William Brian Maginess, QC (10 July 1901 – 16 April 1967), was a member of the

Government of Northern Ireland The government of Northern Ireland is, generally speaking, whatever political body exercises political authority over Northern Ireland. A number of separate systems of government exist or have existed in Northern Ireland. Following the partitio ...

, who was widely seen as a possible successor to The 1st Viscount Brookeborough as

Prime Minister of Northern Ireland The prime minister of Northern Ireland was the head of the Government of Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. No such office was provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920; however, the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, as with governors- ...

Life

He was born in 1901, the son of William George Maginess, a

Lisburn Lisburn (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with ...

solicitor, and his wife Mary Sarah Boyd. He was educated at The Wallace High School and

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

from where he graduated with a law degree (LLD), and was called to the Northern Ireland bar in 1923. Having served in the Royal Corps of Artillery during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he entered the

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 because of its inability to restore ord ...

1938 Events January * January 1 ** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...

when he won the seat of

Iveagh Iveagh ( ; ) is the name of several historical territorial divisions in what is now County Down, Northern Ireland. Originally it was a Gaelic Irish territory, ruled by the ''Uí Echach Cobo'' and part of the overkingdom of Ulaid. From the 12th ...

. He entered the Cabinet of Basil Brooke in 1945 when he became

Minister of Labour Minister of Labour (in British English) or Labor (in American English) is typically a cabinet-level position with portfolio responsibility for setting national labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, traini ...

. His stints as the

Minister of Home Affairs An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

and Minister of Finance (''de facto'' Deputy Prime Minister) left him favourite to succeed Brooke as

. In the early 1950s however, Maginess became a hate figure for the

Orange Order The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants, particularly those of Ulster Scots heritage. It also ...

when he banned marches through Catholic areas in Counties Down and Londonderry. Brooke demoted him to the non-Cabinet post of Attorney General in April 1956. While Attorney General, Maginess was party to the case of ''Attorney General for Northern Ireland v Gallagher

961 Year 961 (Roman numerals, CMLXI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * March 6 – Siege of Chandax: Byzantine forces under Nikephoro ...

3 All Er 299'', which remains authority in the law of Northern Ireland and England & Wales for the principle that

Dutch courage Dutch courage, also known as pot-valiance or liquid courage, refers to courage gained from intoxication with alcohol. History The popular story dates the etymology of the term ''Dutch courage'' to English soldiers fighting in the Anglo-Du ...

is not a defence in criminal law. Counsel for Gallagher were future Attorney General and Lord Justice,

Basil Kelly The Rt Hon. Sir John William Basil Kelly, PC, PC (NI), QC (10 May 1920 – 5 December 2008), usually known as Sir Basil Kelly, was a Northern Irish barrister, judge and politician. Life Kelly was born into an Ulster Protestant family in Clo ...

, and future Stormont MP and Chairman of the Criminal Bar Association in England, Richard Ferguson. In December 1959,

Ian Paisley Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, (6 April 1926 – 12 September 2014) was a Northern Irish loyalist politician and Protestant religious leader who served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from 1971 to 2008 and First ...

led a demonstration of

Ulster Protestant Action Ulster Protestant Action (UPA) was an Ulster loyalist political party and Protestant fundamentalist vigilante group in Northern Ireland that was founded in 1956 and reformed as the Protestant Unionist Party in 1966. Founding The group was found ...

members to

Stormont Castle Stormont Castle is a manor house on the Stormont Estate in east Belfast which is home to the Northern Ireland Executive and the Executive Office. It is a Grade A listed building. History Stormont Castle was completed c.1830 and was reworked i ...

to protest at Lord Brookeborough's refusal to dismiss Maginess and Sir Clarence Graham. They had made speeches at an

Ulster Young Unionist Council The Young Unionists, formally known as the Ulster Young Unionist Council (UYUC), is the youth wing of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP). It has in its present incarnation been in existence since 2004. History Attempts had been made in the 1920s to ...

event supporting Catholic membership of the Ulster Unionist Party. Having been appointed a

King's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel ( post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister or ...

in 1946 he was appointed a County Court Judge in 1964 when he resigned from

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

. He died three years later in Belfast's Royal Victoria Hospital at age 65. A plaque in his memorial is cited inside the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland ( ga, Eaglais na hÉireann, ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Kirk o Airlann, ) is a Christian church in Ireland and an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the second ...

parish church in Hillsborough, where he is buried.

Sources