James Chichester-Clark
Encyclopedia
James Dawson Chichester-Clark, Baron Moyola, PC
, DL
(12 February 1923 – 17 May 2002) was the penultimate Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
and eighth leader of the Ulster Unionist Party
between 1969 and March 1971. He was Member of the Northern Ireland Parliament for South Londonderry
for 12 years beginning at the by-election to replace his grandmother Dehra Parker
in 1960. He stopped being an MP when the Stormont Parliament was prorogued by the British Government.
Chichester-Clark's election as UUP Leader resulted from the sudden resignation of Terence O'Neill
after the ambiguous result of the preceding general election
. His term in office was dominated by both internal unionist
struggles, seeing the political emergence of Ian Paisley
from the right and Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
from the left, and an emergent nationalist
resurgence. In March 1971, with his health suffering under the strain of the growing political strife, he resigned - having failed to secure extra military resources from the British Government.
, Castledawson
, County Londonderry
, his family's ancestral home. He was the eldest of three children of James J. Lenox-Conyngham Clark
and Marion Caroline Dehra, née Chichester. His brother was Robin Chichester-Clark
and his sister, Penelope Hobhouse
, the garden writer and historian.
In 1924 James Clark, Snr. changed the family name to Chichester-Clark by deed poll, thus preventing the old ascendancy name Chichester (his wife's maiden name) from dying out. On his mother's side the family are descended from the Donegall Chichesters
and were the heirs of the Dawsons of Castledawson
, who had originally held Moyola Park.
Educated, against his own wishes, at Selwyn House, Broadstairs
, and then Eton
, Chichester-Clark left school and entered adulthood in the midst of the Second World War. On joining the Irish Guards
, the regiment of his grandfather, in Omagh
he began his year-long training before receiving his commission.
He married widow Moyra Haughton (née Morris) in 1959. Lady Moyola's first husband, Capt. Thomas Haughton from Cullybackey
(he was part of the linen firm of Frazer & Haughton), had been killed in the Nutts Corner air crash - in which she, whilst pregnant, was seriously injured and suffered a broken neck. Lord and Lady Moyola had two daughters (Tara and Fiona), in addition to Lady Moyola's son, Michael, from her previous marriage.
-Albano
road. His company were all but wiped out, and he spent most of his war in hospital recovering from injuries, the effects of which stayed with him throughout his later life. Following the war his military career took him from the dull duties of the post-war occupation of Germany, to Canada
as aide-de-camp
to Harold Alexander while Governor General of Canada
. The popularity and supreme competence of his senior officer made this uneventful two-year period of Chichester-Clark’s life the most remarkable element of his pre-parliamentary career. On returning from Canada, Chichester-Clark continued in the army for several years, refusing promotion to seniority before retiring a major in 1960.
, since 1933. As Dehra Chichester, she had been an MP for the county of Londonderry until 1929 when she stood down for a first time. Chichester-Clark's father, replaced her in 1929 when the county was split, but he suddenly died in 1933. Dehra, by then remarried, willingly returned to Northern Ireland from England, and won the ensuing by-election.
He retained the seat for the remainder of the Parliament's existence, and so the South Londonderry area was represented by three generations of the same family for the entire period of the Northern Ireland House of Commons. Between 1929 and the last election in 1969, the family was challenged for the seat on only two occasions, the second being in 1969, when future Westminster MP Bernadette Devlin stood, attracting 39% of the vote
Chichester-Clark made his maiden speech
on 8 February 1961 during the Queen’s speech debate.
For the remainder of Lord Brookeborough's
Premiership, Chichester-Clark remained on the back benches. It was not until 1963, when Terence O'Neill
became Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
, that Chichester-Clark was appointed assistant whip, and a month later when Bill Craig was promoted to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Chichester-Clark took over as Government Chief Whip. Accounts of the period are that Chichester-Clark enjoyed the Whip’s office more than any other he was to subsequently hold in politics. This despite including references to anti O’Neill MP and future DUP
Westminster MP, Johnny McQuade, and the occasional “good row”. From the outset, O’Neill took the unusual decision to allow Chichester-Clark to attend and speak at all cabinet meetings while Chief Whip. Proving a competent parliamentary party administrator, O’Neill added Leader of the House of Commons to Chichester-Clark’s duties in October 1966, a promotion that made him a full member of the Cabinet. He was also sworn into the Privy Council of Northern Ireland
in 1966.
