Peter Murney was a

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 political activist in Northern Ireland.

Biography

Murney was a farmer and was a volunteer in the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various Resistance movement, resistance organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dominantly Catholic and dedicated to anti-imperiali ...

from 1916 until 1922, as were his brothers Míchaél and Pól Murney who were both interned in Larne prison camp, he along with his brothers joined the Anti-Treaty side of the Civil war.Biographies of Members of the Northern Ireland House of Commons
/ref> In 1926, he was the joint founder of the National Defence Association, which opposed recognition of Stormont. In 1937, Murney launched the National Council of Unity, which aimed to apply the new

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland (, ) is the constitution, fundamental law of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executi ...

to the whole of the island.Brendan Lynn, ''Holding the Ground: The Nationalist Party in Northern Ireland, 1945 – 72'' (1997), Murney was 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 ...

as the Nationalist Party MP for South Down at the 1945 general election. He was active in the

Irish Anti-Partition League The Irish Anti-Partition League (APL) was a political organisation based in Northern Ireland which campaigned for a united Ireland from 1945 to 1958. The organisation aimed to unite Irish nationalists, filling the void left by nationalist group ...

, but controversially refused to condemn T. J. Campbell leaving the Parliament to become a judge. Murney was defeated at the South Down Nationalist selection convention before the

1949 Northern Ireland general election The 1949 Northern Ireland general election was held on 19 February 1949. The election became known as the Chapel-gate election because collections were held at churches in the Republic of Ireland to support the Nationalist Party campaign. T ...

, and stood down.

References

Year of birth missing Year of death missing Irish Republican Army (1919–1922) members Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland 1945–1949 Nationalist Party (Ireland) members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland for County Down constituencies {{Parliament-of-Northern-Ireland-member-stub