David Trimble

The Right Honourable David Trimble (born on October 15, 1944 in Belfast) is a Northern Ireland politician, and former leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), former First Minister of Northern Ireland. He shared the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize with John Hume of the Social Democratic and Labour Party.

Related Topics:
October 15 - 1944 - Belfast - Northern Ireland - Ulster Unionist Party - First Minister of Northern Ireland - 1998 - Nobel Peace Prize - John Hume - Social Democratic and Labour Party

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

He was educated in Bangor, County Down and at Queen's University, Belfast. He qualified as a barrister and began to lecture in law in 1968. In 1974 he acted as legal adviser to the Ulster Workers' Council during the paramilitary-controlled Ulster Workers' Strike, during which loyalist paramilitaries intimidated thousands of utility workers. He was elected to the Northern Ireland Convention in 1975 as a Vanguard Progressive Unionist Party member for South Belfast and for a time he served as the party's joint-deputy leader, along with the Ulster Defence Association's Glen (or Glenn) Barr. The party had been established by William Craig to oppose sharing power with Catholics and prevent closer ties with the Republic of Ireland. He also contributed to the Ulster Volunteer Force magazine Combat at this time.

Related Topics:
Bangor - County Down - Queen's University, Belfast - 1968 - Loyalist - Paramilitaries - 1975 - Vanguard Progressive Unionist Party - South Belfast - Ulster Defence Association - William Craig - Catholics - Republic of Ireland - Ulster Volunteer Force

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When the Vanguard party collapsed he joined the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) in 1978 and was elected one of the four party secretaries. He was elected to Westminster in a by-election in Upper Bann in 1990. In 1995 Trimble was unexpectedly elected leader of the UUP, defeating the front-runner John Taylor. His election as party leader came in the aftermath of his leading role in the facilitating of a controversial Orange Order (of which Trimble is a member) march, amidst civil disorder, down a road near a Catholic neighbourhood in Portadown, County Armagh. Trimble and Ian Paisley walked down the road hand-in-hand after the residents of a nearby public housing estate illegally blocking the road had been physically removed by the Royal Ulster Constabulary.

Related Topics:
1978 - Upper Bann - 1990 - 1995 - John Taylor - Orange Order - Portadown - County Armagh - Ian Paisley - Royal Ulster Constabulary

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

He opposed the role of the United States senator Senator George Mitchell as chairman of the multi-party talks which resulted in the Belfast Agreement of 1998. Trimble was seen as instrumental in getting his party to accept the accord. Later in 1998 Trimble and John Hume were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in Northern Ireland. Trimble was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly and subsequently became First Minister of Northern Ireland. However arguments over the extent of Provisional IRA decommissioning meant that Trimble's tenure as First Minister was repeatedly interrupted. In particular:

Related Topics:
United States - Senator - Senator George Mitchell - Belfast Agreement - 1998 - John Hume - Nobel Peace Prize - Northern Ireland Assembly - First Minister of Northern Ireland - Provisional IRA

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• The office of First Minister was suspended from the 11 February - 30 May 2000.
• Trimble resigned as First Minister on 1 July 2001 but was re-elected on 5 November of the same year.
• The Assembly has been suspended since 14 October 2002 after accusations of an IRA spy ring being operated in the Northern Ireland assembly.

At the general elections of 2005, David Trimble failed in his bid for re-election to Parliament in Westminster when he was defeated by the Democratic Unionist Party's David Simpson. The Ulster Unionist Party retained only one seat in Parliament (out of 18 in Northern Ireland) after the 2005 General Election, and David Trimble resigned as leader of the party on May 7, 2005.

Related Topics:
Democratic Unionist Party - David Simpson

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 
David Trimble: External links ►