英国前总理撒切尔夫人中风后死亡

 　　LONDON, April 8 (Xinhua) -- Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher¹ has died at the age of 87 after suffering a stroke, her family spokesman announced Monday.

　　Lady Thatcher's children Mark and Carol said their mother, who suffered bouts² of ill health in recent years, died peacefully on Monday morning.

　　Baroness⁴ Thatcher, nicknamed the "Iron Lady," was Conservative prime minister from 1979 to 1990, the first woman to hold the post.

　　Her death has drawn⁵ great attention both at home and abroad.

　　British Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted shortly after the news broke out, "It was with great sadness that I learned of Lady Thatcher's death. We've lost a great leader, a great prime minister and a great Briton."

　　Cameron, who was in Madrid for meetings with EU leaders, decided⁶ to cut short his trip and will return home this afternoon.

　　The Queen is "sad to hear the news of the death of Baroness Thatcher and will send a private message of sympathy to the family," said the Buckingham Palace.

　　Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg described Lady Thatcher as one of the "defining figures in modern British politics."

　　"She may have divided opinion during her time in politics but everyone will be united today in acknowledging the strength of her personality and the radicalism⁷ of her politics," said Clegg.

　　Labour leader Ed Miliband, who was launching his local election campaign on Monday, cancelled the party's operations as a mark of respect.

　　He said, "She will be remembered as a unique figure. She reshaped the politics of a whole generation. She was Britain's first woman Prime Minister. She moved the center ground of British politics and was a huge figure on the world stage."

　　Former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair called the ex-PM a "towering political figure" who exercised a huge influence over Britain and the world.

　　"Very few leaders get to change not only the political landscape of their country but of the world. Margaret was such a leader. Her global impact was vast," he said.

　　London Mayor Boris Johnson tweeted, "Very sad to hear of death of Baroness Thatcher. Her memory will live long after the world has forgotten the grey suits of today's politics."

　　British Independence Party leader Nigel Farage called Lady Thatcher a "great inspiration."

　　"Whether you loved her or hated her, nobody could deny that she was a great patriot⁸, who believed passionately⁹ in this country and her people. A towering figure in recent British and political history has passed from the stage. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family."

　　French President Francois Hollande described Thatcher as a "great figure who left a profound mark on the history of her country."

　　"Throughout her public life, with conservative beliefs she fully³ assumed, she was concerned with the United Kingdom's influence and the defence of its interests," Hollande said.

　　German Chancellor¹⁰ Angela Merkel hailed Thatcher as an "extraordinary leader" who played a pivotal role in overcoming Europe's Cold War division.

　　"She was an extraordinary leader in the global politics of her time," Merkel said in a statement. "I will never forget her part in surmounting¹¹ the division of Europe and at the end of the Cold War."

　　Merkel, a fellow conservative who was often compared to Thatcher when she became chancellor in 2005, said Thatcher would not be remembered as a "female politician" but one who had blazed a trail for women in the halls of power.

　　But not every one speaks highly of Thatcher's legacy¹². One of her most significant opponents gave a critical assessment¹³.

　　Ken¹⁴ Livingstone, twice the mayor of London and a former Labor¹⁵ MP as well as the former leader of the Greater London Council (GLC) which was abolished by Lady Thatcher, said many of Britain's current problems were her legacy.

　　Livingstone said, "She created today's housing crisis. She created the banking¹⁶ crisis, and she created the benefits crisis. It was her government which started putting people on incapacity benefit rather than register them as unemployed¹⁷ because the Britain she inherited was broadly full employment."

　　He added, "She decided when she wrote off our manufacturing industry that she could live with two or three million unemployed, and the benefits bill, the legacy of that, we are struggling with today. In actual fact, every real problem we face today is the legacy of the fact that she was fundamentally wrong."

　　No. 10 said Thatcher will not have a state funeral but will be accorded the same status as Princess Diana and the Queen Mother.

　　The ceremony, with full military honors, will take place at London's St Paul's Cathedral. Both the Downing Street and the Buckingham Palace have lowered their flags at half mast.

　　The streets between Westminster and St Paul's will be cleared for the procession, the date of which is yet to be decided. The route will be lined with members of Armed Forces.

　　Lady Thatcher retired¹⁸ from public speaking in 2002. Over the decade, She suffered acute short-term memory loss and a series of strokes.

　　Her husband Denis died in 2003 and her children Mark and Carol both live abroad.

1 thatcher   

n.茅屋匠

参考例句：

• Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that bore Judge Thatcher. 汤姆 - 索亚和撒切尔法官同乘一条小艇。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
• Mrs. Thatcher was almost crazed; and Aunt Polly, also. 撒切尔夫人几乎神经失常，还有波莉姨妈也是。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

2 bouts   

n.拳击（或摔跤）比赛( bout的名词复数 )；一段（工作）；（尤指坏事的）一通；（疾病的）发作

参考例句：

• For much of his life he suffered from recurrent bouts of depression. 他的大半辈子反复发作抑郁症。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It was one of fistiana's most famous championship bouts. 这是拳击界最有名的冠军赛之一。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

3 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

4 baroness   

n.男爵夫人，女男爵

参考例句：

• I'm sure the Baroness will be able to make things fine for you.我相信男爵夫人能够把家里的事替你安排妥当的。
• The baroness,who had signed,returned the pen to the notary.男爵夫人这时已签过字，把笔交回给律师。

5 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 radicalism   

n. 急进主义, 根本的改革主义

参考例句：

• His radicalism and refusal to compromise isolated him. 他的激进主义与拒绝妥协使他受到孤立。
• Education produced intellectual ferment and the temptations of radicalism. 教育带来知识界的骚动，促使激进主义具有了吸引力。

8 patriot   

n.爱国者，爱国主义者

参考例句：

• He avowed himself a patriot.他自称自己是爱国者。
• He is a patriot who has won the admiration of the French already.他是一个已经赢得法国人敬仰的爱国者。

9 passionately   

ad.热烈地，激烈地

参考例句：

• She could hate as passionately as she could love. 她能恨得咬牙切齿，也能爱得一往情深。
• He was passionately addicted to pop music. 他酷爱流行音乐。

10 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

11 surmounting   

战胜( surmount的现在分词 )； 克服（困难）； 居于…之上； 在…顶上

参考例句：

• Surmounting the risks and fears of some may be difficult. 解除某些人的疑虑可能是困难的。
• There was high French-like land in one corner, and a tumble-down grey lighthouse surmounting it. 一角画着一块像是法国风光的高地，上面有一座破烂的灰色灯塔。

12 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

13 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

14 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

15 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

16 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

17 unemployed   

adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的

参考例句：

• There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
• The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。

18 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。