Unionism in the United Kingdom

This article is about support for the United Kingdom remaining united. For Trade unionism in the United Kingdom, see Trade unions in the United Kingdom. For other uses, see Unionism.

Unionism in the United Kingdom, also referred to as British unionism, is a political ideology favouring the continuation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or in some cases the enlargement of that state to include other countries such as Ireland.

Unionism was historically a major issue in Ireland, where Irish nationalism was a significant force. Most of Ireland gained independence from the UK in the 1920s. In Northern Ireland, which remained part of the UK, unionism has continued to be a major issue and the main political divide is between unionists/loyalists and Irish nationalists/republicans. This has led to violent conflict in Northern Ireland, most notably the Troubles.

Since the late 20th century support for the Union has become a bigger issue in Scotland and, to a lesser extent, Wales. Following the Scottish National Party's victory in Scotland's 2011 election, a referendum on Scottish independence took place on 18 September 2014: the result supported remaining within the United Kingdom, winning the vote by 55.3% No to 44.7% Yes to the question "Should Scotland be an independent country?".

Formation of the Union

Further information: History of the formation of the United Kingdom

The Kingdom of Great Britain was formed on 1 May 1707 through the Acts of Union 1707, two simultaneous acts passed by the parliaments of England and Scotland. These created a political union between the Kingdom of England (consisting of England and Wales) and the Kingdom of Scotland. This event was the result of the Treaty of Union that was agreed on 22 July 1706.

The Acts created a single Parliament of Great Britain at Westminster as well as a customs and monetary union. However, England and Scotland remained separate legal jurisdictions.

In 1801, the Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain with the Kingdom of Ireland, through two similar independent acts of the Parliament of Great Britain and the Parliament of Ireland. This created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on a similar basis to how England and Scotland had been united a century earlier.

A campaign to repeal the Union in Ireland began immediately. A series of efforts in the late 19th and early 20th century to establish Home Rule for Ireland within the union were unsuccessful and, following the Anglo-Irish War and subsequent Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1922, most of Ireland left the union as the Irish Free State. Northern Ireland remained part of the union and the United Kingdom became known formally as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 1927 (see: Partition of Ireland).

Prior to the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain, the three kingdoms had been separate states in personal union. When James VI of Scotland succeeded his cousin, Elizabeth I of England, as king of England, the crowns of England, Ireland and Scotland were united.

Before then, in 1542, the crowns of England and Ireland had been united through the creation of the Kingdom of Ireland under the Crown of Ireland Act 1542. Since the 12th century, the King of England had acted as Lord of Ireland, under papal overlordship. The act of 1542 created the title of King of Ireland for King Henry VIII of England and his successors, removing the role of the Pope as ultimate overlord of Ireland.

Support for the Union

Support for the Union was historically highest in England and lowest in Ireland, with significant anti-Union minorities in Scotland and Wales. Today, polls consistently show that a majority of people in all four countries of the United Kingdom (after the partition of Ireland) support the continuation of the Union. This is despite the rise of pro-independence sentiment in Scotland, and to a lesser extent in Wales, where nationalist political parties have formed governments in the devolved bodies. Since the widespread devolution of the late 1990s, the electorate of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have been more likely to vote for nationalist political parties for local or regional elections than in general elections for the House of Commons, where support for the Union dominates. In England, English nationalist parties have never won a seat in Parliament.

In 2014, the extent of UK-wide support for the Union came under considerable investigation as a result of the prospect of Scottish independence. The final result of the referendum saw a clear majority of the Scottish electorate vote to remain in the Union, with 55.3% voting against independence. Polls conducted in 2014 found that 70% of voters in England opposed Scottish independence, as did 83% of the Welsh population.

The Scottish referendum prompted an increase in political activity and vocalism across the United Kingdom. Several hundred celebrities, business leaders and political figures signed open letters to the national media supporting the Union and opposing Scottish independence, while large pro-Union rallies were held in several British cities, including in Trafalgar Square.

In Northern Ireland, support for the Union has been found to increase since the end of The Troubles, especially within the Roman Catholic population. In part, this is as a result of a decreasing association of the Union with radical or extremist political ideologies following the Good Friday Agreement.

Political parties and other groups

The following is a list of active political parties and organisations who support the union.

Major, GB-wide parties

• Conservative and Unionist Party
  • Scottish Conservative Party
  • Welsh Conservative Party
  • Northern Ireland Conservatives
• Labour Party
  • Scottish Labour Party
  • Welsh Labour
• Liberal Democrats
  • Scottish Liberal Democrats
  • Welsh Liberal Democrats
• UK Independence Party (UKIP)

Northern Ireland parties

• Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)
• NI21
• Progressive Unionist Party (PUP)
• Protestant Coalition
• Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV)
• Ulster Unionist Party (UUP)
• UKIP and the Conservatives also stand in Northern Ireland

Minor parties

• Britain First
• British Freedom Party (BFP)
• British National Party (BNP)
• British People's Party (BPP)
• National Front (NF)
• Respect Party
• Scottish Unionist Party (SUP)

Militant and other groups

• Ulster Defence Association (UDA)
• Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)
• Orange Order

See also

• Ulster loyalism
• Scottish independence
• Welsh independence
• Ulster nationalism
• Britishness

Further reading

• Armitage, David (2000). The Ideological Origins of the British Empire (reprint ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-78978-3.
• Brockliss, L. W. B. (1997). Brockliss, L. W. B.; Eastwood, David (eds.). A Union of Multiple Identities: The British Isles, C1750-c1850 (illustrated ed.). Manchester University Press ND. ISBN 978-0-7190-5046-6.
• Cochrane, Feargal (2001). Unionist Politics and the Politics of Unionism Since the Anglo-Irish Agreement (2, revised ed.). Cork University Press. ISBN 978-1-85918-259-8.
• English, Richard (1996). English, Richard; Walker, Graham S. (eds.). Unionism in Modern Ireland: New Perspectives on Politics and Culture. Macmillan Press. ISBN 978-0-312-15979-5.
• Hazell, Robert (2006). Hazell, Robert (ed.). The English Question. Devolution Series (illustrated, annotated ed.). Manchester University Press. ISBN 978-0-7190-7369-4.
• Jackson, Alvin (2011). The Two Unions: Ireland, Scotland, and the Survival of the United Kingdom, 1707–2007 (illustrated ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-959399-6.
• Kanter, Douglas (2009). The making of British unionism, 1740–1848: politics, government, and the Anglo-Irish constitutional relationship. Four Courts Press. ISBN 978-1-84682-160-8.
• Kearney, Hugh F. (2006). The British Isles: A History of Four Nations (2, illustrated, revised, reprint ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-84600-4.
• Kendle, John (1992). Walter Long, Ireland and the Union, 1905–1920. McGill-Queens. ISBN 978-0-7735-0908-5.
• Nicholls, Andrew D. (1999). The Jacobean Union: A Reconsideration of British Civil Policies Under the Early Stuarts. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-313-30835-2.
• O'Day, Alan; Boyce, David George (2001). Defenders of the Union: A Survey of British and Irish Unionism Since 1801. Psychology Press. ISBN 978-0-415-17421-3.
• Ward, Paul (2005). Unionism in the United Kingdom, 1918–1974. Palgrave MacMillan. ISBN 978-1-4039-3827-5.