Monarchism is embedded in Northern Ireland’s Ulster unionist identity. There is probably no such thing as a “republican unionist”. Many unionists descend from Protestant settlers from Britain who colonised Ireland four centuries ago. Loyalty to the monarch was an essential qualification for those making the journey, and the basis of that loyalty was the Protestantism of the crown, which provided a bulwark against the Catholicism of the Irish and much of Europe.
As Britain’s global reach grew, Protestants in Ireland shared in what was believed to be the God-ordained prosperity and power of the empire. As Irish nationalism grew in the late 19th century, Protestants clung to the union with Britain to avoid absorption into what they feared would be a hostile all-Ireland state.
To this day, unlike the many people around the world who see the British monarchy as a symbol of oppression, unionists view it as the embodiment of their political and religious liberty.
