ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Protestant Irish nationalists

Okay, let me explain it to you like you are 5 years old!

In Northern Ireland, there are two big groups of people who are different from one another. One group is called Protestant and the other is called Catholic.

The Protestant people are mainly from England and they follow a different type of religion from the Catholic people. They believe in the Church of Ireland which is different from the Catholic Church.

The Catholic people are mainly from Ireland and they follow the Catholic Church.

A long time ago, Ireland was ruled by the British who were mainly Protestant. They didn't treat the Catholic people very nicely and the Catholic people wanted their own country.

So, the Catholic people who wanted their own country were called Nationalists. They wanted a united Ireland where everyone was Catholic and the British didn't rule them anymore.

The Protestant people, on the other hand, wanted to stay part of Britain and they didn't want a united Ireland.

So, some Protestant people became Protestant Irish Nationalists. They wanted to be Irish but still be Protestant and they didn't want to be ruled by the British anymore. They wanted a united Ireland too but they wanted it to be a Protestant one.

In summary, Protestant Irish Nationalists are people in Northern Ireland who are Protestant but also want to be part of a united Ireland with other Irish people who are mainly Catholic, but still follow their own type of religion.