William Craig
Encyclopedia
William "Bill" Craig was a Northern Irish
politician
best known for forming the Unionist Vanguard movement.
, Craig was educated at Royal School Dungannon
, Larne Grammar School
and Queen's University Belfast.
After serving in the Royal Air Force
(as a Lancaster bomber rear gunner) during World War II
he became a solicitor
.
and led the Ulster Young Unionist Council. He was elected to the Stormont Parliament
in a by-election
in 1960 for Larne, and became a Minister in 1963. He held several portfolios under Terence O'Neill
, eventually as Minister for Home Affairs. His most renowned action while in this office was to ban the march of Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
on 5 October 1968. He also accused the civil rights
movement of being a political front for the IRA.
On 11 December 1968 O'Neill dismissed Craig when he suspected Craig was a supporter of an independent Northern Ireland. Craig began to build a powerbase for himself within unionism, becoming head of the Ulster Loyalist Association. The official Unionist Party withdrew the whip from him in May 1970 and Craig then began to prepare his own political party. The Ulster Vanguard movement was formed on 9 February 1972 under Craig's leadership (the Deputy Leaders were the Reverend Martin Smyth
and Captain Austin Ardill
).
Ulster Vanguard advocated a semi-independent Northern Ireland. Vanguard held a large rally on 18 March 1972 in Belfast's Ormeau Park
at which Craig said "We must build up the dossiers on the men and women who are a menace to this country, because one day, ladies and gentlemen, if the politicians fail, it will be our duty to liquidate the enemy". Vanguard also staged a two-day strike in protest at the prorogation of the Stormont Parliament
. In April 1972 Vanguard issued a policy statement 'Ulster
- A Nation' which said that Northern Ireland might have to consider independence. In October he spoke at a meeting of the Conservative Monday Club
, a group of right-wing MPs at Westminster. He told them he could mobilise 80,000 men to oppose the British government, adding "We are prepared to come out and shoot and kill. I am prepared to come out and shoot and kill, let's put the bluff aside. I am prepared to kill, and those behind me will have my full support." Vanguard progressed in March 1973 into the Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party.
The Vanguard Unionists under Craig formed part of the United Ulster Unionist Council
which opposed the power-sharing Sunningdale Agreement
. Craig was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly
created under the Sunningdale Agreement
, and he won a seat in the UK Parliament
at the February 1974 election
for East Belfast
. However, in the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention
in the mid-1970s, Craig broke with the majority of his party to support voluntary power-sharing. The Vanguard Unionists fell apart, with one section forming the United Ulster Unionist Party
, and Craig lead the remains of Vanguard to rejoin the Ulster Unionist Party in 1978, but lost his seat in the 1979 election
.
Craig subsequently broke with the Ulster Unionists once more. When elections were held for the new Northern Ireland Assembly
in 1982, Craig revived the name Vanguard for his candidacy in East Belfast
. However, he failed to get elected. This marked the effective end of Craig's political career.
After a long period away from public life, he died on 25 April 2011. He had suffered a stroke the previous month.
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
best known for forming the Unionist Vanguard movement.
Early life
From Cookstown, County TyroneCookstown, County Tyrone
Cookstown is a town and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the fourth largest town in the county and had a population of nearly 11,000 people in the 2001 Census. It is one of the main towns in the area known as Mid-Ulster. It was founded around 1620 when the townlands in the area...
, Craig was educated at Royal School Dungannon
Royal School Dungannon
The Royal School is a school located in Dungannon, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It was one of a number of 'free schools' created by James I in 1608 to provide an education to the sons of local merchants and farmers during the plantation of Ulster. Originally setup in Mountjoy near Lough Neagh...
, Larne Grammar School
Larne Grammar School
Larne Grammar School is a co-education voluntary grammar school located in Larne, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Founded in 1886 by Sir Edward Coey and John Crawford, it has around 760 pupils and 50 teaching staff.-Past Headmasters:R.M Jones...
and Queen's University Belfast.
After serving in the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
(as a Lancaster bomber rear gunner) during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he became a solicitor
Solicitor
Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
.
Politics
He was active in the Ulster Unionist PartyUlster 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...
and led the Ulster Young Unionist Council. He was elected to the Stormont Parliament
Parliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
in a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
in 1960 for Larne, and became a Minister in 1963. He held several portfolios under 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...
, eventually as Minister for Home Affairs. His most renowned action while in this office was to ban the march of Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association was an organisation which campaigned for equal civil rights for the all the people in Northern Ireland during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
on 5 October 1968. He also accused the civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
movement of being a political front for the IRA.
