A BELFAST historical group has called for a statue of Henry Joy McCracken to be erected near the site of his execution following the 1798 rebellion.
Gerry McClory and Sean Napier from the United Irish Historical Society met with the head of Belfast City Council earlier this week.
They have proposed erecting a statue at the corner of High Street and Cornmarket - near the site where McCracken was born and later put to death for his involvement in the uprising against British Crown rule.
A co-founder of the United Irishmen, the 33-year-old was hanged in what is now Cornmarket for having led the group in the rebellion.
He was later buried at St George’s Churchyard close to the Albert Clock in High Street.
A bust of his sister social campaigner Mary Ann McCracken, which was put up last year in Clifton Street in north Belfast, was recently stolen from its plinth.
In March bronze statues of Ms McCracken as well as suffragist and trade unionist Winifred Carney were unveiled in the grounds of Belfast City Hall.
They are the first non-royal women to get statues in the civic grounds.
A spokesperson for the United Irish Historical Society highlighted the importance of recognising her brother’s legacy in the city as both a key historical figure for Irish republicanism, as well as for his importance as a socially-liberal and radical Presbyterian.
“Henry Joy McCracken was one of a number of radical Presbyterians from Belfast, including his sister Mary Ann McCracken, who championed the causes of religious tolerance and non-sectarianism during the 18th and 19th centuries.
The spokesman said that McCracken and his associates “left an indelible mark on the city of Belfast.”