Douglas Hutchinson (1918 – December 1995) was a

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

Unionist

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

Born in

Richhill, County Armagh Richhill is a large village and townland in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It lies between Armagh and Portadown. It had a population of 2,821 people in the 2011 Census. Originally named Legacorry, it takes its name from Edward Richardson, who ...

, Hutchinson worked as a fruit

farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mig ...

. In 1953, he succeeded his father as an

Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule movem ...

(UUP) member of Armagh Rural District Council, holding his seat until its abolition in 1973. He was also active in

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 ...

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 ...

,Ted Nealon, ''Ireland: a parliamentary directory, 1973-1974'', p.188 and was prominent in the paramilitary

Ulster Protestant Volunteers The Ulster Protestant Volunteers was a Ulster loyalism, loyalist and Reformed fundamentalism, Reformed fundamentalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. They were active between 1966 and 1969 and closely linked to the Ulster Constitution Def ...

. He served in the

Ulster Special Constabulary The Ulster Special Constabulary (USC; commonly called the "B-Specials" or "B Men") was a quasi-military reserve special constable police force in what would later become Northern Ireland. It was set up in October 1920, shortly before the par ...

, but left after being sentenced to one month's imprisonment for disrupting a

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...

march in

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , "Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Pri ...

in November 1968. Hutchinson resigned from the UUP in October 1969, stating that he disagreed with their policy of compromise. Around this time, he was expelled from 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 ...

and from the

Royal Black Preceptory The Royal Black Institution, the Imperial Grand Black Chapter Of The British Commonwealth, or simply the Black Institution,Dungiven Dungiven () is a small town, townland and civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It is near the main A6 Belfast to Derry road, which bypasses the town. It lies where the rivers Roe, Owenreagh and Owenbeg meet at the foot of the B ...

although, on appeal, this was commuted to a £60 fine. Hutchinson stood for the

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a unionist, loyalist, and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who led the party for the next 37 years. Currently led by J ...

at the

1973 Northern Ireland Assembly election Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. P ...

, becoming the last candidate elected.Armagh 1973-1983
Northern Ireland Elections He was elected to Armagh District Council at the 1973 local election. He was elected to the 1975

Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention The Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention (NICC) was an elected body set up in 1975 by the United Kingdom Labour government of Harold Wilson as an attempt to deal with constitutional issues surrounding the status of Northern Ireland. For ...

with an increased vote, but failed to take a seat in the 1982 Assembly election. He held his council seat until his retirement in

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

, when he was succeeded by his son, Brian."DUP man quits in teenage sex scandal", ''

Belfast News Letter The ''News Letter'' is one of Northern Ireland's main daily newspapers, published from Monday to Saturday. It is the world's oldest English-language general daily newspaper still in publication, having first been printed in 1737. The newspap ...

'', 19 September 2002

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hutchinson, Douglas 1918 births 1995 deaths Members of Armagh City and District Council Democratic Unionist Party politicians Farmers from Northern Ireland Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly 1973–1974 Members of the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention Politicians from County Armagh Ulster Unionist Party councillors Loyalists imprisoned during the Northern Ireland conflict Ulster Protestant Volunteers members