The Orange Order A Contemporary Northern Irish History [Paperback]

Based on unprecedented access to the Order's internal documents, this book provides the first systematic social history of the Orange Order - the Protestant association dedicated to maintaining the British connection in Northern Ireland.

Kaufmann charts the Order's path from the peak of its influence, in the early 1960s, to its present-day crisis. Along the way, he sketches a portrait of many of Orangeism's leading figures, from ex-Prime Minister John Andrews to Ulster Unionist Party politicians like Martin Smyth, James Molyneaux, and David McNarry. Kaufmann also includes the highly revealing correspondence with adversaries such as Ian Paisley and David Trimble.

Packed with analyses of mass-membership trends and attitudes, the book also takes care to tell the story of the Order from 'below' as well as from above. In the process, it argues that the traditional Unionism of West Ulster is giving way to the more militant Unionism of Antrim and Belfast which is winning the hearts of the younger generation in cities and towns throughout the province.

1. Introduction
Part I: From Insider to Outsider, 1963-95
2. Cracks in the Establishment: Orange Opposition to O'Neill, 1963-9
3. Orangeism under Fire: Negotiating the Troubles, 1969-72
4. Unity in the Face of Treachery, 1972-77
5. Stable Rejectionism: The Smyth Molyneaux Axis, 1978-95
Part II: Orangeism at the Dawn of the Third Millennium, 1995-2005
6. The Battle of Drumcree
7. From Victory to Defeat: Drumcree, 1996-8
8. Breaking the Link: Orange UUP Relations after the Good Friday Agreement
9. The War against the Parades Commission
10. Segmenting the Orange: The Future of Orangeism in the Twenty-First Century
11. Conclusion

This intricately detailed, comprehensive work offers valuable insight into a less-studied aspect of Northern Ireland's recent history of conflict, resolution, and reconciliation. --S.P. Duffy,CHOICE