Trimble, (William) David

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Trimble, (William) David (b. 1944). Ulster Unionist leader. Educated at Bangor Grammar School and Queen's University, Trimble lectured in law at Queen's until elected to the Westminster Parliament for Upper Bann in 1990. His reputation then was as a hard-liner. In 1995 he defeated John Taylor for the leadership after James Molyneaux had retired. Since 1998 he has been first minister of the devolved government of Northern Ireland and was awarded (with John Hume) the Nobel peace prize the same year. Most of his time has been devoted to holding his party together and preserving the ‘peace process’ in the face of IRA intransigence and British government weakness. At the general election of 2005 he was badly beaten in Upper Bann by his DUP challenger and resigned the leadership of his party.

J. A. Cannon

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Baron William David Trimble Trimble of Lisnagarvey

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