The following are notable Irish

Presbyterians Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

from a variety of different Presbyterian denominations in Ireland.

Clergy

* John Abernethy, 18th century Presbyterian minister and advocate for religious freedom. * John Alexander, linguist and patristic scholar. * J. B. Armour, Presbyterian minister who supported

Home Rule Home rule is the government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governan ...

. * John Baird, Old Testament scholar. * John Bankhead, published a

catechism A catechism (; from , "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of Catholic theology, doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult co ...

that differed from the

Westminster Shorter Catechism The Westminster Shorter Catechism is a catechism written in 1646 and 1647 by the Westminster Assembly, a synod of English and Scottish theologians and laymen intended to bring the Church of England into greater conformity with the Church of Scot ...

. *

Samuel Barber Samuel Osmond Barber II (March 9, 1910 – January 23, 1981) was an American composer, pianist, conductor (music), conductor, baritone, and music educator, and one of the most celebrated composers of the mid-20th century. Principally influenced ...

, former moderator and advocate of catholic emancipation. *

William Boyd William, Willie, Will or Bill Boyd may refer to: Academics * William Boyd (educator) (1874–1962), Scottish educator * William Boyd (pathologist) (1885–1979), Scottish-Canadian professor and author * William Alexander Jenyns Boyd (1842–1928), ...

, petitioned the governor of

Province of Massachusetts Bay The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in New England which became one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III and Mary II, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of Eng ...

with a proposal for emigration. * William Bruce, grandson of Michael Bruce, minister and educator. *

Stafford Carson John Stafford Carson (born 29 May 1951) is a former Principal and Professor of Ministry at Union Theological College, Belfast, and a former moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. He took office as moderator on 1 June 2009 in succession ...

, former Principal at

Union Theological College Union Theological College is the theological college for the Presbyterian Church in Ireland and is situated in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is governed by the Council for Training in Ministry. It has been responsible for training people for m ...

and former moderator. * Henry Cooke, 19th century Presbyterian minister. *

Martyn C. Cowan Martyn C. Cowan FRHistS is an Irish Presbyterian minister and lecturer in Historical Theology at the Union Theological College, Belfast. Biography Early life and education Cowan was educated at Friends' School Lisburn and went on to study phi ...

, lecturer in Historical Theology at the

. * Thomas Croskery, theologian and reviewer. * James E. Davey, theologian and historian, acquitted of heresy charges in 1927, elected moderator in 1951. *

Ray Davey Robert Raymond Davey (10 January 1915 – 16 April 2012) was a Presbyterian minister in Northern Ireland and the founder of the Corrymeela Community. Biography He was educated at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution, Queen's University Belfa ...

, founder of the

Corrymeela Community The Corrymeela Community was founded in 1965 by Ray Davey, along with John Morrow (peace activist), John Morrow and Alex Watson, as an organisation seeking to aid individuals and communities which suffered through the violence and polarisation ...

. *

Samuel Davidson Samuel Davidson (September 18061 April 1898) was an Irish biblical scholar. Life He was born at Kellswater, County Antrim, the son of Abraham Davidson, into a Scots-Irish presbyterian. He was educated at the village school, under James Darrag ...

, first professor of biblical criticism at Belfast College, subsequently a Congregationalist. *

William Steel Dickson William Steel Dickson (1744–1824) was an Irish Presbyterian minister and member of the Society of the United Irishmen, committed to the cause of Catholic Emancipation, democratic reform, and national independence. He was arrested on the eve ...

, minister and member of the

Society of the United Irishmen A society () is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soc ...

. * John Dunlop, CBE, former moderator (1992), a leading participant in Northern Ireland's civic life. * John Edgar, professor of theology, moderator and Honorary Secretary to the Presbyterian Home Mission during the

Famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food caused by several possible factors, including, but not limited to war, natural disasters, crop failure, widespread poverty, an Financial crisis, economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenom ...

in 1847. *

William Gibson William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as cyberpunk. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, his ear ...

, professor of Christian Ethics and former moderator. *

Hugh Hanna Hugh Hanna (21 February 1821 – 3 February 1892), nicknamed Roaring Hanna, was a Presbyterian minister in Belfast known for his anti-Catholicism. Biography Born in Dromara, County Down, Hanna studied at Bullick's Academy in Belfast before ...

, evangelist, Orangeman and Unionist. * James Alexander Hamilton Irwin, Presbyterian Home Ruler who converted to the republican cause post-1916. Appointed to the

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland. Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...

led government’s Commission on Vocational Organisation from 1939–43 and later joined the party and served on the Fianna Fáil national executive from 1945 until his death. * William Dool Killen,

church historian Church history or ecclesiastical history as an academic discipline studies the history of Christianity and the way the Christian Church has developed since its inception. Henry Melvill Gwatkin defined church history as "the spiritual side of th ...

