Women and the Orange Order examines the growth and activism of Orange women in England, Scotland and Canada since the mid-nineteenth century and argues that they were central to the development of Orange associational culture up to the Second World War. This study also explores how women were key participants in the formation of diasporic connections throughout the British world, building on links created by migration and the Empire. It reveals that the ordinary - and largely working-class - women who joined the Orange Order eagerly engaged in the public lives of their communities, in conservative politics and in upholding the ideologies of the British Empire.

In its examination of gender, ethnicity, class and imperialism, Women and the Orange Order will appeal to readers interested in the history of the Irish diaspora, women''s public activism and the British Empire.