Thatcherism And The End of Consensus

Sound finance, honest money, privatization, and strong defense

You would be hard-pressed to find a more controversial political figure than Margaret Thatcher. Some view her as the savior of a declining post-war Britain, while some liken the utterance of her name with that of a four-letter word. However you feel about the reign of this larger-than-life Prime Minister, it is undeniable that she changed the landscape of British politics forever. She lent her name to a set of ideas that would become so significant it would be used by historians to mark time. The era of “Thatcherism” was a defining moment for Britain, and its namesake a defining leader.

Margaret Thatcher defied odds at every stage of her career to reach the top spot in British politics. She had modest beginnings as the daughter of a grocer, far removed from the aristocratic upbringing of her predecessors. Humble circumstances aside, she also suffered the consequences of being the daughter and not the son of the local grocer. At the time of her first candidacy, women were only a few decades removed from not being able to stand for parliament.

Despite these barriers, she rose through the ranks becoming one of 25 female members of parliament in 1959, secretary of state for education in 1970, the only female minister at the time…