As late as the early 1970's Belfast was around 75% Protestant, now it's less than 50%. A seismic change in a generation.
Most Protestants in cork are descended from the Huguenots who had to flee France.they built a new Presbyterian church 5-10 mins from where I live in drogheda because the original one in the town centre was to small for the growing congregation.
Belfast was 75% Protestant in 1900 I believe it was 60/40 in 1970
Ethnically cleansed after partition, Cork was a British naval & administrative base. Anglo names e.g. William, David etc were popular. The State religion was the protestant Church of Ireland. Religion now means little to many in Eire.
Most Irish rc’s get there kids christened to get them into the local school.the hold the rc church has on schooling is weakening and the plan is to have the majority of schools to have rc patronage removed.the largest waiting lists are for educate together schools but their aren’t enough of them to meet demand
In terms of Northern Ireland the 2011 Census showed 48% Protestant and 45% Catholic.
S/F and there fellow travelers will set about dismantling and vestiges of Britishness/unionism in any new Ireland as they put it.
There is a growing demographic that see themselves as Northern Irish as opposed to Irish or British.huge swathes of middle class rc’s in NI work in the civil service and the public sector and they are not going to vote themselves out of a job and star paying for the health services they get for free while NI is part of the uk
It remained roughly that split for nearly 50 years after partition.
I would like to have this discussion as that's an interesting point but I fear it's not really possible in this format and I don't want to derail the thread.
Mmmmm. Not sure mate. I agree that if we are lumbered with a United Ireland the change in the health service will be a shock to many. I suspect though that it will be a vote of the heart rather than the head. Demographics is destiny as they say and at the minute things don't look good. The situation isn't like what it was during the Home Rule crisis but I still wouldn't want to be part of a United Ireland. I'm born and reared in Ulster on the island of Ireland. I can't pretend therefore that I have no Irishness. I do. My descendants at a time would have seen themselves as Unionist Irishmen but the IRA's campaign has so sullied the term that I would never feel comfortable calling myself Irish. I'm culturally British with closer links to Scotland than Dublin. Despite the promises we hear I can only see humiliation in a UI. Will my culture be respected? Aye right!
A lot of that is just secularization though.
IMHO this is where ulster unionism has to get its act together.waiving a union flag and shouting”no surrender” isn’t going to cut it.they have to sell the benefits of the union in a positive manor.prepare for a referendum now don’t wait till a couple of months before its called.i don’t mean just one political party but all shades of unionism has to be ready,when or if that time comes
Wrong, I am pleased to say.
I can assure you I do have that feeling, though I often mistake it for indigestion.
A friend of me she is a middle class RC lives in N Belfast with her Protestant husband and daughter. She was always a "Unionist" but has never voted for a "Unionist Party" but voted if it happened re a Border Referendum she would have voted FOR the Union. However since Brexit at the last GE her and her husband and daughter voted Alliance and she tells me all the middle class Prods and RC's friends of her now want a UI when 4 years ago they were almost all "soft Unionists"
That train my friend, has long since left the station.
Leaked MI5 papers showed that there are currently 12500 members of the UVF and UDA combined.
Yes true, still a few of us about those counties though
Middle class catholics in Nothern Ireland have more in common with Nothern Protestants than they have with the sectarian bigots from the falls, the bogside or crossmaglen.
Money talks and I would hazard a guess a reality check on their pockets would change a few tunes regards how “European” they want to be.
I agree with you. But the tragedy for the cause of 'unionism' in Ulster, was that this realisation did not take place before the outbreak of the troubles.
A feeling I harbour about present day Scotland. I share your anxiety dear friend. My old Granda will be looking down with sadness re your plight.
1. If that’s what the stats say, fair enough. However, with my own eyes I don’t see massive higher standard of living down South compared to NI. I don’t hear too many other people ever saying they have a better standard of living down there either.
Just look at the Irish rugby team a high percentage of them do not have Irish surnames I think it was the Irish Law when children of mixed couples had to make their children RC. The Ne Temere law
No offence in any way but I don’t believe you
OK she must be a liar I did not make that up. Look at the last GE--- N Down Alliance won it--- South Belfast SDLP won it-----East Belfast and DUP only won 2k there is something happening
Indeed.
Look, there were various reasons why North Belfast , South Belfast and North Down were lost to Nationalist/Republican MPs. I’m sure you’re well aware of these reasons.
I never mentioned Belfast North it was Belfast East what was the reason that Alliance nearly won it again. As I said something is happening Northern Ireland poll shows 45.4% back Irish unity and 46.8% support Union with UK - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk
