Margaret Thatcher: family and children. History of success

Margaret Thatcher was undoubtedly one of the most significant politicians of the last century. Many had relatively great achievements, but not everyone managed to leave behind an entire direction in politics - Thatcherism. What is it and who was its founder?

Margaret Thatcher - short biography

The future head of the British government was born in 1925 into the family of a grocer and lived in Grantham. After graduating from school, she entered Oxford University and first tried to get involved in chemical research.

At the age of twenty-five, Thatcher tried to participate in politics for the first time - he ran for parliamentary elections, but suffered a fiasco. Three years later she became a certified lawyer and practiced law until 1957. But even then they appear character traits iron lady: she does not deviate from the course she once took and in 1959 nevertheless became a parliamentarian. From that moment on, Thatcher's life was inextricably linked with politics.

Her career was steadily ascending: in 1961 she took the position of junior minister of pensions and social security. In 1970, Margaret Thatcher became Minister of Education. When the Conservatives lose the parliamentary elections in 1974, she leaves the government and heads them.

Top career

May 1979. The Tories win, and Thatcher gets the job of prime minister. It begins to implement a neo-conservative economic program, the core of which was the compression of government spending and the privatization of state property. Having suppressed the resistance of the miners, the Thatcher government in the mid-1980s maintained a stable low prices for mineral raw materials and electricity. Inflation was stopped at the cost of rising unemployment.

In 1990, the majority of Conservatives disagreed with their leader in their views on the integration of England into the common European economy. Thatcher was a representative of the House of Commons for two years, and then left the political arena completely.

While still leading education and science, she showed her Political Views, trying to reduce government spending on education as much as possible. As Prime Minister, Thatcher acted much more broadly: she reduced spending on education and public utilities, to help regions with a backward economic structure.

In the short term, the country's economy has invigorated. However, it is now clear that the strategic consequences of Thatcherism are extremely bad. Instead of the manufacturing sector of the economy, it is unjustifiably heavy weight received its financial component.

Children of Margaret Thatcher and their fate

When children appeared in the life of the future tough politician, she instantly got rid of the responsibilities of raising them. As Thatcher's daughter's book Beyond the Parapet attests, the atmosphere in the house was more like an industrial refrigerator running at full capacity than a family retreat. A typical feature of Margaret was her desire for beautiful clothes. Carol carefully and comprehensively distanced herself from her family and made an excellent journalistic career. Mark seemed to be in better position... however, in 1984, while participating in a car race in Paris, he disappeared without a trace and reappeared only three days later. In general, he became a real shelaput.

Biography and episodes of life Margaret Thatcher. When born and died Thatcher, memorable places and dates important events her life. Politician Quotes, Photo and video.

Years of life of Margaret Thatcher:

born October 13, 1925, died April 8, 2013

Epitaph

Let the fire never go out
And the memory of that one will remain
What awakened hearts for life,
And now I have found eternal peace.

Biography

The whole world considered her the “iron lady”, but she stayed at home loving wife and a mother who lived with her husband in happy marriage until his death. She was in charge the whole country, but every evening she certainly cooked dinner for her husband, never resorting to the services of a personal chef.

Margaret Thatcher met her future husband at the very beginning of her life political career- then she was still a graduate of Sommerville College and was engaged in research in the field of chemistry. It was Denis who helped Margaret become a member of the bar association, and then get a legal education. It was he who supported all her political aspirations. The entire biography of Margaret Thatcher is the story of a hard-working and purposeful woman, but perhaps it was the support of her loved ones that played a decisive role in her success.

At the age of 45, Thatcher was already Minister of Science and Education, but not all of her reforms found support in society. Nevertheless, she was able to win the 1979 elections and become Prime Minister of Great Britain, the first woman to hold this post. But, as it turned out, Margaret could rule the country no less harshly, or even more, than any man. For her firmness in defending her methods and views, she received the nickname “Iron Lady.” While society condemned her methods, Margaret led the country out of crisis and returned it to international authority. One of Thatcher's quotes is: “I'll stay until I'm tired. And as long as Britain needs me, I will never tire.” But nevertheless, in 1990, Margaret was forced to resign.

