Margaret Thatcher, the longest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century and the first woman to hold the position, was born 100 years ago. A polarising and divisive figure in UK politics, she is still viewed favourably in historical rankings and her realignment towards neoliberal policies had a significant effect. A Soviet journalist dubbed her the “Iron Lady”, a nickname that became associated with her uncompromising politics and leadership style.
Her economic policies emphasised greater individual liberty, the privatisation of state-owned companies, and reducing the power and influence of trade unions. Her popularity in her first years in office from 1979 waned, although victory in the 1982 Falklands War and the recovering economy brought a resurgence of support. She survived an assassination attempt by the IRA in the 1984 Brighton hotel bombing and achieved a political victory against the National Union of Mineworkers in the 1984–85 miners’ strike. In 1986, she oversaw the deregulation of UK financial markets, leading to an economic boom, in what came to be known as the Big Bang. Her third term fell apart after the “poll tax” debacle and her Eurosceptic views were not shared by her cabinet colleagues.
She was born 13 October 1925 at 9am (from memory) Grantham, England with a grocer father who was a strict Methodist, and took a chemistry degree at Oxford before becoming a barrister and entering politics. She married at 26 to businessman Dennis Thatcher which lasted over fifty years till his death in 2003 and had two children. She famously filled in her entrance papers for the bar in her hospital bed having just delivered twins.
She had a Libra Sun and Mars both square a super-confident and opinionated 9th house Pluto opposition a communicative 3rd house Jupiter. Although Libra is reputed to be balanced and diplomatic it can veer from extreme to extreme; and in the female of the species tends to get stronger and more assertive with age. In her case Mars would add an argumentative edge to an already dogmatic Pluto and self-righteous Jupiter.
Her Pluto was trine an overly conscientious Saturn in Scorpio on her Ascendant giving her a stubborn streak and the ability to withstand tough conditions. Her 4th house Uranus was on the focal point of a yod inconjunct Neptune sextile Mercury giving her a defiant urge to upend the old order and institute changes.
Her career moved to the bidding of Saturn. She had her children as tr Saturn moved through her 12th pulling her away from old ambitions as it headed for her lower profile 1st quadrant. She entered parliament as tr Saturn moved out of the lowest ebb of her 1st quadrant setting her on a path which would see her enter the Cabinet as tr Saturn crossed her Descendant moving upwards. When tr Saturn reached her Midheaven she became prime minister. And when she finally admitted defeat and resigned in 1990 it was after tr Saturn had a humbling four years after her Second Saturn Return as it moved back down through her less successful First Quadrant.
Tr Saturn was also conjunct her Sun when the Falklands War started; and was conjunct her Ascendant on her Second Return at the Brighton Hotel bombing.
When she was voted in as PM on 4 May 1979, tr Uranus was just across her Ascendant for a radical change of image and tr Pluto was hovering across the conjunction to her Sun. Tr Jupiter was also conjunct her ‘leadership’ North Node in Leo which in turn was exactly conjunct the UK Jupiter in Leo. Tr Uranus at that point was conjunct the UK 2nd house Neptune as she set about bringing significant different economic policies into play.
Her emphasised natal Pluto fell in the UK 10th house so she had a definite urge to control the country’s direction. Her relationship chart with the UK had an intense composite Moon square Pluto; a suspicious Saturn Neptune opposition Venus; and an argumentative composite Mars trine Sun Mercury, inconjunct Uranus. When she was elected tr Jupiter was heading for the composite Midheaven hinting at a favourable start though tr Uranus in Scorpio heading for the composite Mercury and then Sun pointed to a bumpy ride ahead.
Oddly enough when she finally resigned tr Jupiter was back moving through the composite MT/UK 10th with tr Mars exactly conjunct the composite North Node for a decisive moment. And tr Pluto was in Scorpio almost exactly where tr Uranus was when she first took up office putting pressure on the UK’s financial planets.
By the end of her tenure she was increasingly unpopular and with Solar Arc Uranus moving across the UK Descendant the country was ready for a new partnership. Tr Uranus crossing the UK IC into the 4th behind tr Neptune and Saturn already in the 4th – also pointed to the UK in a state of internal upheaval and uncertainty, with change inevitable.
However much hostility she provoked, she was still an influential figure on the international stage and her friendship with Ronald Reagan not only brought the USA and UK together but also facilitated Reagan’s peacekeeping efforts with Mikhail Gorbachev after she convinced Reagan that he could be trusted. Reagan’s Jupiter in Scorpio fell on her Saturn Ascendant so he would be an uplifting and confidence-inducing connection. Their relationship chart echoed this with a composite Sun Jupiter conjunction.
