Billy McMillen
| Billy McMillen | |
|---|---|
| Born |
19 May 1927 Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK |
| Died | 28 April 1975 (aged 47) Spinner Street, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK |
| Other names | Liam McMillen |
| Occupation | Irish republican paramilitary leader (Commanding Officer, Official Irish Republican Army's Belfast Brigade) |
Liam "Billy" McMillen (19 May 1927 – 28 April 1975) was an Irish republican activist and an officer of the Official Irish Republican Army (OIRA) from Belfast, Northern Ireland. He was killed in 1975, in a feud with the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA), which had broken away from the OIRA.
McMillen was born in Belfast in 1927 and joined the IRA at age 16 in 1943. During the IRA's Border Campaign (1956–62), he was interned and held in Crumlin Road jail. In 1964, he ran in the British general election as an Independent Republican candidate. When McMillen placed the Irish tricolour in the window of his election office in the lower Falls area, this sparked a riot between republicans, loyalists and the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC). There had been tensions on the issue since the government of Northern Ireland banned the flying of the tricolour under the Flags and Emblems Act.
In October 1964, during the general election campaign, a photo of McMillen was placed in the window of the election office in Divis Street flanked on one side by the Starry Plough flag and on the other by the tricolour. Initially the authorities did not intervene, but they were jolted into action following threats from the Reverend Ian Paisley that if the flag was not removed he and his supporters would march on the office and remove it themselves. On the same night, Wednesday, 28 September 1964, a large force of the RUC armed with rifles, Sten guns, batons and crowbars smashed down the doors of McMillen's election HQ and removed the tricolour. The following day the IRA replaced the flag in the window and police attacked a crowd who had gathered to support McMillen. Rioting ensued. At around this time McMillen succeeded Billy McKee as commander of the Belfast Brigade.
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