Mourners at Lord Trimble’s funeral have been informed that he overcame “impossible challenges with enormous strength of character and total integrity.”
In Lisburn, County Antrim, the former head of the Ulster Unionist Party is being laid to rest.
The 77-year-old former Nobel Peace Prize winner passed away last week.
Those who attended the burial included Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
In his eulogy at Harmony Hill Presbyterian Church, the Reverend Dr. Charles McMullen remarked on Lord Trimble’s life as a family man and a politician dedicated to achieving peace in Northern Ireland.
A generation has been able to grow up in largely peaceful circumstances as a result of the dramatically altered terrain in Northern Ireland, he said.
“History will be incredibly kind to David, as so many have expressed over the past three days, even though life brought many harsh stresses and demands,”
Politicians from all sides of Northern Ireland’s political spectrum gathered to say their goodbyes, including senior UUP officials and the DUP and Sinn Féin party leaders.
Michael D. Higgins, the president of Ireland, is also present.
People who have gone to pay their condolences, according to the Reverend Fiona Forbes, are a reflection of Lord Trimble’s “legacy.”
The first person to hold the position of first minister in the new Northern Ireland Executive was an academic, a leader of the party, a peacemaker, and a Nobel laureate, Ms. Forbes added.
Lord Trimble’s son Richard thanked the congregation for their “warm comments” after his father’s departure on behalf of the Trimble family as he read a prayer.
According to the former prime minister, Lord Trimble got a letter from Sir Tony Blair just before he passed away, thanking him for “changing lives for the better” with the Good Friday Agreement.
According to Sir Tony, he wished to express to the peer how significant his contribution to the 1998 peace agreement was.
He claimed that the way he conducted himself during the peace process “defines leadership.”
Lord Trimble was the first person to hold the position of first minister of Northern Ireland, leading the UUP from 1995 to 2005.
Among the group from Sinn Féin are former leader Gerry Adams and deputy leader Michelle O’Neill.
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the head of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), is also present.
Former Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern and Northern Ireland Assembly Speaker Alex Maskey, both longtime members of Sinn Féin, are present for the service.
Additionally present were Colum Eastwood, leader of the SDLP, and Simon Byrne, head constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), as well as Alliance Party deputy leader Stephen Farry.
After a brief illness, Lord Trimble passed away on July 25 at the Ulster Hospital close to Belfast.
