Loyal to the Core?

*Written by a team of acknowledged experts in the field, this book provides the first systematic analysis and survey of Orange Order members to date. *Will attract public interest and debate as well as much media comment. *Locates Orangeism within broader debates about Britishness. The Orange Order remains the largest organisation in Northern Irish civil society, with a membership exceeding the combined total of all the political parties in the region. This book provides the first ever comprehensive membership survey of the Orange Order. The book draws upon a detailed study of the Orange Order and on a wealth of individual interviews with Orange leaders and its grassroots base. It begins with a historical outline of the Order's development, before turning to a detailed assessment of its contemporary struggle for relevance amid political marginalisation, secularism and diminished benefits to its membership. The book charts the views of members on how to adapt to external changes; explor