Williamites

Noun

Williamite (plural Williamites)

1. (historical) A follower of William III of England who deposed James II in the Glorious Revolution.
   • We fought for the royal Stuarts that reneged us against the Williamites and they betrayed us.1922 February 2, James Joyce, “[Episode 12: Cyclops]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company […], →OCLC, part II [Odyssey], page 316
2. (historical) A member of the Hermits of Saint William, a religious order founded by disciples of William of Maleval.
   • Having weighed every thing very impartially, one ſhall find that the Order of theſe Auguſtinians was in the beginning formed of ſeveral Heremitical Congregations, which were ſpread in ſeveral places under different names, and eſpecially of the Williamites, and Zambonites. […] SOME do pretend that...1693, Gabriel d’ Emillianne [pseudonym; Antonio Gavin], A Short History of Monastical Orders, in Which the Primitive Institution of Monks, Their Tempers, Habits, Rules, and the Condition They Are in...

   Synonyms:

   Guillelmite, Guillemin

3. (historical) A member of the Order of Monte Vergine, a religious order founded by disciples of William of Montevergine.
   • The later history of the Williamites is similar to that of the Vallombrosans. They gave up the solitary life and adopted the Benedictine Rule, still retaining the white habit and cowl which distinguish them from the majority of Benedictines.1932, Peter F[rederick] Anson, “Benedictine Solitaries”, in The Quest of Solitude, London; Toronto, Ont.: J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd.; New York, N.Y.: E. P. Dutton & Co. Inc., →OCLC, pages 72–74

See all 6 meanings of Williamite