'The Troubles':Northern Ireland 1968-1998 - theme 4
Unionism
Documents
Ulster : the Facts (Belfast, 1969)
Cochrane, Fergal, Unionist Politics and the Politics of Unionism since the Anglo-Irish Agreement (Cork, 1997), chapter 2 is available on http://cain.ulst.ac.uk.
Coulter, Colin, (1994), ‘The character of Unionism’, Irish Political Studies, 9, pp. 1-24.
Morrow, Duncan (1997), ‘Suffering for righteousness’ sake? Fundamentalist Protestantism and Ulster politics’, in Peter Shirlow and Mark McGovern (eds.), Who Are the People? Unionism, Protestantism and Loyalism in Northern Ireland, London, pp. 55-71. Extracts available on http://cain.ulst.ac.uk.
Todd, J.R., ‘Unionist political thought, 1920-1972’, in D.G. Boyce et al (eds.),
Political Thought in Ireland Since the Seventeenth Century (London, 1993), pp. 190-
211.
Questions:
What is Ulster Unionism?
Is there more than one kind of Unionism?
What role does fundamental protestantism play in Ulster Unionism?
What has been the impact of Paisleyism on Ulster politics, Ulster Unionism?
What relationship, if any, is there between Ulster Unionism and loyalist paramilitaries?
What relationship do Unionists have with the British government?
How do Unionists justify their politics?
Loyalty to Protestantism; loyalty to Ulster; loyalty to Britain. Which do you think has been the most important factor for unionists?
What factors explain the preservation of a cross-class unionist alliance?
Reading
Bruce, Steve, (1994), The Edge of the Union: The Ulster Loyalist Political Vision, Oxford, chapter 1.
Bruce, Steve, (1986), God Save Ulster! The Religion and Politics of Paisleyism, Oxford.
Bruce, Steve, (2007), Paisley, Oxford.
Finlayson, Alan (1999), ‘Loyalist political identity after the peace’ in Capital and Class, 69, Autumn, pp. 47-75.
Gallagher, Tom, (1981), ‘Religion, reaction, and revolt in Northern Ireland: the impact of Paisleyism in Ulster’, in Journal of Church and State, 23 (3), pp. 423-444.
McGarry, J. and B. O’Leary (1995), Explaining Northern Ireland, Oxford, chapter 3.
Nesbitt, Dermot, (1995), Unionism Restated: An Analysis of the Ulster Unionist Party’s “Statement of Aims”, Belfast.
Patterson, Henry and Eric Kaufmann, (2007) Unionism and Orangeism in Northern Ireland since 1945, Manchester.
Porter, Norman and Paul Arthur, (1997), ‘Rethinking Unionism: an alternative vision
for Northern Ireland’ in Political Quarterly, 68 (2), 202.