1933 - English Conservative politician,
member of Parliament from 1966 (for Henley
from 1974), and secretary of state for the
environment from 1990. He was minister of the
Environment 1979- 83, when he succeeded John
Nott as minister of Defence Jan 1983 but
resigned Jan 1986 over the Westland affair
and was then seen as a major rival to
Margaret Thatcher. In Nov 1990, Heseltine's
challenge to Thatcher's leadership of the
Conservative Party brought about her
resignation, though he lost the leadership
election to John Major.