Norman Stronge: Difference between revisions
Gaimhreadhan (talk | contribs) |
mNo edit summary |
||
| Line 27: | Line 27: | ||
Prior to his involvement in politics he was a [[British Army]] officer, decorated with the [[Military Cross]] in [[World War I]] and having survived the [[Battle of the Somme]]. His positions after the war included [[Speaker (politics)|Speaker]] of the [[Northern Ireland House of Commons]], for twenty-three years, and member of the [[Privy Council of Northern Ireland]], to which he was appointed in 1946. |
Prior to his involvement in politics he was a [[British Army]] officer, decorated with the [[Military Cross]] in [[World War I]] and having survived the [[Battle of the Somme]]. His positions after the war included [[Speaker (politics)|Speaker]] of the [[Northern Ireland House of Commons]], for twenty-three years, and member of the [[Privy Council of Northern Ireland]], to which he was appointed in 1946. |
||
He was |
He was murdered, aged 86, along with his son, [[Sir James Stronge, 9th Baronet|James]], by the [[Provisional Irish Republican Army]] in [[1981]] at [[Tynan Abbey]], their home, which was burnt to the ground during the attack. His loyal and distinguished service was commended by [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II]] at his funeral. |
||
==Early life== |
==Early life== |
||
Revision as of 16:38, 5 August 2007
Rt. Hon. Sir Norman Stronge, 8th Baronet | |
|---|---|
| File:Norman-Stronge.jpg Sir Norman Stronge in the 1920s | |
| Speaker of the Northern Ireland House of Commons | |
| In office 1945–1956 | |
| In office 1956–1969 | |
| Member of the Northern Ireland House of Commons | |
| In office 1938–1969 | |
| Constituency | Mid Armagh |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 23 July 1894 Bryansford, County Down |
| Died | 21 January 1981 Tynan Abbey, County Armagh |
| Political party | Ulster Unionist Party |
| Height | 200px |
| Spouse | Gladys Olive Hall |
| Children | Sir James Stronge, 9th Baronet and others |
Captain Sir Charles Norman Lockhart Stronge, 8th Baronet, PC (NI),[1] MC, JP (23 July 1894 – 21 January 1981) was a senior Unionist politician in Northern Ireland.
Prior to his involvement in politics he was a British Army officer, decorated with the Military Cross in World War I and having survived the Battle of the Somme. His positions after the war included Speaker of the Northern Ireland House of Commons, for twenty-three years, and member of the Privy Council of Northern Ireland, to which he was appointed in 1946.
He was murdered, aged 86, along with his son, James, by the Provisional Irish Republican Army in 1981 at Tynan Abbey, their home, which was burnt to the ground during the attack. His loyal and distinguished service was commended by Queen Elizabeth II at his funeral.
Early life
Sir Norman was born in Bryansford, County Down, the son of Sir Charles Stronge, 7th Baronet. He was educated at Eton.
In the First World War he served in France and Flanders with the 10th Battalion Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, as Lieutenant and later as Captain. He was decorated with the Military Cross and the Belgian Croix de Guerre. He survived the first day of the Battle of the Somme and was the first soldier after the start of the battle to be mentioned in despatches by Lord Haig. In April 1918, he was appointed adjutant of the 15th Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles. He was wounded, whilst near Kortrijk, on October 20, 1918.[2]
Political career
Sir Norman was elected as an Ulster Unionist member of the Parliament of Northern Ireland for Mid Armagh in the byelection of 29 September, 1938.[3] He made his maiden speech on 20 October, supporting the Marketing of Potatoes Bill.[4]
In his career at Stormont, he became Assistant Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Finance (Assistant Whip) from 16 January, 1941; on 6 February, 1942 he was promoted to be Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Finance (Chief Whip). He held this post at the time when John Miller Andrews was deposed as Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and replaced by Sir Basil Brooke, bt. due to backbench pressure from Ulster Unionist MPs. On 3 November, 1944 Sir Norman stood down from the government.
When the new Parliament assembled on 17 July, 1945 Stronge was nominated as Speaker of the Northern Ireland House of Commons by Lord Glentoran, who said that Stronge came from a "family which has been known for generations for its fairness, its courtesy, and its neighbourliness, and for that feeling of kindliness which is so essential to the Speaker of this House".[5] The nomination was seconded by Jack Beattie, a Nationalist who sat as an Independent Labour MP.