On 11 December 1968 O'Neill dismissed Craig when he suspected Craig was a supporter of an independent Northern Ireland. Craig began to build a powerbase for himself within unionism, becoming head of the Ulster Loyalist Association. The official Unionist Party withdrew the whip from him in May 1970 and Craig then began to prepare his own political party. The Ulster Vanguard movement was formed on 9 February 1972 under Craig's leadership (the Deputy Leaders were the Reverend Martin Smyth
Martin Smyth
Reverend William Martin Smyth is a Northern Irish unionist politician, and was Ulster Unionist Party Member of Parliament for Belfast South from 1982-2005...
and Captain Austin Ardill
Austin Ardill
Captain Robert Austin Ardill MC was a former Northern Irish unionist politician.Ardill was born in Belfast and educated at Coleraine Academical Institution. He later worked as the managing director of a feedstuffs company...
).
Ulster Vanguard advocated a semi-independent Northern Ireland. Vanguard held a large rally on 18 March 1972 in Belfast's Ormeau Park
Ormeau Park
Ormeau Park is the oldest municipal park in Belfast, Northern Ireland, having been officially opened to the public in 1871. It is owned and run by Belfast City Council and is one of the largest and busiest parks in the city and contains a variety of horticulture, woodland, wildlife and sporting...
at which Craig said "We must build up the dossiers on the men and women who are a menace to this country, because one day, ladies and gentlemen, if the politicians fail, it will be our duty to liquidate the enemy". Vanguard also staged a two-day strike in protest at the prorogation of the Stormont Parliament
Parliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
. In April 1972 Vanguard issued a policy statement 'Ulster
Ulster
Ulster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
- A Nation' which said that Northern Ireland might have to consider independence. In October he spoke at a meeting of the Conservative Monday Club
Conservative Monday Club
The Conservative Monday Club is a British pressure group "on the right-wing" of the Conservative Party.-Overview:...
, a group of right-wing MPs at Westminster. He told them he could mobilise 80,000 men to oppose the British government, adding "We are prepared to come out and shoot and kill. I am prepared to come out and shoot and kill, let's put the bluff aside. I am prepared to kill, and those behind me will have my full support." Vanguard progressed in March 1973 into the Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party.
The Vanguard Unionists under Craig formed part of the United Ulster Unionist Council
United Ulster Unionist Council
The United Ulster Unionist Council was a body that sought to bring together the Unionists opposed to the Sunningdale Agreement in Northern Ireland.-Formation:The UUUC was established in January 1974...
which opposed the power-sharing Sunningdale Agreement
Sunningdale Agreement
The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to establish a power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive and a cross-border Council of Ireland. The Agreement was signed at the Civil Service College in Sunningdale Park located in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on 9 December 1973.Unionist opposition, violence and...
. Craig was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
created under the Sunningdale Agreement
Sunningdale Agreement
The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to establish a power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive and a cross-border Council of Ireland. The Agreement was signed at the Civil Service College in Sunningdale Park located in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on 9 December 1973.Unionist opposition, violence and...
, and he won a seat in the UK Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
at the February 1974 election
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
for East Belfast
Belfast East (UK Parliament constituency)
Belfast East is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons. The current MP is Naomi Long of the Alliance Party, elected in 2010...
. However, in the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention
Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention
The Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention was an elected body set up in 1975 by the UK Labour government of Harold Wilson as an attempt to deal with constitutional issues surrounding the status of Northern Ireland....
in the mid-1970s, Craig broke with the majority of his party to support voluntary power-sharing. The Vanguard Unionists fell apart, with one section forming the United Ulster Unionist Party
United Ulster Unionist Party
The United Ulster Unionist Party was a unionist political party which existed in Northern Ireland between 1975 and 1984.It emerged from a division in the Vanguard Progressive Unionist Party in the late 1970s...
, and Craig lead the remains of Vanguard to rejoin the Ulster Unionist Party in 1978, but lost his seat in the 1979 election
United Kingdom general election, 1979
The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats...
.
Craig subsequently broke with the Ulster Unionists once more. When elections were held for the new Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
in 1982, Craig revived the name Vanguard for his candidacy in East Belfast
Belfast East (UK Parliament constituency)
Belfast East is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons. The current MP is Naomi Long of the Alliance Party, elected in 2010...
. However, he failed to get elected. This marked the effective end of Craig's political career.
After a long period away from public life, he died on 25 April 2011. He had suffered a stroke the previous month.