Two personal asides on Thatcher. One is she fitted the female Libra’s inclination towards her father whom she idolised; and spoke rarely and rather dismissively of her mother. The second is that despite her rather brisk schoolmarmy temperament she surrounded herself with quite a few colleagues with less than squeaky-clean CVs when it came to sexual scandals. Which may have harked back to her father who had quite a reputation locally according to those who grew up in Grantham. Her father comes across as a Mars Sun Pluto Jupiter type – pushily confident and domineering. Her mother is reflected in her Moon Neptune in Leo – vague, dreamy, difficult to pin down. And, of course, with her twins, her son Mark always seemed to be the favourite.
A further thought was a comment made by a cabinet colleague at the outbreak of the Falklands War – was that she had been spoiling for a fight and didn’t much care who she had it with. An interesting women who came out of nowhere really to be a considerable force.
ADD ON: The Conservative Party chart, 9 May 1912, is in turmoil with the Solar Arc Uranus conjunct Saturn now and for several months ahead – suggesting the old certainties are being upended. Tr Pluto will continue to square square the Venus and conjunct the Uranus throughout 2026 as it has done this year pointing to upheavals, turbulence and insecurity. By 2028 the Solar Arc Pluto will square the Mars for a dead halt with the two years thereafter no better.
The Tory Party, 18 December 1834 chart (which I don’t think works as well) is panicked and uncertain now, disappointed and discouraged in 2026 – with some faintly more cheerful influences thereafter. But the 1912 one has in the past reflected events more accurately.
Thanks for the detailed analysis Marjorie – especially of how the transits affected her ups and downs. The Saturn in Scorpio on the Ascendant seems to have been her hallmark with selling off the assets of the nation to avoid taxation, fighting the unions and of course the Iron Lady moniker.
Noting that the Conservative Party seems to have imploded in the past year as its voter desert to Reform. Would it be possible to have another look at its chart with regard to how this has occurred? I seem to recall it had Uranus challenging its MC
Thanks for the add-on. The transit of Pluto to the Con Party’s Uranus seems like it is having an effect. I suppose the party is being challenged to ‘reform’ / modernise(?) given it’s fixed nature.
I’m reminded that as soon as Uranus and Neptune arrived in Aquarius in the late 90s, Labour took power until 2010 when Neptune finally exited – not that I’m forecasting the same tenancy for Labour this time but will be interesting to see if the Cons are outcast for Pluto in Aqua or recover their standing. In theory, someone always need to stand for tradition so maybe by the time whatever upheaval Pluto in Aqua wreaks many will be wanting the promise of something simpler.
Whichever side one bats for, Thatcher and Reagan sowed the seeds of the neoliberalism which has finally hit the buffers on both sides of the pond.
Quite. And Clinton and Blair amplified it.
I remember her term in office as the darkest of times. Perhaps being young and a little rebellious. But have never been able to warm to her and her preference for men was very obvious. She was good friends with Chile’s torturer-in-chief, Pinochet which is telling.
When she died I was really shocked by the violence of the miners’ strike, poll tax riots and in general. I remember it as tumultuous but not that bad. So far, despite unrest we haven’t reverted to that. I hope we manage to swerve it.
The new female Japan PM is a fan, would be interesting to hear your take on their synastry and also that new lady.
The new prime minister of Japan, the first female, is a conservative nationalsit who is said to be a great admirer of Thatcher. She would not lift a finger to fight apartheid in South Africa. Within the Commonwealth, it then fell to Canada and others to show moral leadership with the tacit support of the Queen. Today, she would likely be Trump’s and Netanyahu’s close friend but would fiercely challenge Putin. She would never recognise Palestine.
Andre, worth remembering Margaret Thatcher was a Libran and sought balance – albeit in her own way. Re Palestine she worked on finding peace:
“in 1987, Thatcher worked behind the scenes to set up a secret meeting in London between Peres (who was by then Israel’s foreign minister in a national unity coalition government) and King Hussein where an agreement was reached on an international conference to launch a process of peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. In September 1987, Thatcher urged President Reagan to support the Peres-Hussein Accord but the Americans refused to become involved and the agreement collapsed as the rejectionist forces in the region gained the upper hand. Thirty years on, this can be viewed as a great missed opportunity but Thatcher was right to try her hand in the diplomatic arena.” committees.parliament.uk
There’s also a more complex history re S Africa and Thatcher. She opposed sanctions, yes. But apparently on economic grounds, rather than racist ones. While I cannot agree with this stance, I think it reveals something about the Mercury in Libra way she thought – a scientist and a lawyer’s kind of logic, rather than anything passionate or infused with unruly feelings.
