1. Margaret Thatcher Biography Made by Fang Ziying 3B1 15 March 2011 In office 4 May 1979- 28 November 1990

2. Early Life 0 Grew up in Grantham, Lincolnshire 0 Composed of a closely-bonded conservative community. 0 Attended Somerville College, Oxford

3. Early Life 0 Her Father, Albert Roberts, has vastly shaped her political conviction. 0 Methodist Father is active in local religion and politics 0 Brought her up as a strict Methodist 0 Frequently talked with Margaret on issues of the day

4. Early Political Career 0 She received her first taste of politics in her mid- twenties 0 Ran as the Conservative candidate of Dartford in the 1950- 1951 General Election, with both resulting in defeat. 0 Nevertheless, she cut the opposing Labour majority sharply and hugely enjoyed the experience. 0 Interestingly, she had little difficulty getting a hearing from any audience, speaking easily with confidence on issues which mattered to the voters.

5. Career 1950 Lawyer, specializing in taxation 1959 Member of Parliament for Finchley, a North London constituency 1992 A member of the House of Lords 1994 Junior office in admin of Harold Macmillan 1964-70 Established her place among senior figures of the party, served as shadow minister

6. Career 1970 Achieved cabinet rank as Education Secretary 1975 Elected Conservative Leader 75-79 Leader of the Opposition 79-83 Prime Minister- 1 st Term 83-87 Prime Minister- 2 nd Term 87-90 Prime Minister- 3 rd Term

7. Political Career 0 After the Conservatives were defeated in 1974, Thatcher challenged Heath for the leadership of the party. 0 To the surprise of many, she defeated him in both ballots and won. 0 In the 1979 general election, Conservatives came to power and she became prime minister

8. Prime Minister 1 st Term 0 Pledged to check and reverse Britain’s economic decline, she implemented many painful measures. 0 Privatization of state-owned industries and utilities 0 Reform of the trade unions 0 Lowering of taxes and reduced social expenditure 0 Her policies succeeded in reducing inflation, but unemployment dramatically increased. Re-election seemed unlikely

9. Prime Minister 1 st Term 0 A military victory in the Falklands War in 1983 made the electorates extremely impressed 0 This allowed her to win a landslide victory in the 1983 general election. 0 In 1984, she narrowly escaped death when IRA planted a bomb at the Conservative Part Conference in Brighton

10. Prime Minister 2 nd Term 0 In foreign affairs, Thatcher cultivated a close political relationship with US president Ronald Reagan 0 Based on a common mistrust of communism 0 Free-market economic ideology

11. Prime Minister 2 nd Term 0 Thatcher was nicknamed the 'Iron Lady' by the Soviets. 0 She warmly welcomed the rise of reformist Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. 0 Played a constructive part in the diplomacy that smoothed the break-up of the Soviet Empire

12. Prime Minister 3 rd Term 0 In the 1987 general election, Thatcher won an unprecedented third term in office. 0 Made controversial policies such as the poll tax and her opposition to any closer integration with Europe 0 produced divisions within the Conservative Party 0 Led to a leadership challenge 0 In November 1990, she agreed to resign 0 Succeeded as party leader and prime minister by John Major.