. * John Kinnear, Member of Parliament for Donegal, first clergyman to be elected to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

. * Laurence Kirkpatrick (Professor of Church History and former Principal of

, controversially dismissed for gross misconduct following a radio interview). *

Francis Makemie Francis Makemie (1658–1708) was an Ulster Scots clergyman, widely regarded as the founder of Presbyterianism in the United States. Early and family life Makemie was born in Ramelton, County Donegal, Ireland part of the province of Ulster. ...

, Irish Presbyterian immigrant to America; moderator of the first Presbytery in America. * Charles McMullen, former moderator of the

Presbyterian Church in Ireland The Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI; ; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Prisbytairin Kirk in Airlann'') is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the Republic of Ireland, and the largest Protestant denomination in Northern Ireland. ...

. * John Morrow, co-founder of the

. * Ken Newell, peacemaker and former moderator. * Isaac Nelson, Irish

Nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

politician and advocate of

home rule Home rule is the government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governan ...

whose views were condemned by the moderator of the time. * W. P. Nicholson, evangelist. *

Robert James Patterson Rev Robert James Patterson B.A LL.B (also styled as R.J Patterson) (1 January 1868 - 9 October 1930) was an Irish Presbyterian minister, social reformer, and the founder of the worldwide Catch-My-Pal Total Abstinence Union. He was born in Whitec ...

, social reformer and founder of Catch-My-Pal Total Abstinence Union. * Ruth Patterson, first woman to be ordained to the ministry of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. *

James Seaton Reid James Seaton Reid, M.A. and D.D. (1798–1851) was an Irish presbyterian minister and church historian. Life Born in Lurgan, County Armagh, he was the son of Forest Reid, master of a grammar school there, and Mary Weir, his wife. Left fathe ...

, church historian. * David J. Templeton, murdered after press coverage regarding purchase of

gay pornography Gay pornography is the representation of Sexual practices between men, sexual activity between males with the primary goal to sexual arousal, sexually arouse its audience. Softcore pornography, Softcore gay pornography also exists; which at o ...

. *

Robert Watts Robert Watts (23 May 1938 – 30 September 2024) was a British film producer who was best known for his involvement with the ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones'' film series. Career Watts began working in the film industry in 1960, after two ye ...

, conservative theologian and missionary in Philadelphia.

Laypeople

* Robert Anderson, second Assistant Commissioner (Crime) of the London Metropolitan Police. *

Samuel Bill Samuel Alexander Bill MBE (10 December 1864 – 24 January 1942) was an Irish Christian missionary, explorer and the founder of the Qua Iboe Mission (later renamed Mission Africa). Early life Bill was raised in Ballymacarrett Presbyteria ...

, founder of the Qua Iboe Mission (later renamed

Mission Africa Mission Africa (formerly known as the Qua Iboe Mission and subsequently the Qua Iboe Fellowship) is an interdenominational, evangelical, Christian mission organisation. When founded in 1887, by the Irish independent missionary Samuel Bill, the ...

). *

Thomas Blood Thomas Blood (1618 – 24 August 1680) was an Anglo-Irish officer and self-styled colonel best known for his attempt to steal the Crown Jewels of England from the Tower of London in 1671. Described in an American source as a "noted br ...

, self-styled colonel who attempted theft of the

Crown jewels Crown jewels are the objects of metalwork and jewellery in the regalia of a current or former monarchy. They are often used for the coronation of a monarch and a few other ceremonial occasions. A monarch may often be shown wearing them in portra ...

. *

Amy Carmichael Amy Beatrice Carmichael (15 December 1867 – 18 January 1951) was an Irish Christian missionary in India who opened an orphanage and founded a mission in Dohnavur. She served in India for 55 years and wrote 35 books about her work as a mission ...

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

in India who opened an

orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or abusi ...

and founded a mission in Dohnavur. *

James Dickey James Lafayette Dickey (February 2, 1923 January 19, 1997) was an American poet, novelist, critic, and lecturer. He was appointed the 18th United States Poet Laureate in 1966. His other accolades included the National Book Award for Poetry a ...

, active in the

and hanged for role at the

Battle of Antrim The Battle of Antrim was fought on 7 June 1798, in County Antrim, Ireland during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 between British troops and Irish insurgents led by Henry Joy McCracken. The British won the battle, beating off a rebel attack on Ant ...

. *

Jeffrey Donaldson Sir Jeffrey Mark Donaldson (born 7 December 1962) is a Northern Irish former politician, who served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from 2021 to 2024 and leader of the DUP in the UK House of Commons from 2019 to 2024. He was t ...

Northern Irish The people of Northern Ireland are all people born in Northern Ireland and having, at the time of their birth, at least one parent who is a British Nationality Law, British citizen, an Irish nationality law, Irish citizen or is otherwis ...

politician and leader of the

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

. *

Robert Emmet Robert Emmet (4 March 177820 September 1803) was an Irish Republican, orator and rebel leader. Following the suppression of the United Irish uprising in 1798, he sought to organise a renewed attempt to overthrow the British Crown and Prote ...