In 1967, O'Neill sacked his Minister of Agriculture, Harry West
, for ministerial impropriety, and Chichester-Clark was appointed in his place, a position he retained for two quiet years. On 23 April 1969, he resigned from the Cabinet one day prior to a crucial Parliamentary Party meeting, claiming that he disagreed with the Prime Minister's decision to grant universal suffrage in local government elections at that time. He stated that he disagreed not with the principle of one man one vote but with the timing of the decision, having the previous day expressed doubts over the expediency of the measure in Cabinet. It has since been suggested that his resignation was in order to accelerate O'Neill's own resignation, and to improve his own position in the jostling to succeed him.
O'Neill "finally walked away" five days later on the 28 April 1969. In order to beat his only serious rival, Brian Faulkner
, Chichester-Clark needed the backing of O'Neill-ite MPs elected at the Northern Ireland general election, 1969
, to which end he attended a tea party in O'Neill's honour only days after he had caused his resignation.
by one vote on 1 May 1969, with his predecessor using his casting vote in the tied election for his distant cousin because "Faulkner had been stabbing him in the back for a lot longer". Although Faulkner believed, until his death, that he had been the victim of an upper-class conspiracy to deny him the premiership, he became a high profile and loyal member of Chichester-Clark's cabinet.
His premiership was punctuated by the civil unrest that erupted after August 1969. He suffered from the effects of the Hunt Committee report, which recommended the disbandment of the Ulster Special Constabulary
, which his Government accepted to the consternation of many Unionists.
In April 1970 his predecessor and another Unionist MP resigned their seats in the NI House of Commons. The by-election campaigns were punctuated by major liberal speeches by senior government figures like Brian Faulkner
, Jack Andrews
and the Prime Minister himself. Ian Paisley
's Protestant Unionist Party
, however, took both seats in the House of Commons. Later the same month the O'Neill-ite group, the New Ulster Movement
, became the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
, and his party began passing votes of no confidence in him.
As the civil unrest grew, the British Government, particularly the Home Secretary
, James Callaghan
, became increasingly involved in Northern Ireland's affairs, forcing Chichester-Clark's hand on many issues. These included the disbanding of the 'B' Specials and, importantly, the handing over of operational control of the security forces to the Army
General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland.
, who offered an extra 1,300 troops, and resisted what he saw was an attempt by Chichester-Clark to gain political control over them. Chichester-Clark resigned on 20 March. In his resignation statement he stated:
He agreed to tone down his statement so as to smooth the way for his successor. The Unionist Party internal newspaper, the Ulster Times in April 1971 carried a "respectful political obituary", which "condemned those who attacked Catholics in their homes":
On the 23 March 1971, Brian Faulkner
was elected UUP leader
in a vote by Unionist MP's, defeating William Craig by twenty-six votes to four. He was appointed Prime Minister the same day.
as Baron Moyola, of Castledawson in the County of Londonderry; his title taken from the name of his family's estate. He endorsed the Belfast Agreement
in the 1998 referendum
. Lord Moyola died on 17 May 2002 at the age of 79, he was the last surviving Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
.
Lord Moyola remained quiet about his political career in his retirement. Lady Moyola, however, has said that her husband did enjoy the time - contrary to popular opinion - and that he thought of life as an MP as akin to that of an animal welfare officer.
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...
, DL
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
(12 February 1923 – 17 May 2002) was the penultimate Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland was the de facto head of the Government of Northern Ireland. No such office was provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920. However the Lord Lieutenant, as with Governors-General in other Westminster Systems such as in Canada, chose to appoint someone...
and eighth leader of the Ulster Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
between 1969 and March 1971. He was Member of the Northern Ireland Parliament for South Londonderry
South Londonderry (Northern Ireland Parliament constituency)
The South Londonderry constituency for the Parliament of Northern Ireland was created in 1929 and continued until the abolition of the Parliament in 1973...
for 12 years beginning at the by-election to replace his grandmother Dehra Parker
Dehra Parker
Dame Dehra S. Parker, GBE, PC was the longest serving woman MP in the Northern Ireland House of Commons.-Family life:...
in 1960. He stopped being an MP when the Stormont Parliament was prorogued by the British Government.
