Political figures from across Northern Ireland's political divide gathered today to pay their respects to former SDLP leader and founder Lord Fitt.
Among unionists and nationalists gathered at London's Westminster Cathedral for his funeral were the joint Nobel Peace Prize winners, Ulster Unionist David Trimble and the SDLP's John Hume.
Also present was Mark Durkin, the current leader of the party Lord Fitt once led.
Lord Fitt, who died at the age of 79 last week after suffering from a heart condition, helped found the Social Democratic Labour Party in 1970 with civil rights and nationalist leaders from the province.
A fierce opponent of terrorism and social injustice alike, Gerry Fitt served as deputy chief executive of Northern Ireland's first power-sharing executive in 1974.
He continued to lead the party after the executive - formed out of the 1973 Sunningdale Agreement - collapsed after just five months, brought down by a loyalist workers' strike.
But in 1979 he dramatically quit his own party after it turned down an offer of talks by the then Conservative government because the agenda did not contain an Irish dimension.
His departure followed a period of growing disillusionment with the party which he accused of becoming "green", moving away from the socialism which was Fitt's guiding influence.
His political low point came in 1983 when, two years after refusing to support IRA hunger strikers, he lost the West Belfast seat in the Westminster Parliament which he had held since 1966 to Sinn Fèin's Gerry Adams.
Having been wounded by the RUC in a civil rights march in 1968, he found himself burnt-out of his North Belfast home by republicans in 1983.
But today he was honoured both by the party from which he had become estranged and rivals from across the political divide.
Mr Durkin was among those who paid tribute to the former party leader. Speaking just before the service he said: "People who were in the party with him during those years have fond memories of good work together in difficult times.
"Obviously there was subsequent differences but we are here to remember a man who contributed positively, a man of warmth and wit."