8/2/2019 About Margaret Thatcher

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Background:

Margaret Thatcher served as British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990. As leader of the

conservative Tory Party, she was elected on the promise that she would lead Britain back to its

days of success and rescue it from decline. During her tenure she not only dealt with domestic

issues but also international crises.

When she became Prime Minister in 1979, Margaret Thatcher also became the first female PrimeMinister in European history. She dealt with many crises one of the most notable being the

Falkland Islands Campaign. The Falkland Islands are a small group of islands off of the coast of

Argentina which are held by the British. In 1982 Argentina invaded these islands, taking British

troops hostage. This prompted Thatcher to send out 40 vessels and 1000 British commandos. Shegave speeches and gained international support for her efforts in the South Atlantic. In the end

after 2 months, the siege was ended and the British were successful. (Falkland)

In domestic policy she was also formidable, breaking the Miners Strike of 1984-1985 and

revamping social programs ranging from welfare to health care. She pursued projects that wouldtake many social programs out of the public sector. Further she found ways to gain more revenue

for the state in order to help the countrys financial dire straits. Her control of the economy and

legendary steely attitude gained her the nickname Iron Lady. By 1990 however the party wasstarting to divide support for Thatcher and she resigned.

Leadership Lessons

In terms of leadership, Margaret Thatcher exemplified the dignified approach to leadership.

Never backing down, but always a lady, she used her intelligence and sheer determination to

make herself a true and legitimate leader.

Prime Minister Thatcher showed herself to be quite determined in achieving her goals. She sawwhere she wanted to go with the issues at hand and proceeded accordingly. This is particularly

true of the Falkland Islands. But in order to insure it was a success, she secured international

support for the British response. She understood the need to keep people informed and keep them

on her side in order to be an effective leader. By keeping the people informed she presentedherself as being a direct and logical leader, who was not constantly hiding secrets but rather

quick to make known what was necessary. When the British Mining Strikes occurred two years

later, she was as blunt and direct as she was with the Falklands proclaiming of the miners, What

we have got is an attempt to substitute the rule of the mob for the rule of law, and it must NOT

succeed!" (The Miners)

However many leadership lessons exist for that of Margaret Thatcher, many relate back to the

previous case studies.

Thatchers writing slants uphill, which lets us know that her outlookis optimistic. She sees the future as bright, and her actions in the presentreflect that. Again, a very positive trait.