Thatcher waves as she stands with British Prime Minister, David Cameron, on the doorstep of 10 Downing Street, ahead of a meeting in June 2010
Her triumphant achievement of power in May 1979 signalled the end of the era when trade union leaders trooped in and out of 10, Downing Street, haggling and bargaining with her Labour predecessors.
Instead she stripped the unions of many of their powers with the aim of transferring them to managements and individual consumers.
In 1990, a leadership challenge forced her to leave No 10 and two years later she was made a life peer, as Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven.
In recent years she has led a quiet life cared for by her loyal housekeeper Kate. She suffered a minor stroke in 2002 which left her with short-term memory loss.
Her beloved husband Denis died in 2003 and her children Mark and Carol both live abroad.
Lady Thatcher was not well enough to join the Queen for a lunch with former and serving prime ministers as part of the Diamond Jubilee this summer. And two years ago she missed an 85th birthday party thrown in her honour by Mr Cameron at 10 Downing Street.
Portrait: Baroness Thatcher stands next to a portrait of herself at 10 Downing Street, painted by artist Richard Stone, in November, 2009
In October she was sufficiently well, however, to mark her 87th birthday with lunch at a restaurant in London’s St James’s district with Mark and his wife.
Iron Lady Baroness Thatcher, the grocer's daughter, who became the longest serving British prime minister of the 20th century, is expected to be honoured with a full state funeral at Westminster Abbey.
Not since Winston Churchill has a politician been granted such a tribute.
Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said Baroness Thatcher was 'the reason I came into politics'.
He said: 'Watching her set out to change Britain for the better in 1979 made me believe there was, at last, real purpose and real leadership in politics once again.
'She bestrode the political world like a colossus. This is dreadfully sad news and my thoughts and prayers are with her family.'
Senior Tory MP David Davis said: 'Margaret Thatcher was the greatest of modern British prime ministers, and was central to the huge transformation of the whole world that took place after the fall of the Soviet Union.
'Millions of people in Britain and around the world owe her a debt of gratitude for their freedom and their quality of life, which was made possible by her courageous commitment to the principles of individual freedom and responsibility.'
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2305751/BREAKING-NEWS-Iron-Lady-Margaret-Thatcher-dead.html
