The majority of Northern Ireland’s population wanted to remain within the United Kingdom. Many of these folks were the Protestant descendants of colonists from Great Britain. On the other hand, a considerable minority, mostly Catholics, were nationalists who wanted a united Ireland independent of British rule.
Today, a part of the population generally sees themselves as British whereas another part of the population sees themselves as Irish. Needless to say, this has brought about a hotbed of controversy over the years and with Brexit upon us, this small part of the world is destined to be in the limelight again very soon.