In December of , just one month after her year run as Prime Minister came to an end, Margaret Thatcher was appointed by Queen Elizabeth to the prestigious Order of Merit. The monarch's decision to do so—as featured in the newly-released fourth season of The Crown —was quite meaningful. It can only be held by 24 people at a time, making it an extremely exclusive club; previous members have included the likes of Florence Nightingale, T. Eliot, and Winston Churchill.
Recipients are given a red and blue badge that reads "For Merit. Other perks of membership include a commissioned portrait, which will become a part of the Royal Collection, and a gathering with the Queen once every five years, per the BBC.
Unlike most other royal honors, the Order of Merit is solely awarded based on the Queen's discretion, without input from her staffers or government officials. About Us. B2B Publishing. Business Visionaries. Hot Property. One of her staunchest allies was U.
President Ronald Reagan , a fellow conservative. The two shared similar right-wing, pro-corporate political philosophies. Thatcher faced a military challenge during her first term. In April , Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands. This British territory had long been a source of conflict between the two nations, as the islands are located off the coast of Argentina. Taking swift action, Thatcher sent British troops to the territory to retake the islands in what became known as the Falklands War.
Argentina surrendered in June In her second term, from to , Thatcher handled a number of conflicts and crises, the most jarring of which may have been the assassination attempt against her in In a plot by the Irish Republic Army, she was meant to be killed by a bomb planted at the Conservative Conference in Brighton in October.
Undaunted and unharmed, Thatcher insisted that the conference continue, and gave a speech the following day. As for foreign policy, Thatcher met with Mikhail Gorbachev , the Soviet leader, in That same year, she signed an agreement with the Chinese government regarding the future of Hong Kong.
Publicly, Thatcher voiced her support for Reagan's air raids on Libya in and allowed U. Returning for a third term in , Thatcher sought to implement a standard educational curriculum across the nation and make changes to the country's socialized medical system. However, she lost a lot of support due to her efforts to implement a fixed rate local tax—labeled a poll tax by many since she sought to disenfranchise those who did not pay it.
Hugely unpopular, this policy led to public protests and caused dissension within her party. Thatcher initially pressed on for party leadership in , but eventually yielded to pressure from party members and announced her intentions to resign on November 22, In a statement, she said, "Having consulted widely among colleagues, I have concluded that the unity of the Party and the prospects of victory in a General Election would be better served if I stood down to enable Cabinet colleagues to enter the ballot for the leadership.
I should like to thank all those in Cabinet and outside who have given me such dedicated support. Not long after leaving office, Thatcher was appointed to the House of Lords, as Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven, in She wrote about her experiences as a world leader and a pioneering woman in the field of politics in two books: The Downing Street Years and The Path to Power In , she published the book Statecraft , in which she offered her views on international politics.
Around this time, Thatcher suffered a series of small strokes. She then suffered a great personal loss in , when her husband of more than 50 years, Denis, died. The following year, Thatcher had to say goodbye to an old friend and ally, Ronald Reagan. In fragile health, Thatcher gave a eulogy at his funeral via video link, praising Reagan as a man who "sought to mend America's wounded spirit, to restore the strength of the free world, and to free the slaves of communism.
In , Thatcher celebrated her 80th birthday. A huge event was held in her honor and was attended by Queen Elizabeth II , Tony Blair and nearly other friends, family members and former colleagues. Two years later, a sculpture of the strong conservative leader was unveiled in the House of Commons. Thatcher's health made headlines in , when she missed a celebration at 10 Downing Street, held in honor of her 85th birthday by David Cameron.
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