“I was briefed off-the-record by her foreign affairs adviser on several occasions, but when he told me that she had called on the then president, PW Botha, to release Nelson Mandela, I found it difficult to believe. I did not report it as I could not source it. But it was true. In a letter to Botha in October 1985 she wrote: “I continue to believe, as I have said to you before, that the release of Nelson Mandela would have more impact than almost any single action you could undertake.” – ‘How Margaret Thatcher helped end apartheid – despite herself’ theguardian.com, April 2013
Thatcher had a sister who was 4 years older. The sister and hubby Cullen owned a
200 acre farm. Here is the sister’s speculative chart with farming in the 4th House of agriculture. Margaret is elevated in the 10th Capricorn House showing an
administrative career in politics. Use magnifier to enlarge the chart.
https://ibb.co/7tKDZqVC
That’s really quite vague. Thatcher really created a lot of the problems we have today – selling off state assets like BP and the other energy sectors – many of which have gained huge profits for private investors – money that could have gone to the nation, as well national rail, the post office etc, She also created the situation which led effectively to the de-nationalisation of the NHS (Local trusts) and a situation where health staff pay huge amounts to park their cars in London hospitals, as well as the sectioning off/ selling of security and catering services within hospitals – to, yes you guessed it, those with links to her. The NHS is actually drained due to agency costs (in all staffing areas) and too many consultants saying they will introduce efficiency drives that never work. Not because of frontline costs.
Additionally she allowed council tenants to buy their own homes and crucially DID NOT invest the money in creating more social housing leaving us to the housing fiasco we have today and the ability for greedy landlords to thrive. She believed in ‘hyper-capitalism’ and that everyone should fend for themselves – with no consideration for those vulnerable and unable to do so. Only a sociopath would say ‘There’s no such thing as society’. And as well as the poll tax she tried to introduce as Section 28 to criminalise homosexuality while the ‘privileged’ men she surrounded herself with carried on with their depraved lives. I find it loathsome when people try to praise her. In fact I genuinely think she hated society, hated people, hated Britain and, unconsciously but intentionally, set it up to fail.
Many of the same criticisms can appropriately be leveled at “Saint” Ronald Reagan, who also aimed to destroy the social support network in the US and led directly to the destructive Republicans of the Trump era.
You do realise that bankrolling those industries through taxation and borrowing was bankrupting the nation. And Council Houses are being built today, they are just financed differently with Councils in partnership with companies. Blaming Maggie for all of the ills of today is ridiculous. She was in power for 10 years. I think you should spread the blame around to those that have been running the country since. And the reason she was elected continually, you only have to look at how the country was being run before. Meaning the previous incumbents were far worse. And the electorate obviously thought so as well. Because you don’t get life-long Labour voters, voting Tory overnight. It takes mind-blowing incompetence and arrogance to alienate your core voters. And that is something that today’s Conservatives are learning now, but back then, it was Labour’s turn. And again it was Labour’s turn in 2010.
And while you deplore the NHS Trusts, it does allow them to take responsibility for their budgets and put the money where it is needed. One size fits all doesn’t work for everyone.which is what you are advocating. Admittedly, some could do better. But is it any better to have local decisions decided by Whitehall, I think not!
Well, that’s politics or fame…either one gets praise while alive or after death. Also a reason nowadays politicians use it to fill coffers instead of working for people. Everyone has flaws n politics is keeping all kinds together so a real brain boggling daily hence people don’t enter n very few stay till end.
Economics macro is always tricky. Providing for vulnerable makes them greedy in long run as other parties keep expanding to gain power and not providing makes one lose majority votes since masses r always vulnerable and if they r not,in flash of pan…then they r greedy -masked vulnerability;both always hungry.
Strikingly, someone born on 4th number gets defeated on 4th number, I thought day one is born is always lucky for one.
Thatcher was the 2nd daughter. Her father owned a little grocery store and was
interested in local politics. The family grew up above the store, without indoor
plumbing or hot water. The father was mighty in his influence, instilling stern moral
precepts in young Margaret, taking her to political meetingss to show her intriguing
social skills and how to get things done, expecting much of her and grooming her for
successful entrance to Oxford. Years later, upon taking the highest office, she said…
“Well of course, I just owe almost everything to my father. He brought me up to
believe almost all the things I do believe are the things that helped me win the election.
She has Saturn, father, on her Asc with Sun in a t-square to Jupiter opp Pluto for\
empowerment.
It perplexes me the way someone either hates one parent and ends up becoming like them or one idolises one and becomes like them so where does the person as individual is ? His birth seems just to put on zenith ancestral hard work on certain qualities so who r ones who r black sheep of the family ?
Yeah, atleast being daughter she got married and had a family else Saturn since himself spinster is not giving to its male descendants – the yearning he has…of family.