On September 28, 1912, over 200,000 people in Ulster signed the Ulster Covenant in Belfast, a pledge to resist the implementation of the Third Home Rule Bill by any means necessary. The Covenant, which was organized by Edward Carson and the Ulster Unionist Party, was a dramatic demonstration of unionist opposition to Home Rule. The signing of the Covenant brought Ireland to the brink of civil war and forced the British government to reconsider its plans for Irish self-government.

The Ulster Covenant is a subject of unionist poetry, with writers celebrating the signing as a act of loyalty and defiance. The Covenant's language of resistance and determination is reflected in the poetry of the period, which often expressed a militant Ulster identity. The Covenant's legacy is a recurring theme in the poetry of Northern Ireland, reflecting the deep divisions that persist to this day.