Choose Two Events in the Last 100 Years Which Are Particularly Important in Shaping the Views of Today's A) Loyalists / Unionists / Protestants and B) Republicans / Nationalists / Catholics.

Sir Edward Carson (the leader of the nationalists) was unsure what the people meant when they said they would resist, he did not know if the people would be prepared to make great sacrifices and unless he knew there would be sacrifices the talk of it would be of no use. So he wrote to James Craig, the true leader to show his concern. Craig argued that his people only owed conditional loyalty to the State due to the National covenant signed in 1638. Therefore rebellion was quite acceptable and obligatory should the government fail to carry out its duties to its citizens. Craig was the brains behind the Solemn League and Covenant. They set up a Provisional Government of Ulster, which would have taken control of as much territory as possible in. In January 1913, they raised a militia to resist home rule - the Ulster Volunteer Force.

The ‘Solemn Covenant and League was mocked by the newspapers and was portrayed as ‘Carson’s Comic Opera Army’ but it soon became apparent that the Ulstermen where not afraid to fight and they where not bluffing as arms where brought in from abroad, 24,000 rifles and 3m rounds of ammunition in April, bringing their total of rifles to 40,000.

By the summer of 1914, civil war seemed inevitable. It was only due to the fact that ‘The Great War’ broke out and the home rule is shelved for twelve months or until after the war is over, whichever is longer, so Britain could concentrate on the war.

Loyalist’s today see it totally necessary to re-establish the identity that emerged almost 100 years ago and defend the semi-detached from the United Kingdom province. They see the 28th of September as a time to unite, the nearest comparison would be the 4th July American Independence day yet the Irish’s business is not yet complete.