10 Most Influential Women in the World - Margaret Thatcher世界十大最有影響力的女性 - 撒切爾夫人

Margaret Thatcher 

(1925–2013)

The first female prime minister of Britain, Margaret Thatcher was a controversial figurehead of conservative ideology during her time in office.

作為英國第一位女首相，瑪格麗特·撒切爾在任期間是一位頗具爭議的保守思想領(lǐng)袖。

Who Was Margaret Thatcher?  瑪格麗特·撒切爾其人

Margaret Thatcher became Britain's Conservative Party leader and in 1979 was elected prime minister, the first woman to hold the position. During her three terms, she cut social welfare programs, reduced trade union power and privatized certain industries. Thatcher resigned in 1991 due to unpopular policy and power struggles in her party. She died on April 8, 2013, at age 87.

瑪格麗特·撒切爾是英國保守黨領(lǐng)袖，并于1979年當(dāng)選為英國首相，成為首位擔(dān)任首相職務(wù)的女性。在她三屆任期內(nèi)，她削減了社會(huì)福利計(jì)劃，削減了工會(huì)權(quán)力，并將某些行業(yè)私有化。1991年，由于政策不受歡迎和黨內(nèi)權(quán)利斗爭，撒切爾夫人辭去職務(wù)。她于2013年4月8日去世，享年87歲。

Early Life  早年生活

Thatcher was born as Margaret Hilda Roberts on October 13, 1925, in Grantham, England. Nicknamed the "Iron Lady," Thatcher served as the prime minister of England from 1979 to 1990. The daughter of a local businessman, she was educated at a local grammar school, Grantham Girls' High School. Her family operated a grocery store and they all lived in an apartment above the store. In her early years, Thatcher was introduced to conservative politics by her father, who was a member of the town's council.

撒切爾夫人于1925年10月13日出生于英格蘭的格蘭瑟姆，名叫瑪格麗特·希爾達(dá)·羅伯茨。綽號(hào)“鐵娘子”的撒切爾從1979年到1990年擔(dān)任英國首相。她是當(dāng)?shù)匾晃簧倘说呐畠?，她是在?dāng)?shù)匾凰姆▽W(xué)校格蘭瑟姆女子高中接受教育。她的家人經(jīng)營著一家雜貨店，他們都住在商店樓上的公寓里。早年間，撒切爾夫人被作為城市議會(huì)成員的父親介紹進(jìn)入保守派政治中。

A good student, Thatcher was accepted to Oxford University, where she studied chemistry at Somerville College. One of her instructors was Dorothy Hodgkin, a Nobel Prize-winning scientist. Politically active in her youth, Thatcher served as president of the Conservative Association at the university. She earned a degree in chemistry in 1947 and went on to work as a research chemist in Colchester. Later, she worked as a research chemist in Dartford.

作為一個(gè)好學(xué)生，撒切爾被牛津大學(xué)錄取，在那里的薩默維爾學(xué)院學(xué)習(xí)化學(xué)。她的導(dǎo)師之一是多蘿西·霍奇金，是諾貝爾獎(jiǎng)得主科學(xué)家。撒切爾年輕時(shí)政治活躍，曾擔(dān)任大學(xué)保守黨協(xié)會(huì)主席。1947年，她獲得了化學(xué)學(xué)位，隨后在科切斯特從事化學(xué)研究工作。后來，她在達(dá)特福德做化學(xué)研究。

Early Foray into Politics  早年的政治生活的嘗試

Two years after graduating from college, Thatcher made her first bid for public office. She ran as the conservative candidate for a Dartford parliamentary seat in the 1950 elections. Thatcher knew from the start that it would be nearly impossible to win the position away from the liberal Labour Party. Still, she earned the respect of her political party peers with her speeches. Defeated, Thatcher remained undaunted, trying again the following year, but once more her efforts were unsuccessful. Two months after her loss, she married Denis Thatcher.

大學(xué)畢業(yè)兩年后，撒切爾夫人首次競(jìng)選公職。她在1950年的選舉中作為保守黨候選人競(jìng)選達(dá)特福德議會(huì)席位。撒切爾從一開始就知道，要從自由工黨手中奪得這個(gè)位置幾乎是不可能的。盡管如此，她的演講還是贏得了黨內(nèi)同僚的尊敬。失敗后，撒切爾夫人仍然不屈不撓，第二年再次嘗試，但她再嘗敗績。在她競(jìng)選失敗兩個(gè)月后，她嫁給了丹尼斯·撒切爾。

In 1952, Thatcher put politics aside for a time to study law. She and her husband welcomed twins Carol and Mark the next year. After completing her training, Thatcher qualified as a barrister, a type of lawyer, in 1953. But she didn't stay away from the political arena for too long. Thatcher won a seat in the House of Commons in 1959, representing Finchley.

