Charles Harding Smith
| Charles Harding Smith | |
|---|---|
| Born | 24 January 1931 Belfast, Northern Ireland |
| Died | 1997 (aged 65–66) Skipton, England |
| Allegiance | Ulster Defence Association |
| Service/branch |
Woodvale Defence Association UDA West Belfast Brigade |
| Years of service | 1971-1975 |
| Rank | Brigadier |
| Battles/wars | The Troubles |
Charles Harding Smith (24 January 1931 – 1997) was a loyalist leader in Northern Ireland and the first effective leader of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA). An important figure in the Belfast-based "defence associations" that formed the basis of the UDA on its formation in 1971, Smith later became embroiled in feuds with other UDA leaders and was eventually driven out of Northern Ireland by his opponents.
A former soldier in the British Army Smith, at the time residing in Rosebank Street on the Shankill Road, called a meeting of other locals at the Leopold Street Pigeon Fanciers Club in order to develop a response to attacks by republicans from the neighbouring Ardoyne area. The location had been chosen because Smith was himself a pigeon fancier and member of the club. At the meeting it was agreed to establish a vigilante group, to be known as the Woodvale Defence Association (WDA), with Smith in command assisted by Davy Fogel, who organised military drilling for the forty or so recruits, and Ernie Elliott.
The WDA gained widespread notoriety and was blamed on a series of bomb attacks and shootings, most of which had actually been carried out by the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF). Nevertheless, Smith's reputation as a hardline loyalist was boosted as a result and when his group merged with other similar vigilante movements to form the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) in late 1971 he was chosen as chairman of the new group's thirteen member Security Council ahead of the other leading candidates Tommy Herron and Jim Anderson. According to journalist Martin Dillon, Smith was heavily influenced by William Craig and William McGrath, both of whom saw a need for a group to replace the Ulster Special Constabulary and felt that they could easily influence Smith to their way of thinking.
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