Sunderland Loyalist Factions

Above: Sunderland Loyalist Association (SLA) members dressed in black, armed with a variety of weapons.

Above: Members of the Sunderland Defence Force (SDF) dressed in casual clothing armed with AKs.

Within the town of Sunderland there are two main Loyalist groups, the SLA and the SDF, both of which fight against the SRM in and around Sunderland. Their numbers are low but they make up for that in their determination to fight for Queen and Country.

They get their arms from a number of sources, including the British Army and include SLRs and AK47s. They also have access to Sterling SMGs and Browninh Hi Power handguns.

They work in cohesion with the British Army and act as an auxiliary unit, patrolling areas with high Republican activities. Gunfire has been heard around the Grindon area, as well as around the town centre, with Loyalists fighting alongside the British Army.

Although both of the Loyalist paramilitaries are fighting for the same cause, there are many cases of inter-fighting between the two groups.

DISCLAIMER: Although my project holds parallels to that of The Troubles, I do not condone the actions of either side of the conflict and I believe that it was a terrible time in British, and Irish, history.

Factions

As you may have guessed by my last post, I will be highlighting some of the factions on each side of the civil war. This includes Republicans, Workers Unions, Loyalists/Royalists, and her Majesty's Armed Forces.

I've already covered the Sunderland Republican Movement, and I shall have the next one up asap. I still don't have any models to start the 20mm side of things but that shall change soon.

We're moving in a month or so, so I'm hoping my hobby picks up then. Until then,

Cheers,

Sean.

Sunderland Republicans

Above: Members of the Sunderland Republican Movement (SRM) armed with a variety of firearms (rifles and sidearms) as well as wearing a mix of military attire and casual wear.

The SRM are a fairly young militant group founded in 1980 by George Hamilton, along with his father Michael Hamilton. They were, at first, a peaceful political organisation set up as part of a wider Republican Movement based in Liverpool and London. They were never voted for thus never getting a seat on the council. 

The elder Hamilton couldn't accept this defeat and, contacting his wife's Uncle in Londonderry, asked for arms to be shipped over to them in Sunderland. The Uncle agreed and sent a handful of firearms including several AKs, two sterlings, and a number of SLRs. This shipment went unnoticed by authorities and strengthened the SRM.

Their first operation was against the occupying Loyalist forces. They shot and killed two Paras near a checkpoint in the town centre. This attracted large media attention and it wasn't long before they claimed responsibility for the attack. 

The Hamiltons remained unidentified, however, and a manhunt for supporters spread across the city. Similar attacks took place across the country, with police officers being killed in Newcastle, Liverpool, and London.