1952年，撒切爾撇開政治研究法律。第二年她和丈夫迎來了龍鳳胎雙胞胎卡羅爾和馬克。在完成學(xué)習(xí)后，撒切爾于1953年獲得了律師資格。但她并沒有離開政治舞臺(tái)太久。1959年，撒切爾代表芬奇利選區(qū)贏得了下議院席位。

Clearly a woman on the rise, Thatcher was appointed parliamentary under secretary for pensions and national insurance in 1961. When the Labour Party assumed control of the government, she became a member of what is called the Shadow Cabinet, a group of political leaders who would hold Cabinet-level posts if their party was in power.

顯然，撒切爾夫人是一位正在崛起的女性，1961年她被任命為議會(huì)養(yǎng)老金和國家保險(xiǎn)部副部長。工黨接管政府后，她成為了所謂的影子內(nèi)閣的成員。影子內(nèi)閣是一個(gè)由政治領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人組成的團(tuán)體，如果工黨掌權(quán)，他們將擔(dān)任內(nèi)閣級(jí)別的職務(wù)。

Britain's First Female Premier  英國第一位女首相

When Conservatives returned to office in June 1970, Thatcher was appointed secretary of state for education and science, and dubbed "Thatcher, milk snatcher," after her abolition of the universal free school milk scheme. She found her position frustrating, not because of all the bad press around her actions, but because she had difficulty getting Prime Minister Edward Heath to listen to her ideas. Seemingly disenchanted on the future of women in politics, Thatcher was quoted as saying, "I don't think there will be a woman prime minister in my lifetime," during a 1973 television appearance.

1970年6月，當(dāng)保守黨重新執(zhí)政時(shí)，撒切爾夫人被任命為教育和科學(xué)大臣，并被稱為“撒切爾，搶奶者”，因?yàn)樗龔U除了全民免費(fèi)學(xué)校牛奶計(jì)劃。她覺得自己的處境令人沮喪，這并不是因?yàn)樗男袨閹淼哪切南ⅲ且驗(yàn)樗茈y讓首相愛德華希思傾聽她的想法。在1973年的一次電視露面中，撒切爾夫人似乎對(duì)女性從政的未來不再抱有幻想，她說：“我認(rèn)為我有生之年不會(huì)出現(xiàn)女首相?！?。

Thatcher soon proved herself wrong. While the Conservative Party lost power in 1974, Thatcher became a dominant force in her political party. She was elected leader of the Conservative Party in 1975, beating out Heath for the position. With this victory, Thatcher became the first woman to serve as the opposition leader in the House of Commons. England was in a time of economic and political turmoil, with the government nearly bankrupt, employment on the rise and conflicts with labor unions. This instability helped return Conservatives to power in 1979. As party leader, Thatcher made history in May 1979, when she was appointed Britain's first female prime minister.

很快，撒切爾夫人就證明自己錯(cuò)了。雖然保守黨在1974年失去了掌權(quán)，撒切爾夫人卻成為其政黨的主導(dǎo)力量。1975年，她擊敗希思，當(dāng)選為保守黨領(lǐng)袖。隨著這場(chǎng)勝利，撒切爾成為第一位在下議院擔(dān)任反對(duì)黨領(lǐng)袖的女性。當(dāng)時(shí)英格欄正處于經(jīng)濟(jì)和政治動(dòng)蕩時(shí)期，政府幾乎破產(chǎn)，就業(yè)率上升，工會(huì)發(fā)生沖突。這種不穩(wěn)定幫助保守黨在1979年重新掌權(quán)。作為黨的領(lǐng)袖，撒切爾夫人在1979年5月創(chuàng)造了歷史，當(dāng)時(shí)她被任命為英國第一位女首相。

Conservative Leadership  保守黨領(lǐng)袖

As prime minister, Thatcher battled the country's recession by initially raising interest rates to control inflation. She was best known for her destruction of Britain's traditional industries through her attacks on labor organizations such as the miner's union, and for the massive privatization of social housing and public transport. One of her staunchest allies was U.S. President Ronald Reagan, a fellow conservative. The two shared similar right-wing, pro-corporate political philosophies.

作為首相，撒切爾夫人最初通過提高利率來控制通貨膨脹，以此對(duì)抗國家經(jīng)濟(jì)衰退。她最為人所知的是，她通過攻擊礦工工會(huì)等勞工組織，摧毀了英國的傳統(tǒng)產(chǎn)業(yè)，并對(duì)社會(huì)福利住房和公共交通進(jìn)行了大規(guī)模私有化。她最堅(jiān)定的盟友之一是同為保守派的美國總統(tǒng)羅納德 里根。兩人有著相似的右翼、親企業(yè)的政治理念。

Thatcher faced a military challenge during her first term. In April 1982, Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands. This British territory had long been a source of conflict between the two nations, as the islands are located off the coast of Argentina. Taking swift action, Thatcher sent British troops to the territory to retake the islands in what became known as the Falklands War. Argentina surrendered in June 1982.

撒切爾夫人在第一個(gè)任期內(nèi)面臨了軍事挑戰(zhàn)。1982年4月，阿根廷入侵?？颂m群島。這片英國領(lǐng)土長期以來一直是兩國沖突的根源，因?yàn)檫@些島嶼位于阿根廷海岸附近。撒切爾迅速采取行動(dòng)，派遣英國軍隊(duì)到領(lǐng)土上，重新奪回這些島嶼，這就是所謂的?？颂m戰(zhàn)爭。阿根廷于1982年6月投降。

In her second term, from 1983 to 1987, Thatcher handled a number of conflicts and crises, the most jarring of which may have been the assassination attempt against her in 1984. In a plot by the Irish Republic Army, she was meant to be killed by a bomb planted at the Conservative Conference in Brighton in October. Undaunted and unharmed, Thatcher insisted that the conference continue, and gave a speech the following day.

在1983年至1987年的第二個(gè)任期內(nèi)，撒切爾夫人處理了一系列的沖突和危機(jī)，其中最令人不安的可能是1984年針對(duì)她的暗殺企圖。在愛爾蘭共和軍的一次陰謀中，她本應(yīng)被10月在布萊頓舉行的保守黨會(huì)議上安放的炸彈炸死。撒切爾夫人毫不氣餒，未受傷害，并堅(jiān)持會(huì)議繼續(xù)進(jìn)行，并于次日發(fā)表講話。

As for foreign policy, Thatcher met with Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet leader, in 1984. That same year, she signed an agreement with the Chinese government regarding the future of Hong Kong. Publicly, Thatcher voiced her support for Reagan's air raids on Libya in 1986 and allowed U.S. forces to use British bases to help carry out the attack.

關(guān)于外交政策，撒切爾在1984年會(huì)見了前蘇聯(lián)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人戈?duì)柊蛦谭颉Ｍ?，她與中國政府就香港的未來簽署了一項(xiàng)協(xié)議。在公開場(chǎng)合，撒切爾表示支持里根1986年空襲利比亞，并允許協(xié)助美軍利用英國基地發(fā)動(dòng)襲擊。

Resignation  辭職

Returning for a third term in 1987, Thatcher sought to implement a standard educational curriculum across the nation and make changes to the country's socialized medical system. However, she lost a lot of support due to her efforts to implement a fixed rate local tax—labeled a poll tax by many since she sought to disenfranchise those who did not pay it. Hugely unpopular, this policy led to public protests and caused dissension within her party.

1987年，撒切爾夫人第三次連任，試圖在全國范圍內(nèi)實(shí)施標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的教育課程，并對(duì)國家的社會(huì)化醫(yī)療體系進(jìn)行改革。然而，她失去了很多支持，因?yàn)樗?shí)施一個(gè)固定稅率的地方稅，許多人認(rèn)為這是人頭稅，因?yàn)樗噲D剝奪一部分人的權(quán)利。這項(xiàng)政策極不受歡迎，引起了公眾抗議，并在她的黨內(nèi)引起了分歧。

Thatcher initially pressed on for party leadership in 1990, but eventually yielded to pressure from party members and announced her intentions to resign on November 22, 1990. In a statement, she said, "Having consulted widely among colleagues, I have concluded that the unity of the Party and the prospects of victory in a General Election would be better served if I stood down to enable Cabinet colleagues to enter the ballot for the leadership. I should like to thank all those in Cabinet and outside who have given me such dedicated support." On November 28, 1990, Thatcher departed from 10 Downing Street, the prime minister's official residence, for the last time.

