[1] He then took a history teacher's job at a school whilst studying for an MA under J. C. Beckett on the topic of radical Presbyterianism in Northern Ireland following the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and why it had changed from an Irish republican to British unionist perspective in the decades following.
[1] He married the Queen's English graduate and teacher Anna Robinson and they had two children together.
[7] He once stated: "There is something wrong with the shape of Irish history; it is too short, too narrow, upside down and it leans all over to one side".
[6][5] In 1977, he wrote his critically acclaimed book The Narrow Ground which was so popular, Reverend Ian Paisley held it up during a Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster sermon calling it "a great book which tells us the truth about the history of Ulster" despite Stewart stating he did not want it to become involved in politics.
[5] Stewart received criticism from claims that he was an "apologist for unionism" but he responded stating that Irish nationalism was not the sole preserve of Catholics.