ABSTRACT
Margaret Thatcher was a self-proclaimed ‘conviction politician’, certain of her free-market philosophy and intolerant of opposition. Although primarily a would-be domestic reformer, her impact on British foreign policy and on international affairs in general was considerable. That was due to her re-establishment of political stability, though not consensus, after the upheavals of the 1970s and to the forceful nationalism of her diplomatic style, particularly in dealings with the European Community and the Soviet Union. She gloried in her nickname of ‘the Iron Lady’. Internal stability and external assertiveness enhanced Britain’s image, if not its popularity, abroad. The somewhat fortuitous Falklands victory in 1982 was adroitly used by her as the leitmotif for her leadership and for a new Britain. Better than any Prime Minister since Macmillan, Thatcher understood that prestige was a form of power. During her premiership, Britain kept a high profile in world politics.
