Edge of the Union

On the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Northern Ireland `Troubles', Ulster's once dominant unionists are an increasingly alienated people. In this timely assessment of the prospects for peace, Steve Bruce examines the embittered world-view of two key sections of Ulster unionism: the loyalist terrorists and the evangelical supporters of Ian Paisley.

To get to the heart of the unionist position Bruce asks how they see the last twenty-five years, what they want from the future, what they think they will get, what they will accept, and what they will fight to oppose.

He describes the Troubles as a deeply entrenched ethnic conflict. He argues that a failure to appreciate the strength of Loyalist identity has prevented a proper understanding of the Troubles and that continued neglect of the majority makes strategies for peace pointless or counter-productive.