Iron Lady
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Iron Lady is a nickname that has frequently been used to describe female heads of government around the world. The term describes a "strong willed" woman. This iron metaphor was most famously applied to Margaret Thatcher, nicknamed so in 1976 by the Soviet media for her staunch opposition to communism [1].
Leaders who have earned the unofficial title (some of them postfactum) include:
- Indira Gandhi, the Prime Minister of India from 1966 to 1977 and 1980 to 1984
- Golda Meir, the Prime Minister of Israel from 1969 to 1974
- Baroness Barbara Castle, a British left-wing politician (1910-2002).[2]
- Margaret Thatcher, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990
- Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany since 2005
- Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, the President of Liberia since 2006
- Wilhelmina, Queen of the Netherlands from 1890 to 1948
- Biljana Plavšić, served in the Bosnian Serb government from 1992 to 1998.
- Wu Yi, a vice-premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China from 2002 to now
Some female politicians have been given similar nicknames:
- The Iron Butterfly is a nickname of former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos.
- Iron Rita is a nickname of Dutch minister Rita Verdonk
- "Jern-Erna" (meaning; "Iron-Erna") is a nickname of the leader of the Norwegian Conservative Party, Erna Solberg.
- Former United States Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was given the nickname "Titanium Lady", playing on some of her similarities with Thatcher.[3]
"Iron Lady of the Seas", a 1984 video, and Iron Lady at Sea, a 1988 book, are about Star of India, the oldest iron-hulled merchant ship afloat launched in 1863. [4]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Speech at Kensington Town Hall ("Britain Awake") (The Iron Lady), Margaret Thatcher Foundation archives
- ^ U.K. loses its first Iron Lady By Hasan Suroor (The Hindu) May 05, 2002
- ^ Federation of American Scientists. NATO-List: USIA - Albright Foreign Media Reaction: "Titanium Lady Shows Her Mettle In Moscow" The conservative Daily Telegraph pointed out (February 21, 1997)
- ^ Star of India: Iron Lady of the Seas (PBS video)
