Union Flag

Deserted! Well I Can Stand Alone

Extramural Activity2 Comments

Here are two images of women defending Protestant territory in Ireland. On the left, the date is “1914”, that is, Ulster during the Home Rule Crisis and WWI. The words “Deserted! Well – I can stand alone” can refer both to Britain’s proposed desertion or the absence of menfolk who joined Kitchener’s army.

On the right, the date is the early days of Northern Ireland: “A Protestant farmer’s wife guards her husband against sectarian attack from across the border.”

This is the third of three murals in the courtyard of the Rex Bar at Moscow Street on the Shankill Rd. Betting Office | Ready For War. The first also has a wide shot of all three and surrounding area.

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Copyright © 2004 Cathal Woods
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Betting Office

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“Ulster Day. Sir Edward Carson (WP) signing the covenant (WP). Belfast City Hall, 28th September, 1912.”

This is the first of three panels on this wall that together trace the history of the Ulster Volunteers; see also the second (Carson and the Ulster Volunteers) and third (women defenders while the men fight in Europe).

Below is a shot of the full scene in the courtyard of the Rex bar, two weeks away from the 12th

Moscow Street/Shankill Road, west Belfast

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Copyright © 2004 Cathal Woods
X00049 X00050 1912, lest we forget, 36th ulster division, battle of the boyne, 1st july 1916, ycv, uvf, rex bar est. 1865 moscow street

Brittania

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“The Union flag, or Union Jack, is the national flag of the United Kingdom and it is so called because it embodies the emblems of three countries united under one sovereign – the Kingdoms of England and Wales, of Scotland and of Ireland. The flag consists of three heraldic crosses, those of St Patrick, St George and St Andrew. The Welsh dragon does not appear on the Union flag. This is because when the first Union flag was created in 1606, Wales by that time was already united with England and was no longer a separate principality.”

One of fourteen panels in Thorndyke Street, east Belfast. For a list of entries for each panel, see East Belfast Historical And Cultural Society.

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Copyright © 2004 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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United Kingdom

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The central panel in Thorndyke Street, Belfast, reproduces a postcard from during the Home Rule debate: “Ulster to Britain: thou mayest find another daughter with a fairer face than mine, with a gayer voice and sweeter and a softer eye than mine; but thou canst not find another that will love thee half so well!” The Ulster Banner (a flag of Northern Ireland) is used to represent Ireland in the quartet of flags while the shamrock stands alongside daffodil, rose, and thistle. For the Anglo-Norman French around the crown’s coat of arms, see Honi Soit Qui Mal Y Pense.

One of fourteen panels in Thorndyke Street, east Belfast. For a list of entries for each panel, see East Belfast Historical And Cultural Society.

Click image to enlarge
Copyright © 2004 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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East Belfast Historical And Cultural Society

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In 2004 the East Belfast Historical And Cultural Society sponsored a series of 14 murals in Thorndyke Street charting Protestant history from Cromwell to Cluan Place. This post contains two wide shots.

Individual panels, from left to right, can be seen in the following entries:

  • Covenant M
  • Lord Protector M | X
  • The City Is Saved M | X
  • Civil & Religious Liberty M | X
  • Better The Grave Than Slavery M | X
  • Their Sacrifice Our Freedom M | X
  • United Kingdom M | X
  • Hitler Attacks Belfast M | X
  • Defending The Community M | X
  • Unity Solidarity M | X
  • Their Loyalty Betrayed M | X
  • Out Of The Ashes New Life M | X
  • Brittania M | X
  • Commonwealth/Sponsors M | X

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Copyright © 2004 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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