Chichester-Clark's election as UUP Leader resulted from the sudden resignation of Terence O'Neill
Terence O'Neill
Terence Marne O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of the Maine, PC was the fourth Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and leader of the Ulster Unionist Party...
after the ambiguous result of the preceding general election
Northern Ireland general election, 1969
-References:*...
. His term in office was dominated by both internal unionist
Unionism in Ireland
Unionism in Ireland is an ideology that favours the continuation of some form of political union between the islands of Ireland and Great Britain...
struggles, seeing the political emergence of Ian Paisley
Ian Paisley
Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, PC is a politician and church minister in Northern Ireland. As the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party , he and Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness were elected First Minister and deputy First Minister respectively on 8 May 2007.In addition to co-founding...
from the right and Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland is a liberal and nonsectarian political party in Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's fifth-largest party overall, with eight seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly and one in the House of Commons....
from the left, and an emergent nationalist
Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
resurgence. In March 1971, with his health suffering under the strain of the growing political strife, he resigned - having failed to secure extra military resources from the British Government.
Family background and early life
Lord Moyola was born as James Dawson Clark at Moyola ParkMoyola Park
Moyola Park Golf Club is an 18-hole championship golf course set in 130 acres of mature wooded parkland in the Shanemullagh Estate at Castledawson, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1977 by James Chichester-Clark and his wife on family land at Moyola Park...
, Castledawson
Castledawson
Castledawson is a village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is mostly within the townland of Shanemullagh , about four miles from the north-western shore of Lough Neagh, and close to the market town of Magherafelt...
, County Londonderry
County Londonderry
The place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...
, his family's ancestral home. He was the eldest of three children of James J. Lenox-Conyngham Clark
James Lenox-Conyngham Chichester-Clark
James Jackson Lenox-Conyngham Chichester-Clark was a Member of Parliament of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland for South Londonderry from 1929 until his death. His son James Chichester-Clark later became Prime Minister of Northern Ireland...
and Marion Caroline Dehra, née Chichester. His brother was Robin Chichester-Clark
Robin Chichester-Clark
Sir Robert Chichester-Clark was member of parliament for Londonderry in the British House of Commons from 1955 until February 1974, and was the only member representing Northern Ireland to be a British government minister since the Government of Ireland Act 1920.-Early life:Chichester-Clark was...
and his sister, Penelope Hobhouse
Penelope Hobhouse
Penelope Hobhouse is a garden writer, designer, lecturer and television presenter.-Background:...
, the garden writer and historian.
In 1924 James Clark, Snr. changed the family name to Chichester-Clark by deed poll, thus preventing the old ascendancy name Chichester (his wife's maiden name) from dying out. On his mother's side the family are descended from the Donegall Chichesters
Marquess of Donegall
Marquess of Donegall is a title in the Peerage of Ireland held by the head of the Chichester family, originally from Devon, England. Sir John Chichester sat as a Member of Parliament and was High Sheriff of Devon in 1557. One of his sons, Sir Arthur Chichester, was Lord Deputy of Ireland from 1604...
and were the heirs of the Dawsons of Castledawson
Castledawson
Castledawson is a village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is mostly within the townland of Shanemullagh , about four miles from the north-western shore of Lough Neagh, and close to the market town of Magherafelt...
, who had originally held Moyola Park.
Educated, against his own wishes, at Selwyn House, Broadstairs
Broadstairs
Broadstairs is a coastal town on the Isle of Thanet in the Thanet district of east Kent, England, about south-east of London. It is part of the civil parish of Broadstairs and St Peter's, which includes St. Peter's and had a population in 2001 of about 24,000. Situated between Margate and...
, and then Eton
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
, Chichester-Clark left school and entered adulthood in the midst of the Second World War. On joining the Irish Guards
Irish Guards
The Irish Guards , part of the Guards Division, is a Foot Guards regiment of the British Army.Along with the Royal Irish Regiment, it is one of the two Irish regiments remaining in the British Army. The Irish Guards recruit in Northern Ireland and the Irish neighbourhoods of major British cities...