Thatcher outlived her husband by 10 years and died of a stroke, shortly after her operation. Thatcher died at the Ritz Hotel on April 8, 2013. Thatcher's funeral took place on April 17; she was buried in the cemetery of the military hospital in Chelsea, not far from her husband's grave. At the end of her life, the intelligent and powerful Thatcher suffered from dementia, but nevertheless she left behind a huge memory - the memory of an outstanding female politician. Thatcher's biography has been written many times, and many feature films and documentaries have been made about her.

Having children did not stop Margaret Thatcher from building a political career

Life line

October 13, 1925 Date of birth of Margaret Thatcher (nee Margaret Hilda Roberts).
1943-1947 Study at Sommerville College, Oxford University.
1951 The beginning of a political career.
December 1951 Marriage to Denis Thatcher.
1953 The birth of twins - daughter Carol and son Mark.
1970-1974 Minister of Education and Science.
May 4, 1979 Margaret Thatcher's victory in the elections, the beginning of her work as Prime Minister of Great Britain.
1985 Margaret Thatcher's visit to the USSR.
November 28, 1990 Margaret Thatcher's resignation as Prime Minister of Great Britain.
June 26, 2003 Death of Thatcher's husband.
April 8, 2013 Date of death of Margaret Thatcher.
April 17, 20013 Funeral of Margaret Thatcher.

Memorable places

1. The house where Margaret Thatcher was born and where the Thatcher plaque is installed.
2. Sommerville College, Oxford University, where Margaret Thatcher graduated.
3. Residence of the Prime Ministers of Great Britain, where Margaret Thatcher lived in 1979-1990.
4. The Ritz Hotel in London, where Margaret Thatcher died.
5. St. Paul's Cathedral in London, where Margaret Thatcher's funeral was held.
6. Cemetery of the Royal Military Hospital in Chelsea, where Margaret Thatcher is buried.

Episodes of life

During her time as Minister of Science and Education, Margaret Thatcher became famous for her reform to abolish the provision of free milk to schoolchildren from 7 to 11 years old. So Thatcher planned to cut spending on public schools. This caused great outrage in society, and Thatcher even received the nickname “milk snatcher.” Later in her autobiography, Thatcher admitted: “I learned a valuable lesson. She incurred the maximum amount of political hatred for the minimum amount of political gain.”

Margaret Thatcher's husband was 11 years older than her and was already divorced at the time of his meeting with Margaret. Thatcher always said that without her husband's support she could not have achieved anything. “Being prime minister means always being alone. In a sense, this is how it should be: you cannot rule from the crowd. But with Denis by my side, I was never alone. This is the man. This is the husband. What a friend!” Their relationship always seemed ideal and, apparently, it was.

Margaret Thatcher was happy wife and mother

Testaments

“The wealth of a country is not necessarily built on its own natural resources, it is achievable even with their complete absence. The most important resource is people. The state just needs to create the basis for people’s talent to flourish.”

“It is impossible to understand everyone unless you listen to everyone.”

Documentary film “Margaret Thatcher. Woman at War"

Condolences

“Today is truly a tragic day for our country. We have lost a great Prime Minister, a great leader and an Englishwoman with capital letters. Her legacy is that she not only carried out her duties conscientiously, but also saved her country. And she did it with courage. People tens and perhaps even hundreds of years later will read about her actions and achievements. That’s what her legacy is.”
David Cameron, British Prime Minister

“She was an exceptional woman, unique in history, the only female minister. The ten years of her reign saw economic difficulties, decline, all the problems of the 70s and 80s, but she changed and transformed the atmosphere. And what happened next - the success of the subsequent government - it happened only thanks to her actions.”
Giscard d'Estaing, ex-president France

“With the passing of Baroness Margaret Thatcher, the world has lost a great freedom fighter and America a true friend.”
Barack Obama, US President

“She was an innovative leader who contributed to peace and security, especially during the peak of the Cold War. Margaret Thatcher not only demonstrated leadership, but also provided great hope for many women for gender equality in Parliament. "Her talent has inspired people around the world to strive for peace, security and human rights."
Ban Ki-moon, general secretary UN

The famous Englishwoman became the first woman to hold a top government position European country. She managed to combine leadership in the Conservative Party and the post of Prime Minister of Great Britain for more than 10 years.