On 30 October 1945 Sir Norman was involved in a dispute in the chamber. A Minister in the government had been taken ill and was unable to answer a series of Parliamentary Questions which had been put to him; Stronge allowed the Members who had put the questions to defer them until the Minister had recovered.[6] Jack Beattie protested that this was not correct procedure, and Stronge agreed to look at it further; this decision incensed Harry Midgley, who had personal grievances with Beattie, and Midgley shouted at Stronge "Are you not competent to discharge your duties without advice from this Member on his weekly visits to the House?" Despite Stronge calling for order, Midgley then crossed over and punched Beattie. Stronge excluded him from the Chamber for the rest of the sitting,[7] and Midgley apologised the next day.[8]
Sir Norman was appointed to the Privy Council of Northern Ireland in 1946.[9] He was Chairman of Armagh County Council from 1944 to 1955. Amongst other positions he held were Lord Lieutenant of Armagh (1939 – 1981), President of the Northern Ireland Council of the Royal British Legion and Justice of the Peace for both Counties Armagh and Londonderry. He was the Sovereign Grand Master of the Royal Black Institution and a member of the Orange Order. Sir Norman was created a Knight of St John in 1964.[10]
In 1956, one of Stronge's outside posts caused a difficulty. He had been named on the Central Advisory Council on Disabled Persons, a position which brought no remuneration in practice but could have done so in theory. It was realised that the theoretical possibility of money being paid meant that this was an "Office of Profit under the Crown" which disqualified him from election. On 16 January, 1956 Stronge wrote to resign his post as Speaker temporarily, so that legislation could be passed to validate his actions and indemnify him from the consequences of acting while disqualified.[11] Owing to the constitutional provisions of the Government of Ireland Act, this legislation had to be passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
Once it had been passed, on 23 April, 1956 the Speaker who had been elected temporarily (W. F. McCoy) resigned.[12] Stronge was unanimously re-elected on 26 April, referring in his speech accepting nomination to his time away from Parliament looking after his farm: "I have had more time to look at bullocks, and more time to look at their prices".[13]
Family
Sir Norman was married to Gladys Olive Hall and had four children, James Stronge (who was killed with him), Daphne Marian Stronge (married Thomas Kinghan), Evelyn Elizabeth Stronge and Rosemary Diana Stronge (died as a child).
After his retirement from politics in 1969, he farmed the family's several thousand acre estate at Tynan Abbey.
Death
Sir Norman was killed aged 86, alongside his son James, in the library of their home, Tynan Abbey, on the evening of 21 January 1981, by members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army, armed with machine guns and grenades.
The Stronge family's home was then burnt to the ground as a result of two bomb explosions.[14] On seeing the explosions at the house (and a flare Stronge lit in an attempt to alert the authorities), the Royal Ulster Constabulary and British Army troops arrived at the scene and established a road-block at the gate lodge. They encountered at least eight fleeing gunmen. There followed a gunfight lasting twenty minutes in which at least two hundred shots were fired. There were no casualties among the security forces.[2] The bodies of the father and son were later discovered in the library of their blazing home, each had gun-shot wounds in the head.[15]
Sir Norman was succeeded to the Baronetcy, albeit only briefly, by his son James, who was killed alongside him.[16] As it is not known in which order the deaths occurred, James is presumed to be the 9th Baronet under the legal fiction known as the doctrine of survival.
