Brian Maginess
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Rt. Hon. William Brian Maginness, QC. | |
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Minister for Labour of
Northern Ireland |
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| In office 2nd August 1945 – 12th April 1949 |
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| In office 4th November 1949 – 26th October 1953 |
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Minister of Finance for
Northern Ireland |
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| In office 13th February 1953 – 20th April 1956 |
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Attorney General of
Northern Ireland |
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| In office 14th April 1956 – 20th March 1964 |
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Member of the
Northern Ireland House of Commons |
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| In office 1938 – 1964 |
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| Constituency | Iveagh |
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| Born | 10 July 1901 |
| Died | 16 April 1967 |
| Political party | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Religion | Christian - Anglican |
The Rt. Hon. William Brian Maginess, QC (10 July 1901 - 16 April 1967) was a member of the Government of Northern Ireland, who was widely seen as a possible successor to Lord Brookeborough as Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
Born in 1901, the son of a Lisburn solicitor, he was educated at The Wallace High School and Trinity College Dublin[1] from where he graduated with a Law degree (LLD), and was called to the Northern Irish bar in 1923.
Having served in the Royal Corps of Artillery during the Second World War he entered the Parliament of Northern Ireland in 1938 when he won the Lisburn centered seat of Iveagh. He entered the Cabinet of Sir Basil Brooke in 1945 when he became Minister of Labour and his stints as the Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of Finance (de facto Deputy Prime Minister) left him favorite to succeed Brooke as Prime Minister of Northern Ireland.
In the early 1950's however Maginess became a hate figure for the Orange Institution when he banned marches through nationalist areas in Counties Down and Londonderry. Brooke, whilst sympathetic to his decisions, was forced to sacrifice Maginess to preserve progressive legislation, and he was demoted to the non Cabinet post of Attorney General in April 1956.
In December 1959 Ian Paisley led a demonstration of Ulster Protestant Action members to Stormont Castle to protest at Brooke's refusal to dismiss Maginess and Sir Clarence Graham for making speeches at an Ulster Young Unionist Council event supporting Catholic membership of the Ulster Unionist Party.
Having been appointed a King's Counsel in 1946 he was appointed a County Court Judge in 1964 when he resigned from Parliament. He died three years later in Belfast's Royal Victoria Hospital. A plaque in his memorial is cited inside the Church of Ireland parish church in Hillsborough, the Church where he is buried[2].
[edit] Sources
- 'The Ulster Unionist Party, 1882-1973 : its development and organisation' (1973), J F Harbinson
- 'Paisley' (1985), Moloney & Pollak
- 'Brian Maginess and the Limits of Liberal Unionism', Irish Review, 25, 1999-2000, Henry Patterson
- 'Ireland since 1939' (2006), Henry Patterson
| Parliament of Northern Ireland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by John Charles Wilson |
Member of Parliament for Iveagh 1938 - 1964 |
Succeeded by Samuel Magowan |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by William Grant |
Minister of Labour 1945 - 49 |
Succeeded by Harry Midgley |
| Preceded by John Edmond Warnock |
Minister of Home Affairs 1946 |
Succeeded by John Edmond Warnock |
| Preceded by Roland Nugent |
Minister of Commerce and Production 1949 |
Succeeded by William McCleery |
| Preceded by John Edmond Warnock |
Minister of Home Affairs 1949 - 53 |
Succeeded by George Boyle Hanna |
| Preceded by John Maynard Sinclair |
Minister of Finance 1953 - 56 |
Succeeded by George Boyle Hanna |
| Preceded by John Edmond Warnock |
Attorney General for Northern Ireland 1956 - 64 |
Succeeded by Edward Warburton Jones |
