# Margaret Thatcher becomes prime minister (1979)

URL: https://english-history.com/timeline/1979-margaret-thatcher-becomes-prime-minister
Categories: ruler-change, main-event

Thatcher led the Conservatives to victory and became Britain's first female prime minister. Within the broader Postwar & Modern Uk period, decolonization, welfare institutions, migration, European integration and withdrawal, devolution and social change reshaped the modern United Kingdom. This event is placed at 4 May 1979 in the chronology so it can be read alongside the political, military, social and cultural changes around it. Her governments transformed economic policy, trade unions, privatization and the ideological direction of British politics.

## Why it matters
Her governments transformed economic policy, trade unions, privatization and the ideological direction of British politics.

Ruler at the time: [Elizabeth II](https://english-history.com/rulers/elizabeth-ii)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia topic lookup — Margaret Thatcher becomes prime minister](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=Margaret+Thatcher+becomes+prime+minister&go=Go)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Margaret Thatcher becomes prime minister](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Margaret+Thatcher+becomes+prime+minister)
- [Wikipedia — Timeline of British history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_British_history)
- [The National Archives — Postwar collection](https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/explore-the-collection/explore-by-time-period/postwar/)