Thatcher became the embodiment Cold War, repeatedly criticizing policies Soviet Union and the socialist system as a whole. The Iron Lady introduced the concept of “Thatcherism” - a series of extremely conservative measures. Margaret Thatcher's family rarely saw her at home due to her busy work schedule. The Iron Lady's husband was mainly involved in raising the children.

https://youtu.be/h59h2xUz4Yg

Childhood

Margaret Hilda Roberts (maiden name Thatcher) was born on October 12, 1925 in the family of Alfred Roberts and Beatrice Itel. It was thanks to her father that the girl grew up from a young age. Already at the age of 12, Mr. Roberts took Margaret to a municipal meeting. The family upbringing was conservative and strict.

Thatcher herself claimed that her father helped her reach all the peaks in her career. From childhood, he instilled in the girl faith in his own strength and instilled determination on the path to victory. The expressions “I can’t” and “I won’t succeed” are suitable only for the faint of heart, Mr. Roberts argued.

Teachers noted Margaret's high abilities and her desire for self-improvement. After graduating from school, Miss Roberts continued her studies at Oxford.

Future Iron Lady

Margaret Thatcher's first love

Purposeful and persistent, the girl continued to gnaw on the granite of science. But nothing human was alien to her. As a sophomore, Roberts fell in love with her classmate. The young man came from an aristocratic family English family and bore the title of count. The student's relatives reacted negatively to his affair with the grocer's daughter (Margaret Thatcher's family business).

Margaret Thatcher

This was followed by the separation of the lovers. This happened on the initiative of Margaret herself. She decided to prove to the whole world that she is worthy of anyone, even the most high-ranking couple. Perhaps since then she has become somewhat skeptical about male, often making fun of men’s indecisiveness.

Having finished her first novel, the girl completely immerses herself in her studies and social and political activities.

Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher's husband and children

At one of the political meetings, Margaret met Denis Thatcher. A former military man, he was engaged industrial production, and at 37 he was well off. Moreover, he is divorced. Thatcher offered to give the girl a lift in his car, and from then on their romance began.

The young Thatcher couple

In 1951, the couple got married. And 2 years later, beautiful twins were born: son Mark and daughter Carol. As mentioned earlier, Margaret Thatcher spent little time on her family.

In her memoirs, the politician wrote: “I gave them 9 months while they were inside me. This is quite enough."

Margaret Thatcher family

The children were raised by Thatcher's husband and numerous nannies and teachers. It is known that Mark is involved in the automotive and industrial business, Carol is trying her hand at writing. In her book Beyond the Parapet, she described her childhood family as a place devoid of love.

This is not surprising, since Thatcher called home nothing more than “where you go when there is nothing to do in interesting places.”

Political activity Thatcher

Despite this, Margaret always spoke of her husband with gratitude and respect, emphasizing his support and care. When Denis Thatcher died at the age of 88, the Iron Lady cried in public for the first time in her life.

Iron Lady Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher outlived her husband by 10 years and died of a stroke at 87. She became one of the most recognizable politicians in the world, raised the country's economy by new level and supported Britain's status as one of the world's leaders.

https://youtu.be/QJDh_40DeNQ

Margaret Thatcher's biography is briefly outlined in Russian in this article.

Margaret Thatcher short biography

Thatcher Margaret Hilda was born on October 13, 1925 in the city of Grantham in the family of a grocer. After graduating from school, she studied at Oxford University, and in 1947-1951 began working as a research chemist. But such work did not bring her pleasure. Margaret wanted to change the world, change people's minds and change their lives in better side. Over time, the future “Iron Lady” became seriously interested in politics and in 1950, for the first time, she stood as a candidate for parliamentary elections. But she failed.