Sir Norman was buried in Tynan Parish church in a joint service with his son. The sword and cap of the Lord Lieutenant of Tyrone (Major John Hamilton-Stubber) were placed on his coffin in lieu of his own, which had been destroyed with his other possessions in the fire.[2] The coffin was carried by the 5th Battalion the Royal Irish Rangers, the successors to his old regiment. During the service a telegram, sent from Queen Elizabeth II to one of Sir Norman's daughters, was read. It stated:
I was deeply shocked to learn of the tragic death of your father and brother; Prince Philip joins me in sending you and your sister all our deepest sympathy on your dreadful loss. Sir Norman's loyal and distinguished service will be remembered.[17]
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Humphrey Atkins was told by the Stronge family, who were incensed at the inadequacy of border security, that he was not welcome at the funeral.[18]
Sir Norman is commemorated with a tablet in the assembly chamber in the Parliament Buildings at Stormont.[19]
Reactions
The killing was referred to as murder by multiple media sources including The Daily Telegraph, The Scotsman, The New York Times and Time magazine, by the Rev. Ian Paisley in the House of Commons and by Lord Cooke of Islandreagh in the House of Lords.[20]
Sir Norman was described at the time of his death by Social Democratic and Labour Party politician Austin Currie as having been "even at 86 years of age... still incomparably more of a man than the cowardly dregs of humanity who ended his life in this barbaric way."[21]
The IRA were quoted in The Times: "This deliberate attack on the symbols of hated unionism was a direct reprisal for a whole series of loyalist assassinations and murder attacks on nationalist peoples and nationalist activities."[22]
When discussing the killing of the Stronges and the Kingsmill massacre, a Tyrone republican and Gaelic Athletic Association veteran speaking to Ed Moloney said, "It's a lesson you learn quickly on the football field...If you're fouled, you hit back".[23]
Aftermath
In 1984, Seamus Shannon was arrested by the Garda in the Republic of Ireland and handed over to the Royal Ulster Constabulary on a warrant accusing him of involvement in the murder of the Sir Norman and Sir James Stronge. The Irish Supreme Court, considering his extradition to Northern Ireland, rejected the defence that these were political offences, saying that they were "so brutal, cowardly and callous that it would be a distortion of language if they were to be accorded the status of a political offence". Shannon was extradited but later acquitted.[24][25]
See also
Notes and references
- ^ 5th Battalion, The Royal Irish Fusiliers Regiments.org
- ^ a b c Stronge of Tynan Abbey, Co. Armagh Turtle Bunbury
- ^ Mid Armagh election results
- ^ Hansard, House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Vol. 21, Col. 1778, via Stormont Papers.
- ^ Hansard, House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Vol. 29, Col. 3, via Stormont Papers.
- ^ Hansard, House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Vol. 29, Col. 896, via Stormont Papers.
- ^ Hansard, House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Vol. 29, Cols. 910-11, via Stormont Papers.
- ^ Hansard, House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Vol. 29, Col. 952, via Stormont Papers.
- ^ Biographies of Members of the Northern Ireland House of Commons
- ^ London Gazette 14 Jan 1964
- ^ Hansard, House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Vol. 39, Col. 3141, via Stormont Papers.
- ^ Hansard, House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Vol. 40, Col. 927, via Stormont Papers.
- ^ Hansard, House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Vol. 40, Col. 931, via Stormont Papers.
- ^ The Times, 22 January 1981
- ^ The Times, 22 January 1981
- ^ Burkes Peerage
- ^ The Massacre of Sir Norman Stronge ex-M.P. and Son IRA atrocities website
- ^ New York Times, 30 January 1981
- ^ 'Memorials to the Casualties of Conflict: Northern Ireland 1969 to 1997' by Jane Leonard (1997) Cain Webservice
- ^ *Time (in partnership with CNN), 2 February, 1981 [1]
- The New York Times, 30 January, 1981 (13th article: "Murders bring fear to Protestants on Ulster border")[2]
- Commons Hansard, Rev. Ian Paisley, 1992-06-10 [3]
- The Spectator, 13 December, 1997 [4]
- Lords Hansard, Lord Cooke of Islandreagh, 22 March, 2000 [5]
- The News Letter (Belfast, Northern Ireland), January 19, 2001 [6]
- The Daily Telegraph, 22 November, 2001 [7]
- The Scotsman, 10 April, 2006 [8]
- ^ In the Shadow of the GunmenTime Magazine
- ^ Christopher Thomas, "Ex-Speaker killed by IRA as reprisal", The Times, 23 January, 1981.
- ^ A Secret History of the IRA, Ed Moloney, 2002. (PB) ISBN 0-393-32502-4 (HB) ISBN 0-71-399665-X p.320
- ^ Seanad Éireann - Volume 139 - 24 March, 1994. Extradition (Amendment) Bill, 1994: Second Stage Oireachtas historical debates
- ^ House of Commons Hansard Debates for 10 Jun 1992 United Kingdom Parliament website
- Burke's Peerage & Baronetage. 1975.
External links
- Ulster Unionist Party politicians
- People killed by the Provisional IRA
- British Army officers
- British military personnel of World War I
- Knights of the Order of St John
- Croix de guerre recipients
- Recipients of the Military Cross
- Old Etonians
- Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom
- Members of the Parliament of Northern Ireland
- Councillors in Northern Ireland
- Members of the Privy Council of Northern Ireland
- Deaths by firearm in the United Kingdom
- Assassinated Northern Irish politicians
- 1894 births
- 1981 deaths
- PIRA killings