Ian Paisley (6 April 1926 – 12 September 2014) was First Minister of Northern Ireland with Martin McGuinness from 8 May 2007 to 5 June 2008, succeeding David Trimble and preceding Peter Robinson. Paisley, the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party from 1971 to 2008, was the de facto leader of the Ulster unionist cause during The Troubles, and he was known for his anti-Irish and anti-Catholic rhetoric.
Biography[]
Ian Paisley in 2007
Ian Paisley was born in Armagh, County Armagh, Northern Ireland on 6 April 1926 to a Presbyterian Ulster Scots family. In 1951, he became a Protestant minister, and he became known for his anti-Catholic views, his anti-homosexuality, and his religious fundamentalism. After the start of a peaceful civil rights campaign in 1964, Paisley became a hero among Ulster unionist paramilitaries, and he was responsible for several Molotov cocktail attacks against Irish Catholic homes, schools, and businesses in 1966. In 1971, Paisley and Desmond Boal founded the Democratic Unionist Party, and he founded the Ulster Resistance terrorist group in 1986. He was a vocal critic of the British government's sharing of power over Northern Ireland with Ireland, and he led the "Ulster Says No" campaign against the Irish government. In 1986, he was thrown out of his seat in the European Parliament for continuously interrupting British prime minister Margaret Thatcher's speech. In 1998, his campaign against the Good Friday Agreement failed, and he retired as an MEP in 2004. From 2007 to 2008, he briefly served as First Minister, and he stood down in favor of Peter Robinson. Paisley died in Belfast on 12 September 2014 at the age of 88.