Margaret marries rich Denis Thatcher. Some considered this marriage beneficial for the woman. Thanks to the wealth of her husband, who was also 10 years older than her, Thatcher decided to get a law degree, which she did in 1953. That same year, she gave birth to twins to her husband - a boy and a girl. After receiving her diploma, she began practicing law. And already in 1959 she was elected to parliament. She took the first step towards her dream.

From 1961 to 1964, Margaret Thatcher served as a junior minister in charge of pensions and social insurance. From 1970 to 1974, she served as Minister of Science and Education.

In 1974 the Conservative Party lost the election and it was finest hour Thatcher - she was elected its leader. By persistently pursuing the political image of the party and state affairs In the May 1979 elections, the Conservatives win and Thatcher wins the post of Prime Minister.

She developed her own program to improve the economy, which included:

• reduction in government spending,
• ending subsidies for unprofitable enterprises,
• transfer to private ownership of state corporations,
• firmness in defending one's views

Such rigidity in implementing the decisions she made gave Margaret Thatcher the title of “Iron Lady.” Thanks to him, she is known all over the world.

Having decided to implement her program, Thatcher's first step in 1982 was to send British troops to the Falkland Islands (Malvinas), captured by Argentina. In the elections in June 1983, after a landslide victory for the Conservatives, Thatcher retained her post and continued on her intended course.

Thanks to this woman, the politician reduced inflation and increased labor productivity. At the next election in June 1987, Thatcher remained for the first time in the history of modern Great Britain for a third term as Prime Minister. On November 22, 1990, Margaret Thatcher was forced to resign due to some differences in her views with the activities of Parliament.

After resigning as Prime Minister, she served as Member of the House of Commons for Finchley for two years. In 1992, already 66 summer woman, she decided to leave parliament, believing that this would give her the opportunity to openly express her opinion according to current events

In February 2007, the Iron Lady became the first prime minister in Great Britain to have a monument erected during her lifetime in the British Parliament. She died April 8, 2013 in London.

Her work as Prime Minister of Great Britain 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 a 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, and 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 human nature to move towards something good, better than what he currently has. Thatcher advocated free enterprise and initiative for profit. However, at the same time, she condemned the “passion for money for money’s sake.”

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 wealth, but, on the contrary, called on all citizens of the country to make efforts to increase it in order to further improve the standard of living.

Childhood

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

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

At the age of 5, Margaret began taking piano lessons, and four years later she won a poetry competition. At the awards ceremony, the school principal 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 regular member of the debating club and early years She answered the questions posed with full, meaningful answers, unlike her peers, who “get off” with interjections only.

Father is ideal for Margaret

Alfred had elementary education, but was distinguished by his thirst 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 with the goal of reading them one at a time.

It was her father who instilled in little Margaret the quality of being different from everyone else. He instilled in her that a person should “lead” and not be “followed.” To do this, it was necessary to work day after day, thinking about the future and about one’s position in society. Alfred repeated many times: you don’t need to act just because others are doing it.

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

Margaret Thatcher long years I remembered my father’s instructions and walked through life with them. It was he who brought up in the child those foundations that today the whole world calls with the capacious term “Thatcherism”.

Thatcher's versatile education

Having matured, 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, he was a grocer businessman. She never went to dances or to watch films, but she started working in a store warehouse early Roberts family, where I learned the basics of business and making a profit.

At the same time, she showed determination - in 4 years she learned Latin language, for admission to the most prestigious women's college in Oxford - Somerville. Her roommate recalled that Margaret would get up while it was still dark and try to study something. The second year of study was difficult: she fell in love with the count's son, 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 realized that politics was conquering her soul. Margaret Thatcher was active in political debate and during these years joined the Conservative Association, becoming its first female president in 1946.

She completed her education at Oxford College in 1947 with a BA in Chemistry. She immediately found work as a celluloid plastics research scientist in Mannington.

