Sir Denis Thatcher, Bt.
Denis Thatcher (right) greets U.S. First Lady Nancy Reagan, 1988
Born	10 May 1915(1915-05-10) London, England
Died	26 June 2003 (aged 88) London, England
Nationality	British
Education	Mill Hill School
Occupation	Businessman
Known for	Spouse of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Term	4 May 1979 - 28 November 1990
Predecessor	Audrey Callaghan
Successor	Norma Major
Spouse	Margaret Kempson (1942-48) Margaret Thatcher (1951-2003)
Children	Mark Thatcher, Carol Thatcher

Major Sir Denis Thatcher, 1st Baronet, MBE, TD (10 May 1915 – 26 June 2003) was a businessman, and the husband of the former British Prime Minister, Baroness Thatcher. He was born in Lewisham, London, England, the elder child of a New Zealand-born British businessman, Thomas Herbert (Jack) Thatcher, and his wife (Lilian) Kathleen, née Bird. As of 2007, he is the last person outside the British Royal Family to be awarded a hereditary title. For the brush-footed butterfly species, see Euthalia nais. ... Nancy Davis Reagan (born Anne Frances Robbins on July 6, 1921) is the widow of the former United States President Ronald Reagan and was First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989. ... is the 130th day of the year (131st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Mill Hill School, in Mill Hill, London, is a coeducational independent school for boarding and day pupils aged 13–18. ... There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ... is the 124th day of the year (125th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins. ... is the 332nd day of the year (333rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... Audrey Elizabeth Callaghan, Baroness Callaghan of Cardiff (née Moulton; 28 July 1915 – 15 March 2005) was the wife of British Prime Minister James Callaghan and was herself a politician and campaigner and fundraiser for childrens health and welfare. ... Norma, Lady Major, DBE (nee Wagstaff, previously Johnson; born 12 February 1942) is the wife of Sir John Major, the former British Prime Minister. ... Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS (née Roberts; born 13 October 1925) served as British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990 and leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 until 1990, being the first and only woman to hold either post. ... Sir Mark Thatcher, 2nd Baronet (born 15 August 1953) is the only son of Sir Denis Thatcher and Baroness Thatcher, the former British Prime Minister, and twin brother of Carol Thatcher. ... Carol Thatcher (born 15 August 1953), styled The Hon. ... Major is a military rank the use of which varies according to country. ... The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these are Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross (GBE) Knight Commander... The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a United Kingdom military medal, also known as the Territorial Efficiency Decoration, which was given to officers for long service in the Territorial Army. ... is the 130th day of the year (131st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is, in practice, the political leader of the United Kingdom. ... Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS (née Roberts; born 13 October 1925) served as British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990 and leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 until 1990, being the first and only woman to hold either post. ... Lewisham is a district in south-east London, England and the principal settlement of the London Borough of Lewisham. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... 2007 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Members of the Royal Family, during the lifetime of the late Queen Mother, on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour ceremony. ... A title is a prefix or suffix added to a persons name to signify either veneration, an official position or a professional or academic qualification. ...

Early life and work

At age eight he entered a preparatory school as a boarder in Bognor Regis, following which he attended the leading nonconformist public school, Mill Hill. He left school at the age of 18 to join the family paint and preservatives business, Atlas Preservatives. He enlisted in the army shortly after the Munich crisis, convinced war was imminent. , Bognor Regis is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. ... Mill Hill School, in Mill Hill, London, is a coeducational independent school for boarding and day pupils aged 13–18. ... For the annual global security meeting held in Munich, see Munich Conference on Security Policy. ...

During the Second World War, he served in the 34th Searchlight (Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment) of the Royal Engineers before being promoted to the rank of major. Although, to his regret, he saw no real fighting, he was twice Mentioned in Despatches, and in 1945 was appointed an MBE. Leaving the forces in 1946, he returned to run the family business, his father having died, aged 57, on 24 June 1943, when Thatcher was in Sicily. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Helmet Plate of The Royal West Kent Regiment The Queens Own Royal West Kent Regiment was a regiment of the British Army. ... The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army. ... Major is a military rank the use of which varies according to country. ... Mentioned in Dispatches (MID) is a military award for gallantry or otherwise commendable service. ... The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these are Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross (GBE) Knight Commander... is the 175th day of the year (176th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Sicily ( in Italian and Sicilian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,708 km² (9,926 sq. ...

