'Iron Lady' dead at 87

U.K. bishops mourn loss of Margaret Thatcher

Pope Benedict XVI greets former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 2009. CNS photo / L'Osservatore Romano via Reuters.

Catholic News Agency reports that the United Kingdom's Catholic bishops voiced grief and prayed for the soul of former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, who died after a stroke.

"It was with sadness that we heard the news of the death of Baroness Thatcher, who served this country for many years both as a Member of Parliament and as Prime Minister," said Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster on behalf of the local bishops' conference.

Thatcher died the morning of April 8 at the age of 87. She was the first female prime minister of the U.K., and the longest-serving in the 20th century. From 1979 to 1990 she served in the role for the Conservative Party.

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