Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher died last Monday from a stroke at age 87. She was the longest-serving British Prime Minister of the 20th century and is the only woman to have held the office.
A Soviet journalist called 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.
Here are a few memorable quotes from her public life:
"Where there is discord, may we bring harmony. Where there is error, may we bring truth. Where there is doubt, may we bring faith. And where there is despair, may we bring hope."�Quoting St. Francis of Assisi after winning the general election, May 1979.
"If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman." � May 20, 1965, speech to National Union of Townswomen's Guilds Conference.
"You don't win by just being against things, you only win by being for things and making your message perfectly clear."� Feb. 11, 1975.
"I don't think there will be a woman Prime Minister in my lifetime." � TV interview March 5, 1973.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I stand before you tonight in my red chiffon evening gown, my face softly made up, my fair hair gently waved...the Iron Lady of the Western World. Me? A Cold War warrior? Well, yes–if that is how they wish to interpret my defense of values of freedoms fundamental to our way of life." � Jan. 31, 1976.
"To those waiting with bated breath for that favorite media catchphrase, the 'U' turn, I have only one thing to say. 'You turn if you want to. The lady's not for turning.' I say that not only to you but to our friends overseas and also to those who are not our friends." � Conservative Party Conference, Oct. 1980.
"I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end."� House of Commons, March 31, 1982.
"Economics are the method; the object is to change the heart and soul." Sunday Times, May 1, 1981.
"There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families."� Oct. 31, 1987, magazine interview.
"We are a grandmother." � March 3, 1989, announcing the birth of her first grandchild.
"I am not immortal, but I've got a lot left in me yet." � Sept. 9, 1990.
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