撒切爾夫人最初在1990年以黨的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)權(quán)利施壓，但最終讓步于黨員的壓力，并于1990年11月22日宣布辭職意向。她在一份聲明中說，“經(jīng)過同事們的廣泛磋商，我得出結(jié)論，如果我下臺(tái)，使內(nèi)閣同事能夠進(jìn)入領(lǐng)導(dǎo)層的競(jìng)選，黨的團(tuán)結(jié)和大選勝利的前景將得到更好的體現(xiàn)。我要感謝內(nèi)閣內(nèi)外所有給予我如此熱情支持的人?！?990年11月28日，撒切爾夫人最后一次離開首相官邸唐寧街10號(hào)。

Life After Politics

Not long after leaving office, Thatcher was appointed to the House of Lords, as Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven, in 1992. She wrote about her experiences as a world leader and a pioneering woman in the field of politics in two books: The Downing Street Years (1993) and The Path to Power (1995). In 2002, she published the book Statecraft, in which she offered her views on international politics.

卸任后不久，撒切爾夫人于1992年被上議院任命為凱斯特文的撒切爾女男爵。她在《唐寧街歲月》（1993）和《權(quán)力之路》（1995）兩本書中講述了自己作為世界領(lǐng)袖和政治領(lǐng)域先鋒女性的經(jīng)歷。2002年，她出版了《治國理政》一書，對(duì)國際政治發(fā)表了自己的看法。

Around this time, Thatcher suffered a series of small strokes. She then suffered a great personal loss in 2003, when her husband of more than 50 years, Denis, died. The following year, Thatcher had to say goodbye to an old friend and ally, Ronald Reagan. In fragile health, Thatcher gave a eulogy at his funeral via video link, praising Reagan as a man who "sought to mend America's wounded spirit, to restore the strength of the free world, and to free the slaves of communism."

大約在這個(gè)時(shí)候，撒切爾夫人遭受了一系列的小中風(fēng)。2003年，當(dāng)她50多年的丈夫丹尼斯去世時(shí)，使她遭受了巨大的個(gè)人損失。第二年，撒切爾不得不向他的老朋友兼盟友羅納德·里根告別。在脆弱的健康狀況下，撒切爾在他的葬禮上通過視頻鏈接致悼詞，稱贊里根是一個(gè)“試圖修補(bǔ)美國受傷的精神，恢復(fù)自由世界的力量”的人。

In 2005, Thatcher celebrated her 80th birthday. A huge event was held in her honor and was attended by Queen Elizabeth II, Tony Blair and nearly 600 other friends, family members and former colleagues. Two years later, a sculpture of the strong conservative leader was unveiled in the House of Commons.

2005年，撒切爾夫人慶祝了她的80歲生日。為了慶祝，英國女王伊麗莎白二世、托尼布萊爾以及近600名朋友、家人和前同事參加了一個(gè)大型活動(dòng)。兩年后，這位堅(jiān)強(qiáng)的保守黨領(lǐng)袖的雕像在下議院揭幕。

Final Years and Legacy

Thatcher's health made headlines in 2010, when she missed a celebration at 10 Downing Street, held in honor of her 85th birthday by David Cameron. Later, in November 2010, Thatcher spent two weeks in the hospital for a condition that was later revealed to cause painful muscle inflammation. In 2011, she sat out such a number of major events, including the wedding of Prince William in April, and the unveiling of the Ronald Reagan sculpture in London in July. Additionally, in July 2011, Thatcher's office in the House of Lords was permanently closed. The closure has been seen by some to mark the end of her public life.

Battling memory problems in her later years due to her strokes, Thatcher retreated from the spotlight, living in near seclusion at her home in London's Belgravia neighborhood.

由于中風(fēng)，撒切爾晚年的記憶問題一直困擾著她，她隱居在倫敦貝爾格拉維亞區(qū)的家中，遠(yuǎn)離了聚光燈。

Thatcher died on April 8, 2013, at the age of 87. She was survived by her two children, daughter Carol and son Sir Mark. Thatcher's policies and actions continue to be debated by detractors and supporters alike, illustrating the indelible impression that she has left on Britain and nations worldwide.

撒切爾夫人于2013年4月8日去世，享年87歲。她有兩個(gè)孩子，女兒卡羅爾和兒子馬克爵士。撒切爾夫人的政策和行動(dòng)繼續(xù)受到批評(píng)者和支持者的爭論，這說明她給英國和世界各國留下了不可磨滅的印象。 

detractor 詆毀者

indelible 不可磨滅的