, the regiment of his grandfather, in Omagh
Omagh
Omagh is the county town of County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is situated where the rivers Drumragh and Camowen meet to form the Strule. The town, which is the largest in the county, had a population of 19,910 at the 2001 Census. Omagh also contains the headquarters of Omagh District Council and...
he began his year-long training before receiving his commission.
He married widow Moyra Haughton (née Morris) in 1959. Lady Moyola's first husband, Capt. Thomas Haughton from Cullybackey
Cullybackey
Cullybackey or Cullybacky is a village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It lies 4 miles north of Ballymena, on the banks of the River Maine, and is within the Borough of Ballymena. It had a population of 2,405 people in the 2001 Census....
(he was part of the linen firm of Frazer & Haughton), had been killed in the Nutts Corner air crash - in which she, whilst pregnant, was seriously injured and suffered a broken neck. Lord and Lady Moyola had two daughters (Tara and Fiona), in addition to Lady Moyola's son, Michael, from her previous marriage.
Military career
Chichester-Clark was an officer in the Irish Guards and participated in the Anzio landings; however, only briefly. He was injured on 23 Feb 44 by an 88m shell as he and his Platoon Sergeant took their first look at the ground in the 'gullies' to the west of the AnzioAnzio
Anzio is a city and comune on the coast of the Lazio region of Italy, about south of Rome.Well known for its seaside harbour setting, it is a fishing port and a departure point for ferries and hydroplanes to the Pontine Islands of Ponza, Palmarola and Ventotene...
-Albano
Albano
Albano may refer to:geography*Albano di Lucania, comune in the province of Potenza, Italy*Albano Laziale, comune in the province of Rome, Italy*Lake Albano, lake in Italy*Albano Sant'Alessandro, comune in the province of Bergamo, Italy...
road. His company were all but wiped out, and he spent most of his war in hospital recovering from injuries, the effects of which stayed with him throughout his later life. Following the war his military career took him from the dull duties of the post-war occupation of Germany, to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
as aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to Harold Alexander while Governor General of Canada
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
. The popularity and supreme competence of his senior officer made this uneventful two-year period of Chichester-Clark’s life the most remarkable element of his pre-parliamentary career. On returning from Canada, Chichester-Clark continued in the army for several years, refusing promotion to seniority before retiring a major in 1960.
Political life
In an uncontested by-election in 1960, he took over the South Londonderry seat in the Northern Ireland Parliament held by his grandmother, Dame Dehra ParkerDehra Parker
Dame Dehra S. Parker, GBE, PC was the longest serving woman MP in the Northern Ireland House of Commons.-Family life:...
, since 1933. As Dehra Chichester, she had been an MP for the county of Londonderry until 1929 when she stood down for a first time. Chichester-Clark's father, replaced her in 1929 when the county was split, but he suddenly died in 1933. Dehra, by then remarried, willingly returned to Northern Ireland from England, and won the ensuing by-election.
He retained the seat for the remainder of the Parliament's existence, and so the South Londonderry area was represented by three generations of the same family for the entire period of the Northern Ireland House of Commons. Between 1929 and the last election in 1969, the family was challenged for the seat on only two occasions, the second being in 1969, when future Westminster MP Bernadette Devlin stood, attracting 39% of the vote
Chichester-Clark made his maiden speech
Maiden speech
A maiden speech is the first speech given by a newly elected or appointed member of a legislature or parliament.Traditions surrounding maiden speeches vary from country to country...
on 8 February 1961 during the Queen’s speech debate.
Minister
Basil Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough
Basil Stanlake Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough, Bt, KG, CBE, MC, PC, HML was an Ulster Unionist politician who became the third Prime Minister of Northern Ireland in 1943 and held office until 1963....
Premiership, Chichester-Clark remained on the back benches. It was not until 1963, when Terence O'Neill
Terence O'Neill
Terence Marne O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of the Maine, PC was the fourth Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and leader of the Ulster Unionist Party...
became Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland was the de facto head of the Government of Northern Ireland. No such office was provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920. However the Lord Lieutenant, as with Governors-General in other Westminster Systems such as in Canada, chose to appoint someone...
