Tom Caldwell, Date of Birth, Date of Death

    

Tom Caldwell

British interior designer and politician

Date of Birth: 30-Jun-1921

Date of Death: 01-Jan-0001

Profession: politician, art dealer

Nationality: United Kingdom

Zodiac Sign: Cancer


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About Tom Caldwell

  • Tom Caldwell (30 June 1921 – 13 November 2002) was a politician, art dealer and interior designer in Northern Ireland.Born in Uganda, Caldwell moved to Belfast at the age of three.
  • He studied at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution, then in 1941 joined the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers.
  • This was followed by four years as an officer in the British Indian Army.In 1954, Caldwell inherited the family furniture business, and began promoting contemporary design.
  • In 1962, he had his first involvement in politics, asking Prime Minister of Northern Ireland Basil Brooke to formally thank Roman Catholics for not supporting the Irish Republican Army (IRA)'s Border Campaign.
  • In 1964, he was appointed interior designer to the Duke of Westminster.
  • In 1969, he opened an art gallery in Belfast to promote local artists.Caldwell accepted a late offer to contest Belfast Willowfield at the 1969 Northern Ireland general election as an independent Unionist supporter of former Ulster Unionist Party Prime Minister Terence O'Neill.
  • He spent his time in Parliament urging discussions with the IRA, and initiated contact with them in 1972.
  • At a meeting in Dublin, he asked them to avoid "soft targets".Caldwell stood unsuccessfully as an independent Unionist in South Antrim at the 1970 general election, taking only 11.2% of the votes cast.
  • The Parliament of Northern Ireland was suspended in 1972 and abolished the following year.
  • Caldwell joined the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland, but the new party did not give him a candidacy at the 1973 Northern Ireland Assembly election, and he resigned the following year.In 1974, Caldwell opened a second art gallery, this time in Dublin.
  • In 1976, he debated Sean Hopkins at an IRA fundraiser in the United States, leading to Hopkins' deportation.
  • He became a regular speaker in the U.S., and an opponent of Bill Clinton's policy on Northern Ireland.

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