Great Prime Ministers

A nation that hates its politicians is not a rare thing as Scarlet has previously said, even the politicians we have taken a shine for over the years tend to have negative approval ratings and we tend not to remember them with too much honour.  The cream of the crop politically are Prime Ministers, the political head of the nation, the person who controls the red button and the lot.  The most remembered national heroes tend to be soldiers or writers and the like, but we have had some great Prime Ministers in our time, here are a few: (NOTE Scarlet has very strong political opinions as regular readers know, this may be reflected in this post)

Benjamin Disraeli Conservative

Finest Hour: Formation of One Nation Conservatism
Greatest honour: Statue in Parliament Square, Later Earl of Beaconsfield
Summary:  Disraeli was at the front of the one nation conservative movement.  This particular ideological bent dominated the Conservative position for over 100 years.  Born to Jewish parents Disraeli was the first ethnic minority appointed to the lofty position of head of government.  There is no doubt that he helped swing the Great Game toward British interests.  A renowned novelist and a competent Chancellor of the Exchequer, Disraeli had more than one string to his bow.

Winston Churchill Conservative

Finest Hour: Leading Britain to victory in WW2
Greatest honour: State Funeral
Summary: Winston was a staggering man.  Born to the nobility Churchill will always be remembered for his charismatic words demanding the British keep an eye on the NAZI's in the 1930's and for his determination that the British would defeat the Germans and push the invaders all the way back to Berlin.  Churchill was not without his faults, an imperialist who wasn't a fan of the idea of a multicultural Britain he was certainly a man of his time.  No one has ever been as BIG as Churchill politically, no one will ever bring across the same feeling of loyalty amongst the British people and no one will ever command as much respect as the man who demanded every Briton to stand up and be counted and rallied the people of the nation to their finest hour.

Clement Attlee Labour

Finest Hour: Formation of the National Health Service
Greatest Honour: Buried at Westminster Abbey
Summary: After serving as Churchill's deputy in the war Attlee won a landslide in 1945 and oversaw the birth of Britain's socialist Economy and the end of the British Empire.  A calm and unassuming man Attlee was popular for his consensual style and he laid the groundwork of how Britain would work for 30 years.  It was during the Attlee years that Britain really ramped up her Welfare state, a move incredibly popular at the time.  Attlee regularly tops polls for Labour Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom and led Britain well through a socialist revolution.

Margaret Thatcher Conservative

Finest Hour: Facing down the miners
Greatest honour: HM the Queen in attendance at her funeral
Summary: No one person has commanded such divided opinion in the history of our country more than Maggie.  The 'Iron Lady' overcame the odds to lead a major political party despite being a woman (still an issue back then) and went one more by getting the keys to Number 10 in 1979.  Maggie had an agenda and was ruthless and efficient in carrying it out, many people rebelled against her radical agenda but she pushed on, determined that she was building a better tomorrow.

Whether we agree with the actions of Mrs T she was an emblem of change and maybe our strongest ever leader on the global stage facing down the rest of the EC and helping bring an end to the Cold War.  Scarlet suspects that Maggie will be remembered as the leader who brought Britain (sometimes kicking and screaming) back to the big stage.