Margaret Thatcher become a generic descriptor for strong-willed female politicians. Thatcher became Prime Minister on 4 May 1979. Arriving at Downing Street she said, paraphrasing the misattributed Prayer of Saint Francis: Thatcher was to remain in office throughout the 1980s. For most of her premiership, she was described as the most powerful woman in the world. Thatcher was Leader of the Opposition and Prime Minister at a time of increased racial tension in Britain. Commenting on the local elections of 1977, "The Economist" noted "The Tory tide swamped the smaller parties. That specifically includes the National Front (NF), which suffered a clear
Premiership of Margaret Thatcher war and defeated Argentina to recover the Falkland Islands. She was a leader in the coalition against Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. She developed an excellent relationship with U.S. President Ronald Reagan. Since the death of Margaret Thatcher in 2013, several government documents relating to her premiership have been declassified and released by the National Archives. Papers released in December 2014 show that Thatcher completely disapproved of GCSEs which, in 1986, Sir Keith Joseph was trying to introduce in the face of fierce opposition from teaching unions. At very least she wanted a 2-year delay to ensure rigorous syllabuses and adequate