Robert Seymour (c. 1955 – 15 June 1988) was a Northern Irish

loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

from

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

who was a member of the

Ulster Volunteer Force The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalism, Ulster loyalist paramilitary group based in Northern Ireland. Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence, a former Royal Ulster Rifles soldier from North ...

(UVF). He served as the paramilitary organisation's East Belfast commander before being shot dead by the

Provisional IRA The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

behind his video shop in that part of the city in June 1988. His killing was claimed to be in retaliation for the UVF bombing of 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 ...

pub in which three Catholics died. In 1983, Seymour was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1981 murder of leading IRA member James "Skipper" Burns. Seymour cycled to Burns' home in Rodney Parade, off the

Donegall Road The Donegall Road () is a residential area and road traffic thoroughfare that runs from Shaftesbury Square on what was once called the " Golden Mile" to the Falls Road in west Belfast. The road is bisected by the Westlink – M1 motorway. Th ...

, and shot him as he lay sleeping beside his girlfriend. Seymour's conviction was overturned in the Appeal Court after the judge found the testimony of

supergrass Supergrass are an English rock band formed in 1993. For the majority of the band's tenure, the line-up consisted of brothers Gaz (lead vocals, guitar) and Rob Coombes (keyboards), Mick Quinn (bass, backing vocals) and Danny Goffey (drums, ...

Joe Bennett "unbelievable". Until 2011, Seymour's image featured on a large mural painted on a gable in Ballymacarrett Road, East Belfast.

Ulster Volunteer Force

Robert Seymour was born around 1955. He was raised in a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

family in staunchly

Ulster loyalist Ulster loyalism is a strand of Unionism in Ireland, 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 I ...

East Belfast.CAIN: Sutton Index of Deaths – 1988
/ref> On an unknown date he joined the illegal UVF. He rose in the ranks of its Belfast Brigade, acquiring a reputation as a hitman, and eventually he became the East Belfast commander. The ''Los Angeles Times'' alleged that he was number three in the hierarchy of the UVF command.ireland "Bomb at Northern Ireland 'Fun Run' Kills 5 Soldiers, Hurts 10". ''Los Angeles Times''. 16 June 1988
Retrieved 24 February 2012 Never having married, Seymour was described by journalists Jim Cusack and Henry McDonald as having been a "quiet single man".Cusack, Jim, & McDonald, Henry (1997). ''UVF''. Poolbeg. p. 192 He was known by the nicknames of "Squeak" and "Bobby Blood". Late at night on 23 February 1981, he cycled across Belfast to the home of leading

member James "Skipper" Burns in Rodney Parade, Donegall Road, close to the Falls Road. After breaking into the house whilst Burns and his girlfriend were out, he waited downstairs until the couple returned and went to bed. Seymour then climbed the stairs and shot Burns dead as he lay sleeping beside his girlfriend, using a pistol with a silencer. Burns' girlfriend never woke during the attack and Seymour was able to leave the house undetected. However, as it had started to snow, Seymour, fearing that his bicycle would leave tracks which would ultimately lead the security forces back to him, carried the bicycle on his back along the Donegall Road and across the

M1 motorway The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) motorway, A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the count ...

until he reached the loyalist Village area. This feat, along with the shooting of such a high-ranking IRA member in the

Irish republican Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...

stronghold of west Belfast, made him a local legend and loyalist folk hero. In 1983, Seymour and UVF battalion commander John Wilson were convicted of the murder and sentenced to life imprisonment on the evidence of

Joe Bennett. Seymour was given a total of four life sentences.Bruce, Steve (1992). ''The Red Hand: Protestant Paramilitaries in Northern Ireland''. Oxford University Press. p. 114 However, their convictions were overturned in the Appeal Court after the judge found Bennett's testimony to have been "unbelievable". According to Bennett, the UVF had targeted Burns because they believed he was

Gerry Adams Gerard Adams (; born 6 October 1948) is a retired Irish Republican politician who was the president of Sinn Féin between 13 November 1983 and 10 February 2018, and served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for Louth from 2011 to 2020. From 1983 to 19 ...

's second-in-command. Wilson had allegedly described the killing as a "good job well done" and then added "Gerry Adams will be next".Sharrock, David & Devenport, Mark. ''Man of war, man of peace: the unauthorised biography of Gerry Adams''. Macmillan. p. 220Hurley, Mark Joseph (1990). ''Blood on the Shamrock: an American ponders Northern Ireland'', 1968–1990. P. Lang. p. 146 Seymour was later arrested and imprisoned for arms offences. He was released in 1987.

Death

At approximately 12.45 p.m. on 15 June 1988, two masked Provisional IRA gunmen from the Markets and

Ormeau Road Ormeau Road is a road in south Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland. Ormeau Park is adjacent to it. It forms part of the A24. History The road, as currently laid out, dates from the first decades of the 19th century when a bridge was buil ...

areas entered the video shop owned by Seymour on the Woodstock Road in East Belfast. He made an attempt to escape by running out of the back door; however, he was cornered by the gunmen in an entry behind his shop and shot dead.''The Irish Emigrant – 19 June 1988''. Liam Ferrie. 23 May 2003Cusack, Jim, & McDonald, Henry (1997). ''UVF''. Poolbeg. p. 250McKittrick, David (2001). ''Lost Lives: the stories of the men, women, and children who died as a result of the Northern Ireland troubles''. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing. p. 1130; Robert Seymour

The IRA claimed his killing was in retaliation for the shooting of an

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 ...

pub in which three Catholics died. At his funeral oration, Seymour was described as an "exemplary Volunteer". Part of it went as follows:

A young man who dedicated his life to his country has given all that any Soldier could give... At the going down of the sun and in the morning/We will remember them.Bartlett, Thomas, & Keith Jeffrey. ''A military history of Ireland''. Cambridge University Press. p. 455

The UVF retaliated the following month by fatally shooting IRA volunteer Brendan "Ruby" Davison at his home in the Markets area of South Belfast on 25 July 1988 after receiving intelligence which revealed he had been Seymour's assassin. The UVF gunmen were wearing stolen

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the ...

(RUC) uniforms when they carried out the attack.Cusack, Jim. "Sinn Fein's indoctrination lives on in our brave new world", ''Irish Independent'', 20 March 2005 Frazer Pass stone

Until 2011, Seymour's image featured alongside three other UVF members on an oversized gable mural. The mural stood for over 10 years at the junction of Ballymacarrett Road and Frazer Pass in east Belfast before being painted over. Seymour also features on the mural which replaced the original. In Frazer Pass there is a memorial plaque set inside a railed enclosure dedicated to Seymour, and he is also commemorated in many loyalist ballads and videos.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seymour, Robert 1950s births 1988 deaths Ulster Volunteer Force members Paramilitaries from Belfast People killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army Deaths by firearm in Northern Ireland People murdered in Belfast Date of birth missing 1988 murders in the United Kingdom