John Maynard Sinclair (4 August 1896 – 31 January 1953) was a unionist politician in

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 ...

. Born in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, in 1896, son of John Sinclair DL and Alice Montgomery, he was educated at the

Royal Belfast Academical Institution The Royal Belfast Academical Institution is an independent grammar school in Belfast, Northern Ireland. With the support of Belfast's leading reformers and democrats, it opened its doors in 1814. Until 1849, when it was superseded by what today is ...

, and in Switzerland. He served in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He was a director of the Eagle Star Insurance Company and Chairman of Vulcanite Ltd.

Military career

Sincliar served in the

Royal Irish Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County D ...

and Royal Irish Fusiliers during World War I, attaining the rank of Captain. In October 1937 he raised and commanded the Antrim Fortress Royal Engineers at Victoria Barracks, Belfast, one of the first Territorial Army (TA) units in Northern Ireland. He was promoted to the local rank of Major, and was awarded the honorary rank after his retirement from the command. He was appointed Honorary Colonel of the unit's successors, 591 (Antrim) Independent Field Squadron, Royal Engineers, when the TA was reformed after World War II.Sinclair at 591 (Antrim) Para Sqn site.
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Political career

His first attempt to be elected to 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 ...

was unsuccessful; he contested the Mourne division in 1933. He was elected to the

House of Commons of Northern Ireland The House of Commons of Northern Ireland was the lower house of the Parliament of Northern Ireland created under the '' Government of Ireland Act 1920''. The upper house in the bicameral parliament was called the Senate. It was abolished w ...

in 1938 for the division of Belfast Cromac. On 16 January 1941, he was appointed Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Minister of Finance (i.e. a junior minister). In May 1943, Sir Basil Brooke succeeded J. M. Andrews 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 governo ...

; Maynard Sinclair was appointed Minister of Finance (''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' Deputy Prime Minister) in 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 ...

on 6 May 1943 and was made a Privy Councillor (Northern Ireland). He was regarded by the officers of his TA unit as a much more liberal individual than his Prime Minister, Sir Basil Brooke. The opinion of those former officers who knew him was that his politics were not unlike those of Captain Terence O'Neill and that, had he lived to become Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, the complete history of the province would have been different.

Death

Maynard Sinclair was one of 135 passengers drowned in the sinking of the ferry MV ''Princess Victoria'' on 31 January 1953, en route across the

North Channel North Channel may refer to: *North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland) The North Channel (known in Irish and Scottish Gaelic as , in Scots as the ) is the strait between north-eastern Northern Ireland and south-western Scotland. It begins no ...

from Stranraer to

Larne Larne (, , the name of a Gaelic territory) is a town on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland, with a population of 18,755 at the 2011 Census. It is a major passenger and freight roll-on roll-off port. Larne is administered by Mid ...

. He was survived by his wife, Marjorie Claridge.

Memorials

The pavilion of the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS) Sports and Social Club on the

Stormont Estate The Stormont Estate is an estate east of Belfast in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is the site of Northern Ireland's main Parliament Buildings, which is surrounded by woods and parkland, and is often referred in contemporary media as the met ...

in Belfast is named the ''"Maynard Sinclair Pavilion"''. The children's ward at the

Ulster Hospital The Ulster Hospital, commonly known as the Ulster, is a teaching hospital in Dundonald (at the eastern edge of Belfast) in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is within the townland of Ballyregan, beside the A20 road. It provides acute services i ...

at Dundonald is named the ''"Maynard Sinclair Children’s Ward".'' There is also a Major J. M. Sinclair Memorial Pipe Band which was formed shortly after his death and can still be found in competition throughout Northern Ireland and Scotland.

References

External links