, United Irishman and revolutionary leader. * David Ford, politician and former leader of the Alliance Party. *

James Galway Sir James Galway (born 8 December 1939) is an Irish virtuoso flute player from Belfast, nicknamed "The Man with the Golden Flute". After several years working as an orchestral musician, he established an international career as a solo flute pl ...

, flautist. *

Watty Graham Walter (Watty) Graham (also called Watty Grimes) (1763–1798) was a farmer and Presbyterian Church elder in the north of Ireland who was executed for his role as a United Irishman in the Rebellion of 1798. Graham was born outside Maghera, ...

, executed for his role as a United Irishman in the Rebellion of 1798. * James Hope, radical democrat organised for the

. *

Heather Humphreys Heather Maud Humphreys (née Stewart, born 1960) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served in various cabinet positions from 2014 to 2025. She was a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Cavan–Monaghan constituency from 2011 to 2024, and serve ...

Fine Gael Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...

politician and government Minister. * Arthur Langford,

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

lawyer and politician. * Hercules Langford,

baronet, merchant and landowner. *

Naomi Long Naomi Rachel Long MLA (née Johnston; born 13 December 1971) is a Northern Irish politician who has served as Minister of Justice in the Northern Ireland Executive since February 2024, having previously served from January 2020 to October 202 ...

, Northern Irish politician and leader of the Alliance Party. *

Robert Wilson Lynd Robert Wilson Lynd (; 20 April 1879 – 6 October 1949) was an Irish writer, editor of poetry, urbane literary essayist, socialist and Irish nationalist. Early life Lynd was born at 3 Brookhill Avenue in Cliftonville, Belfast to Robert John Ly ...

Irish nationalist Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cult ...

. editor of poetry and essayist. *

Mary Ann McCracken Mary Ann McCracken (8 July 1770 – 26 July 1866) was a social activist and campaigner in Belfast, Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, whose extensive correspondence is cited as an important chronicle of her times. Born to a prominent liberal Presbyter ...

, social activist and campaigner. *

Henry Joy McCracken Henry Joy McCracken (31 August 1767 – 17 July 1798) was an Irish republican executed in Belfast for his part in leading United Irishmen in the Rebellion of 1798. Convinced that the cause of representative government in Ireland could not be a ...

, leading member of the United Irishmen and rebel commander. * Isabel Deane Mitchell, medical missionary in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. * William Orr, member of the

United Irishmen The Society of United Irishmen was a sworn association, formed in the wake of the French Revolution, to secure Representative democracy, representative government in Ireland. Despairing of constitutional reform, and in defiance both of British ...

who was executed in 1797. *

Edwin Poots Edwin Poots (born 27 May 1965) is a British politician from Northern Ireland, serving as Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly since February 2024. He served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from May to June 2021. He was fir ...

, Northern Irish politician and former leader of the

. *

Morris S. Seale Morris Sigel Seale (14 July 1896 – 29 August 1993) was a Jewish born scholar and theologian who wrote about Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions and explored extensively the links between the religions. He wrote three influential books and c ...

scholar A scholar is a person who is a researcher or has expertise in an academic discipline. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher at a university. An academic usually holds an advanced degree or a termina ...

and

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

. * William R. Rodgers, radio broadcaster, script writer and former Presbyterian minister. *

John Skeffington, 2nd Viscount Massereene John Skeffington, 2nd Viscount Massereene (December 1632 – 21 June 1695) was an Anglo-Irish politician, official, and peer. He was one of the leading Presbyterians in Ireland during his lifetime. Early life and family Skeffington was the son of ...

politician, official, and peer. *

Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, (18 June 1769 – 12 August 1822), usually known as Lord Castlereagh, derived from the courtesy title Viscount Castlereagh ( ) by which he was styled from 1796 to 1821, was an Kingdom of Ireland, Ir ...

, Anglo-Irish politician and statesman. * Jacob Stockdale, professional Irish rugby player. * John Tennant, militant member of the

. *

Theobald Wolfe Tone Theobald Wolfe Tone, posthumously known as Wolfe Tone (; 20 June 176319 November 1798), was a revolutionary exponent of Irish independence and is an iconic figure in Irish republicanism. Convinced that, so long as his fellow Protestants fear ...

, founder of the Society of

. * Billy Wright,

loyalist paramilitary Ulster loyalism is a strand of Ulster unionism associated with working class Ulster Protestants in Northern Ireland. Like other unionists, loyalists support the continued existence of Northern Ireland (and formerly all of Ireland) within the U ...

leader and lay preacher in the Free Presbyterian Church.

References

{{PCI Presbyterian Church in Ireland

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...