A person who adheres to his sovereign or to the lawful authority; especially, one who maintains his allegiance to his prince or government, and defends his cause in times of revolt or revolution.

colonist who supported the British during the American Revolution; Tory.

Short for United Empire Loyalist, an American who remained loyal to the British Crown during the American Revolution and whose house and goods were often confiscated by the American Revolutionaries. Thousands of Loyalists settled in what is now southern Ontario, the Eastern Townships (Cantons de l'Est) of Quebec, and in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, where the Crown often gave them land or monetary compensation for their losses. Americans called these people Tories, though many had no allegiance to that particular political party.