In 1953, she received a law degree and spent the next 5 years mastering it in practice, working as a lawyer. A little later, she became a specialist in 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, had perfect information about legislation and taxes, in addition, she had an excellent understanding of scientific processes, and most importantly, Margaret Thatcher hatched reforms already in those days when she was still far away from the Prime Minister's chair.

Political debut

Oddly enough, after graduating from school, Margaret knew very well where she would continue her studies - at Oxford. Why there? Yes because in this educational institution All future British ministers studied. There she wasted no time in joining the KAOU - the Conservative Association of Oxford University. This began her ascent to political Olympus.

Even then, she had a desire to run for the estate representative body, but for this she had to first become the president of KAOU. And Thatcher became one in 1946. This status began to take up 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 “satisfactorily”, and she was awarded a 2nd class bachelor’s degree.

Denis Thatcher - a guide to big politics

In 1948, Margaret's candidacy was approved to participate in parliamentary elections, however, Labor has historically prevailed in Dartford, since the city was industrial. Therefore, she lost her first elections, but this further encouraged the woman to further active work.

At the same time, she met Denis Thatcher (it is by the name of her husband that she is known throughout the world). 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 she needed. Now she could devote herself entirely to politics, and Margaret Thatcher’s reforms (Great Britain badly needed them at that moment) had been incubating for a long time.

1953 became a “white” period in her life. The Thatcher couple gave birth to twins, and four months after that, Margaret passed the final exam and became a lawyer. She chose the tax field as her specialization in her practice, having studied it thoroughly, which will be very useful for politicians in the future.

To summarize the chapter, it must be said that Denis played a huge role in Margaret’s political growth. It was after the wedding that she could completely devote herself to her favorite activity - politics.

Road to Parliament

At the end of the 1950s, Margaret began to work on parliamentary elections with renewed vigor. The most difficult part was finding a constituency from which to stand as a candidate. She started with but there she became second, which blocked her path to parliament. In another district of the same county the situation was similar. At the same time, a candidate refused to stand for parliament in Finchley. Work has begun! There were 200 applicants for this position. A written competition was held and 22 participants were selected. An oral presentation was then made, after which only 4 candidates remained, including Margaret Thatcher. She was elected as a candidate from the constituency, which meant she was effectively elected to parliament.

In 1959 she entered 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 on the opposition bench. And Margaret herself was appointed shadow minister for housing in the same year.

Party leader

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

In 1974, the question of choosing the head of the Conservatives was raised. Margaret Thatcher announced her candidacy, becoming a rival to the current leader E. Heath. The elections 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 of him, Margaret had new rivals. The most serious of whom was Whitelaw. The second round of elections was held on 02/11/1975, which reflected Thatcher’s undoubted advantage: 146 elected representatives of the people voted for her, while Whitelaw received 79 votes.

That was very hard times For the conservatives, they were defeated twice in parliamentary elections, the number of party members fell sharply, and a party crisis ensued. It was clear: the party needed “new blood.” And Thatcher, like no one else, coped with this difficult mission.

The Iron Lady of British Politics Margaret Thatcher

She first became prime minister in 1979. These were difficult elections: until the very end, no one was sure of the victory of the Conservatives, but the final figures showed that 339 of the 635 seats in parliament were assigned to the Conservatives. Margaret understood that now she would be able to realize the ideas that she had been harboring in her head for more than one year. A new era has begun in Great Britain.

The period of Thatcher's premiership was very tense: an economic and social crisis erupted in the country. The UK industry's share of the world economy has fallen by a quarter since the Second World War. Enterprises suffered losses, the wage. And entrepreneurs were forced to lower the quality of the product they produced in order to reduce the cost. Economic crisis has already begun to develop into a political one, corrupting the country from within.

Premier's departure

In 1990, M. Thatcher resigned. I went with her an entire era. The Iron Lady managed to restore the United Kingdom to its former power and splendor, returning it again 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 will forever be etched in political history Great Britain. On April 8, 2013, the Iron Lady passed away. Many people wonder: how old is Thatcher? Margaret lived a long life interesting life, having reached the age of 87. The farewell procession was held in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II, members of her family, and politicians of a bygone era.