Paisley, Ian (1926-2014), was a Protestant minister and a political leader in Northern Ireland. He became known for his strong support of Northern Ireland’s continued union with the United Kingdom.
Loading the player...Ian Paisley discusses Protestant strike
Ian Richard Kyle Paisley was born on April 6, 1926, in Armagh, Northern Ireland. He studied at Reformed Presbyterian Theological College in Belfast and was ordained a minister in 1946. He founded the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster in Belfast in 1951. He was elected to the British House of Commons in 1970 and held his seat for about 40 years, retiring in 2010. In 1971, he helped found the Democratic Unionist Party, which for many years opposed the sharing of power with Roman Catholics in Northern Ireland. He served as a member of the European Parliament from 1979 to 2004.
Paisley was once imprisoned for urging followers to block a Catholic civil rights demonstration. He was ejected several times from the House of Commons and the European Parliament for his fiery outbursts. He opposed the 1998 peace agreement that established a power-sharing legislative assembly for Northern Ireland. He was elected to the assembly in 1998 and vowed to block full implementation of the agreement.
On March 26, 2007, however, Paisley met in person for the first time with Gerry Adams, the president of Sinn Féin, the political party that has supported the unification of Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland. The two leaders agreed to establish a power-sharing government in Northern Ireland, which began in May 2007. Paisley served as first minister from May 2007 to June 2008. Paisley died on Sept. 12, 2014.