, that Chichester-Clark was appointed assistant whip, and a month later when Bill Craig was promoted to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Chichester-Clark took over as Government Chief Whip. Accounts of the period are that Chichester-Clark enjoyed the Whip’s office more than any other he was to subsequently hold in politics. This despite including references to anti O’Neill MP and future DUP
Democratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
Westminster MP, Johnny McQuade, and the occasional “good row”. From the outset, O’Neill took the unusual decision to allow Chichester-Clark to attend and speak at all cabinet meetings while Chief Whip. Proving a competent parliamentary party administrator, O’Neill added Leader of the House of Commons to Chichester-Clark’s duties in October 1966, a promotion that made him a full member of the Cabinet. He was also sworn into the Privy Council of Northern Ireland
Privy Council of Northern Ireland
The Privy Council of Northern Ireland was a formal body of advisors to the sovereign and was a vehicle for the monarch's prerogative powers in Northern Ireland. It was modelled on the Privy Council of the United Kingdom....
in 1966.
In 1967, O'Neill sacked his Minister of Agriculture, Harry West
Harry West
Henry William West was a politician in Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party from 1974 until 1979.West was born in County Fermanagh and educated at Portora Royal School in Enniskillen...
, for ministerial impropriety, and Chichester-Clark was appointed in his place, a position he retained for two quiet years. On 23 April 1969, he resigned from the Cabinet one day prior to a crucial Parliamentary Party meeting, claiming that he disagreed with the Prime Minister's decision to grant universal suffrage in local government elections at that time. He stated that he disagreed not with the principle of one man one vote but with the timing of the decision, having the previous day expressed doubts over the expediency of the measure in Cabinet. It has since been suggested that his resignation was in order to accelerate O'Neill's own resignation, and to improve his own position in the jostling to succeed him.
O'Neill "finally walked away" five days later on the 28 April 1969. In order to beat his only serious rival, Brian Faulkner
Brian Faulkner
Arthur Brian Deane Faulkner, Baron Faulkner of Downpatrick, PC was the sixth and last Prime Minister of Northern Ireland from March 1971 until his resignation in March 1972...
, Chichester-Clark needed the backing of O'Neill-ite MPs elected at the Northern Ireland general election, 1969
Northern Ireland general election, 1969
-References:*...
, to which end he attended a tea party in O'Neill's honour only days after he had caused his resignation.
Prime Minister
He beat Faulkner in the Ulster Unionist Party leadership election, 1969Ulster Unionist Party leadership election, 1969
The 1969 Ulster Unionist Party leadership election was the first contested election in the Party's sixty-four year history.In 1963 Terence O'Neill had succeeded Lord Brookeborough as Party Leader and Prime Minister of Northern Ireland by emerging rather than by winning a ballot, despite having...
by one vote on 1 May 1969, with his predecessor using his casting vote in the tied election for his distant cousin because "Faulkner had been stabbing him in the back for a lot longer". Although Faulkner believed, until his death, that he had been the victim of an upper-class conspiracy to deny him the premiership, he became a high profile and loyal member of Chichester-Clark's cabinet.
His premiership was punctuated by the civil unrest that erupted after August 1969. He suffered from the effects of the Hunt Committee report, which recommended the disbandment of the Ulster Special Constabulary
Ulster Special Constabulary
The Ulster Special Constabulary was a reserve police force in Northern Ireland. It was set up in October 1920, shortly before the founding of Northern Ireland. It was an armed corps, organised partially on military lines and called out in times of emergency, such as war or insurgency...
, which his Government accepted to the consternation of many Unionists.
In April 1970 his predecessor and another Unionist MP resigned their seats in the NI House of Commons. The by-election campaigns were punctuated by major liberal speeches by senior government figures like Brian Faulkner
Brian Faulkner
Arthur Brian Deane Faulkner, Baron Faulkner of Downpatrick, PC was the sixth and last Prime Minister of Northern Ireland from March 1971 until his resignation in March 1972...
, Jack Andrews
Jack Andrews
Sir John Lawson Ormrod Andrews KBE, DL was a member of both the Northern Ireland House of Commons and the Senate of Northern Ireland....
and the Prime Minister himself. Ian Paisley
Ian Paisley
Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, PC is a politician and church minister in Northern Ireland. As the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party , he and Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness were elected First Minister and deputy First Minister respectively on 8 May 2007.In addition to co-founding...
