Drilling the young men

From the late nineteenth century the interface between Christianity and civic responsibility in Britain was nurtured by a strong martial rhetoric which was embodied by the formation of the Boys’ Brigade in 1883. From its introduction to the north of Ireland in 1898, this uniformed organisation, with its strong links to the social activities of the Presbyterian and Methodist churches, was thought of as a respectable and character-building institution for young men in Protestant working-class communities to be involved in. Moreover, it represented a cohesive social and cultural bond between Protestant congregations in the north of Ireland and the rest of the UK, which was vital to an overall sense of being part of the Union. Not only was the ecclesiastical association important, the brigade in the north of Ireland would also become strongly associated with political and cultural unionism from an early stage. Alvin Jackson has referred to the mobilisation of the BB in support of Protestant demonstrations of social and political solidarity. This gave the BB an upper hand on the Scouts, with Jackson noting that ‘consequently it was actively committed to Unionism well before its rival’. Having gained this leverage, it was possible for the BB to fully display its loyalty to any popular Protestant cause; it also provided the organisation with an impetus to continue to identify with and support cultural unionism in Ireland. This in turn would teach boys at an early age that the civic fabric of their community was vital in the overall construction and maintenance of the union.

Jackson has provided an example of how this was played out in the early period of the twentieth century during political turbulence in the north of Ireland, stating that ‘Members of the Boys’ Brigade were enthusiastically involved in opposing the Third Home Rule Bill; and on Ulster Day 1912 they joined with members of the Anglican Church Lads’ Brigade in publicly demonstrating their Unionism through parades’.