Format

Arrival 10:30

Talk begins 11:00

Other Information

The Ulster Reform Club took great pride in the achievements and impact of the Ulster Liberal Unionist Association. The Club even published a history of the association in 1914.

The cooperative pioneer Horace Plunkett observed:

‘The only expression of real political thought which I have observed in Ireland since I have been in touch with Irish life has emanated from the Ulster Liberal Unionist Association, whose weighty pronouncements, published from time to time, are worthy of deep consideration by all interested in the welfare of Ireland’.

Liberal Unionists were keen promoters of reform and willing to cooperate with those with whom they differed in politics – as is evidenced by the work of the Recess Committee which met between January and August 1896.

The committee pressed for the establishment of a board of agriculture and industries for Ireland which resulted in the establishment of the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction in 1900.

In addition to state promotion of industry and agriculture, Liberal Unionists pressed for land reform and the extension of democratic local government to Ireland and a range of other reforms.

They exerted significant influence on Joseph Chamberlain and successive chief secretaries, notably Gerald Balfour, and through them and the policy of ‘Constructive Unionism’ helped to transform Ireland beyond recognition.

Gordon Lucy is an author and historian specializing in Northern Irish and British history, known for books like The Ulster Covenant and The 1916 Rising: Ulster Connections. He is a contributor to the Belfast Newsletter, where he writes historical articles on topics such as the Taranto raid, Ramsay MacDonald's first Labour government, and Winston Churchill.