's Protestant Unionist Party
Protestant Unionist Party
The Protestant Unionist Party was a unionist political party operating in Northern Ireland from 1966 to 1971. It was set up by Ian Paisley, and was the forerunner of the modern Democratic Unionist Party and emerged from the Ulster Protestant Action movement.The UPA had two councillors elected,...
, however, took both seats in the House of Commons. Later the same month the O'Neill-ite group, the New Ulster Movement
New Ulster Movement
The New Ulster Movement was a political pressure group in Northern Ireland.The organisation was established in early 1969 under the Chairmanship of Brian Walker, and soon had a membership of around 8,000 people...
, became the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland is a liberal and nonsectarian political party in Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's fifth-largest party overall, with eight seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly and one in the House of Commons....
, and his party began passing votes of no confidence in him.
As the civil unrest grew, the British Government, particularly the Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
, James Callaghan
James Callaghan
Leonard James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff, KG, PC , was a British Labour politician, who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1976 to 1980...
, became increasingly involved in Northern Ireland's affairs, forcing Chichester-Clark's hand on many issues. These included the disbanding of the 'B' Specials and, importantly, the handing over of operational control of the security forces to the Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland.
Resignation and beyond
On 9 March 1971 the IRA lured three off-duty soldiers from a pub in Belfast to a lane way outside the city, where they killed them. Chichester-Clark flew to London on the 18 March 1971 to request a new security initiative from the new British Prime Minister Edward HeathEdward Heath
Sir Edward Richard George "Ted" Heath, KG, MBE, PC was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and as Leader of the Conservative Party ....
, who offered an extra 1,300 troops, and resisted what he saw was an attempt by Chichester-Clark to gain political control over them. Chichester-Clark resigned on 20 March. In his resignation statement he stated:
-
- I have decided to resign because I can see no other way of bringing home to all concerned the realities of the present constitutional, political and security situation... It is apparent that public and parliamentary opinion in Northern Ireland looks to the Northern Ireland government for measures which can bring the current IRA campaign swiftly to an end. I have expressed to British Ministers the full force of this opinion and have pressed upon them my view that some further initiative is required. While they have agreed to take any feasible steps open to them to intensify the effort against the IRA, it remains the professional military view - and one which I indeed have often expressed myself - that it would be misleading the Northern Ireland community to suggest that we are faced with anything but a long haul, and that such initiatives as can be taken are unlikely to effect a radical improvement in the short term...
He agreed to tone down his statement so as to smooth the way for his successor. The Unionist Party internal newspaper, the Ulster Times in April 1971 carried a "respectful political obituary", which "condemned those who attacked Catholics in their homes":
On the 23 March 1971, Brian Faulkner
Brian Faulkner
Arthur Brian Deane Faulkner, Baron Faulkner of Downpatrick, PC was the sixth and last Prime Minister of Northern Ireland from March 1971 until his resignation in March 1972...
was elected UUP leader
Ulster Unionist Party leadership election, 1971
The Ulster Unionist Party leadership election of 1971 was caused by the resignation of James Chichester-Clark, after he had failed to persuade the British Government to provide his government with more resources to quell the growing civil unrest.-Candidates:...
in a vote by Unionist MP's, defeating William Craig by twenty-six votes to four. He was appointed Prime Minister the same day.
Peerage and later life
In July 1971 Chichester-Clark was created a life peerLife peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
as Baron Moyola, of Castledawson in the County of Londonderry; his title taken from the name of his family's estate. He endorsed the Belfast Agreement
Belfast Agreement
The Good Friday Agreement or Belfast Agreement , sometimes called the Stormont Agreement, was a major political development in the Northern Ireland peace process...
in the 1998 referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
. Lord Moyola died on 17 May 2002 at the age of 79, he was the last surviving Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland was the de facto head of the Government of Northern Ireland. No such office was provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920. However the Lord Lieutenant, as with Governors-General in other Westminster Systems such as in Canada, chose to appoint someone...
.
Lord Moyola remained quiet about his political career in his retirement. Lady Moyola, however, has said that her husband did enjoy the time - contrary to popular opinion - and that he thought of life as an MP as akin to that of an animal welfare officer.