On 28 March 1942 he married Margaret Doris Kempson, the daughter of Leonard Kempson, a businessman at Monken Hadley. The childless marriage ended in divorce, in 1948.^[1] She met someone else whilst Thatcher was away and married him later. is the 87th day of the year (88th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Monken Hadley is a place in the London Borough of Barnet. ...

In February 1949, while attending a Paint Trades Federation function in Dartford, he met Margaret Roberts, a chemist and newly-selected parliamentary candidate, who later became the first female prime minister of the United Kingdom. They married on 13 December 1951, and had twin children, Carol and Mark, in 1953. Thatcher agreed with his wife on most political issues, though he was strongly against the death penalty, calling it "absolutely awful" and "barbaric", while she favoured it. Denis Thatcher was fiercely anti-Trade Union and anti-socialist, as was his wife. He later hated the BBC, thinking it was biased against the Thatcher government. In an Interview with Kirsten Cubitt in October 1970, he said "I don't pretend I am anything but an honest-to-god right-winger. Those are my views and I don't care who knows 'em"^[2] , Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. ... Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS (née Roberts; born 13 October 1925) served as British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990 and leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 until 1990, being the first and only woman to hold either post. ... A chemist pours from a round-bottom flask. ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... is the 347th day of the year (348th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Carol Thatcher (born 15 August 1953), styled The Hon. ... Sir Mark Thatcher, 2nd Baronet (born 15 August 1953) is the only son of Sir Denis Thatcher and Baroness Thatcher, the former British Prime Minister, and twin brother of Carol Thatcher. ... Capital punishment, or the death penalty, is the execution of a convicted criminal by the state as punishment for crimes known as capital crimes or capital offences. ... For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ...

Thatcher financed his wife's training as a barrister and a home in Chelsea; he also bought a large house in Lamberhurst, Kent in 1965. His firm employed 200 people by 1957, but he sold it to Castrol on 26 August 1965 after suffering a mild breakdown in 1964. He received a seat on Castrol's parent board, which he maintained when Burmah took it over in 1966. He retired from Burmah Oil in June 1975, four months after his wife won the Conservative Party leadership. Statue of Thomas More on Cheyne Walk. ... Lamberhurst is a village on the borders of Kent and East Sussex, although the parish was, at one time, in both counties. ... For other uses, see Kent (disambiguation). ... Castrol is a brand of industrial and automotive lubricants which is applied to a large range of oil products for most lubrication applications. ... is the 238th day of the year (239th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

In addition to being a director of Burmah, he was chairman of the Atlas Preservative Co, vice-chairman of Attwoods plc from 1983 to January 1994, a director of Quinton Hazell plc from 1968 to 1998, and a consultant to Amec plc and CSX Corp. He was also a non-executive director of Halfords in the mid 1980s AMEC plc (LSE: AMEC) is a British company, headquartered in London. ... The initials PLC after a UK or Irish company name indicate that it is a public limited company, a type of limited company whose shares may be offered for sale to the public. ... Categories: Companies traded on NYSE | Railway companies of the United States | Alabama railroads | Connecticut railroads | Delaware railroads | Florida current railroads | Georgia railroads | Illinois railroads | Indiana railroads | Kentucky railroads | Louisiana railroads | Maryland railroads | Massachusetts railroads | Michigan railroads | Mississippi railroads | New Jersey railroads | New York railroads | North Carolina railroads | Ohio railroads | Pennsylvania...

Public life and perceptions

The public perception of his character was formed chiefly from a series of spoof letters published in the satirical magazine Private Eye in the 1980s^{[citation needed]}. The "Dear Bill" column written by Richard Ingrams and John Wells after May 1979 took the form of a letter purported to be from Denis to his real life friend and golfing partner Bill Deedes (former editor of The Daily Telegraph), detailing life at Number 10. The letters portrayed Denis Thatcher as a reactionary interested only in golf and gin. John Wells used the character portrayed in the letters, and created the stage play Anyone For Denis (also shown on television). Thatcher started to play along — Ulster Unionist David Burnside recalled a reception in Blackpool "to which Sir Denis came along with his minder and declared: "I don't know what reception I'm at, but for God's sake give me a gin and tonic". 1867 edition of Punch, a ground-breaking British magazine of popular humour, including a good deal of satire of the contemporary social and political scene. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... March 4, 2005 cover of Private Eye; this is a typical example of the magazines front cover. ... The Dear Bill letters were a regular feature in the British satirical magazine Private Eye. ... Richard Ingrams (born August 19, 1937) was the second editor of British satirical magazine, Private Eye, taking over from Christopher Booker in 1963. ... John Wells (November 17, 1936 - January 11, 1998) was a British actor, writer and satirist. ... The Right Honourable William Francis Deedes, Baron Deedes, KBE, MC, DL, PC (born 1 June 1913) is a veteran British journalist and a former politician. ... This article concerns the British newspaper. ... Prime Minister Tony Blair and U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney stand in front of the famous main door to Number 10. ... Reactionary (or reactionist) is a political epithet, generally used as a pejorative, originally applied in the context of the French Revolution to counter-revolutionaries who wished to restore the real or imagined conditions of the monarchical Ancien Régime. ... This article is about the game. ... This article is about the beverage. ... The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP, sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or OUP) is a political party in Northern Ireland representing the unionist community, and was the party of government in Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. ... David Wilson Boyd Burnside MLA (born 24 August 1951) is a Northern Ireland politician, and was Ulster Unionist Party Member of Parliament for South Antrim. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Thatcher refused press interviews and only made brief speeches. When he did speak to the press, he called Margaret "The Boss". One lapse, which he regretted for the ensuing controversy he felt was at his wife's expense, was in December 1979, when at a dinner of the London Society of Rugby Football Union Referees (of which he was treasurer, having refereed at a club level for many years) he made remarks criticising the sporting boycott of South Africa. Thatcher said, "We are a free people, playing an amateur game, and sure as hell we have the right to tour South Africa".

He was known as an irreverent, good-natured man with a talent for friendship. Margaret Thatcher often acknowledged her husband's support. In her autobiography she wrote: "I could never have been Prime Minister for more than 11 years without Denis by my side." He saw his role as helping her survive the stress of the job, which he urged her to resign on the 10th anniversary of her becoming Prime Minister, in 1989, sensing that otherwise she would be forced out (as happened a year later). After his wife's third election victory in 1987, whilst watching his wife wave to the cheering crowds outside Downing Street, Thatcher said quietly to his daughter Carol, "In a year's time she will be so unpopular you won't believe it". In fact, this happened 12-18 months later than when he predicted, but was still accurate.

In December 1990, it was announced that Denis Thatcher would be created a baronet^[3] (the first since 1964). The award was gazetted in February 1991 as Sir Denis Thatcher, 1st Baronet, of Scotney in the County of Kent.^[4] This meant that his wife was entitled to be called Lady Thatcher whilst retaining her seat in the House of Commons, and was also a hereditary title that was to be inherited by their son Mark after Denis's death. It was the last British hereditary honour to be granted to anyone outside the royal family. However, Sir Denis Thatcher's wife was created a life peeress as Baroness Thatcher in her own right in 1992 after her retirement from the House of Commons. For the brush-footed butterfly species, see Euthalia nais. ... The London Gazette , front page from Monday 3 - 10 September 1666, reporting on the Great Fire of London. ... A title is a prefix or suffix added to a persons name to signify either veneration, an official position or a professional or academic qualification. ...

Death

On 17 January 2003 Sir Denis Thatcher underwent a six-hour heart bypass operation. He had complained of breathlessness before Christmas and the problem was spotted in early January. He left the hospital on 28 January and appeared to have made a full recovery. He visited his son Mark, in South Africa in April but by the middle of June he complained of breathlessness once again. He was again taken to a hospital where pancreatic cancer was diagnosed, along with fluid in his lungs. He died on 26 June at the age of 88 at Westminster's Lister Hospital. His funeral, a cremation, was held on 3 July 2003 at the chapel of the Royal Hospital in Chelsea. On 30 October his memorial service was held in Westminster Abbey. is the 17th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Early in a coronary artery bypass surgery during vein harvesting from the legs (left of image) and the establishment of bypass (placement of the aortic cannula) (bottom of image). ... is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Pancreatic cancer is a malignant tumor of the pancreas. ... This box:      A fluid is defined as a substance that continually deforms (flows) under an applied shear stress regardless of how small the applied stress. ... is the 177th day of the year (178th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Westminster is a district within the City of Westminster in London. ... is the 184th day of the year (185th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Figure Court of Royal Hospital Chelsea The Royal Hospital Chelsea is a retirement home and nursing home for British soldiers who are unfit for further duty due to injury or old age, located in the Chelsea region of central London. ... Chelsea is a district of London, loosely defined by the area around the Kings Road, beginning at Sloane Square at one end, and the Worlds End public house at the other, the River Thames and the Victorian artists district to the south, and some parts between the King... is the 303rd day of the year (304th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Collegiate Church of St Peter, Westminster, which is almost always referred to by its original name of Westminster Abbey, is a mainly Gothic church, on the scale of a cathedral (and indeed often mistaken for one), in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. ...

Publications

• Denis Thatcher's one public interview, which took place in October 2002, was released as a DVD, Married to Maggie, after his death. In it he called John Major a ghastly Prime Minister and said it would have been a good thing if Major had lost the 1992 general election. He also said he thought his wife was the best Prime Minister since Churchill, and revealed that he liked Raisa Gorbachev, Nancy Reagan and Barbara Bush and that he wasn't sure where the Falkland Islands were until the invasion occurred in 1982.

• Below the Parapet - The Biography of Denis Thatcher by Carol Thatcher (his daughter). Published by Harper Collins in 1996. In it, Thatcher said that politics as a way of life did not appeal to him and that world leaders he personally got on with were George H. W. Bush, FW De Klerk, King Hussein of Jordan and Mikhail Gorbachev, whilst he disliked Indira Gandhi and Sonny Ramphal.

The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. ... Churchill redirects here. ... Raisa Maximovna Gorbacheva (Russian: Раи́са Макси́мовна Горбачёва), maiden name Raisa Maximovna Titarenko (Раи́са Макси́мовна Титаре́нко) (January 5, 1932 - September 20, 1999) was the wife of the last leader of the Soviet Union. ... Nancy Davis Reagan (born Anne Frances Robbins on July 6, 1921) is the widow of the former United States President Ronald Reagan and was First Lady of the United States from 1981 to 1989. ... For the daughter of President George W. Bush, see Barbara Pierce Bush. ... George Herbert Walker Bush (born June 12, 1924) was the 41st President of the United States, serving from 1989 to 1993. ... Frederik Willem de Klerk (born March 18, 1936) was the last State President of apartheid-era South Africa, serving from September 1989 to May 1994. ... Hussein bin Talal (Arabic: حسين بن طلال) (November 14, 1935 - February 7, 1999) was the King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan from 1952 to 1999. ... Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev[1] (Russian: , IPA: ; born 2 March 1931) is a Russian politician. ... A young Indira Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi, during one of the latters fasts Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (Hindi: ) (19 November 1917 - October 31, 1984) She was the Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms from 1966 to 1977 and for a fourth term from 1980 until her assassination in... Sir Shridath Ramphal (born 1928) was the second Commonwealth Secretary-General (1975 to 1990). ...

References

Collins, Christopher (January 2007). ‘Thatcher, Sir Denis, first baronet (1915–2003)’. Oxford University Press. DOI:10.1093/ref:odnb/90063. Retrieved on 2008-04-28. The Times is a national newspaper published daily in the United Kingdom (and the Kingdom of Great Britain before the United Kingdom existed) since 1788 when it was known as The Daily Universal Register. ... The London Gazette , front page from Monday 3 - 10 September 1666, reporting on the Great Fire of London. ... is the 345th day of the year (346th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 59th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... The London Gazette , front page from Monday 3 - 10 September 1666, reporting on the Great Fire of London. ... is the 38th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 59th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Oxford University Press (OUP) is a highly-respected publishing house and a department of the University of Oxford in England. ... A digital object identifier (or DOI) is a standard for persistently identifying a piece of intellectual property on a digital network and associating it with related data, the metadata, in a structured extensible way. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• BBC photo archive