Margaret Thatcher was a prime minister in Canada.
Margaret Hilda Thatcher , Baroness Thatcher , -LRB- ; 13 October 1925 -- 8 April 2013 -RRB- was a British stateswoman , who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and as Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990 .. Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Leader of the Conservative Party. Leader of the Conservative Party ( UK ). Conservative Party. Conservative Party ( UK ). stateswoman. :wikt :stateswoman. Leader. Leader of the Conservative Party ( UK ). She was the longest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century , and the first woman to have held the office .. A Soviet journalist dubbed her The Iron Lady , a nickname that became associated with her uncompromising politics and leadership style .. As Prime Minister , she implemented policies that have come to be known as Thatcherism .. Thatcherism. Thatcherism. A research chemist before becoming a barrister , Thatcher was elected Member of Parliament for Finchley in 1959 .. Member of Parliament. Member of Parliament ( United Kingdom ). Finchley. Finchley ( UK Parliament constituency ). Member. Members of the House of Lords. chemist. chemist. barrister. barrister. elected Member of Parliament. List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1959. United Kingdom general election, 1959. Edward Heath appointed her Secretary of State for Education and Science in his 1970 government .. Edward Heath. Edward Heath. Secretary of State for Education and Science. Secretary of State for Education. 1970 government. Heath ministry. In 1975 , Thatcher defeated Heath in the Conservative Party leadership election to become Leader of the Opposition and became the first woman to lead a major political party in the United Kingdom .. Leader of the Opposition. Leader of the Opposition ( United Kingdom ). Conservative Party. Conservative Party ( UK ). Leader. Leader of the Conservative Party ( UK ). Conservative Party leadership election. Conservative Party ( UK ) leadership election, 1975. She became Prime Minister after winning the 1979 general election .. 1979 general election. United Kingdom general election, 1979. On moving into , Thatcher introduced a series of political and economic initiatives intended to reverse high unemployment and Britain 's struggles in the wake of the Winter of Discontent and an ongoing recession .. Winter of Discontent. Winter of Discontent. Her political philosophy and economic policies emphasised deregulation -LRB- particularly of the financial sector -RRB- , flexible labour markets , the privatisation of state-owned companies , and reducing the power and influence of trade unions .. deregulation. deregulation. state-owned companies. state-owned enterprise. Thatcher 's popularity during her first years in office waned amid recession and high unemployment , until victory in the 1982 Falklands War and the recovering economy brought a resurgence of support , resulting in her decisive re-election in 1983 .. Falklands War. Falklands War. re-election in 1983. United Kingdom general election, 1983. She narrowly escaped an assassination attempt in 1984 .. assassination attempt in 1984. Brighton hotel bombing. Thatcher was re-elected for a third term in 1987 .. United Kingdom general election, 1987. During this period her support for a Community Charge -LRB- referred to as the `` poll tax '' -RRB- was widely unpopular , and her views on the European Community were not shared by others in her Cabinet .. Community Charge. Community Charge. European Community. European Economic Community. She resigned as Prime Minister and party leader in November 1990 , after Michael Heseltine launched a challenge to her leadership .. Michael Heseltine. Michael Heseltine. challenge to her leadership. Conservative Party ( UK ) leadership election, 1990. After retiring from the Commons in 1992 , she was given a life peerage as Baroness Thatcher -LRB- of Kesteven in the County of Lincolnshire -RRB- which entitled her to sit in the House of Lords .. House of Lords. House of Lords. Commons. House of Commons of the United Kingdom. Kesteven. Kesteven. Lincolnshire. Lincolnshire. After a series of small strokes in 2002 , she was advised to withdraw from public speaking .. Despite this , she managed to pre-record a eulogy to Ronald Reagan prior to his death , which was broadcast at his funeral in 2004 .. Ronald Reagan. Ronald Reagan. his funeral. Death and state funeral of Ronald Reagan. In 2013 , she died of another stroke in London , at the age of 87 .. she died of another stroke. Death and funeral of Margaret Thatcher. Always a controversial figure , she has been lauded as one of the greatest and most influential politicians in British history , even as arguments over Thatcherism persist .. Thatcherism. Thatcherism. one of the greatest. Historical rankings of Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom