London will stage its biggest political funeral in almost half a century on Wednesday when Britain's governing elite join the Queen and global leaders to bid farewell to former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, better known as the "Iron Lady".
In an event comparable to that of Winston Churchill's funeral in 1965, Thatcher's coffin will be carried atop a horse-drawn gun carriage through streets lined with admirers, and some detractors, from parliament to the city's most famous cathedral.
The bells of London's iconic Big Ben clock tower will fall silent for the first time since Churchill's funeral and more than 700 men and women from Britain's armed forces will honor a woman who led them to victory in the 1982 Falklands War as foreign dignitaries from around 170 nations look on.
Thatcher, who ruled Britain from 1979 to 1990, died on April 8 after suffering a stroke.
In life, the woman the Soviets christened the "Iron Lady" divided the British public with her free-market policies which sometimes wrought wrenching change on communities. In death it is no different.
Polls have shown that many are unhappy that the estimated 10-million ($15 million) pound bill for the funeral is being picked up by the taxpayer, while some left-wing lawmakers say the pomp-filled funeral is excessive and amounts to a party political advert for her ruling Conservative party.
But her admirers, of which there are many in her party and in southern England, argue that her historical profile merits such a funeral. She was the country's first and only woman premier, was Britain's longest-serving prime minister of the 20th century, and won three general elections.
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