Orange walks are considered controversial[1][2] and face opposition from Catholics,[2]Irish nationalists, and Scottish nationalists[3] who see the parades as sectarian and triumphalist. They have also drawn criticism in recent years from other religious communities, left-wing groups, and trade unions.[4]
The "marching season"
Battlehill LOL 395 marching in Tandragee on 12 July 2008
The "marching season" generally refers to the months April to August in Northern Ireland and includes marches by groups such as the Apprentice Boys of Derry, and the Royal Black Institution as well as the Orange Order. The Orange Order is arguably the most active marching group. Typically, each Orange Lodge holds its own march at some time before 12 July, accompanied by at least one marching band. On 12 July each district holds a larger parade consisting of all the lodges in that district, and sometimes including lodges from outside Northern Ireland. This is particularly the case with the Belfast district, whose parade commonly features several Scottish lodges and often some from other countries. In most districts, the parade's location varies from year to year, rotating through suitable towns. Belfast is an exception; it has kept more or less the same route for many decades. The only major parade after the Twelfth is on the last Sunday in October, when lodges celebrate Reformation Day by parading to church.
Some walks commemorate historic events. Most notably, 12 July marches observe the Battle of the Boyne. Marches in Northern Ireland on and around 1 July originally commemorated the participation of the 36th (Ulster) Division in the Battle of the Somme. Since the beginning of the Troubles, most of these parades have evolved into the "mini Twelfth", and have little obvious connection with World War I.
There are still a few explicitly commemorative parades.[5] Reformation Day parades honour Martin Luther, who nailed his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg, starting the Reformation that brought about the Protestant churches.
Form of parades
Orangemen in typical marching wear.
All Orange walks include at least one lodge, with officers. The lodge is almost always accompanied by a marching band, often a flute band, but also fife and drum, silver, brass and accordion bands. Participants range from as few as one lodge, up to dozens of lodges for major events such as the Twelfth. Elderly or infirm lodge members often travel the parade route in vehicles such as black taxis.
In recent decades, it has become much more common for members of ladies' lodges to walk, although men still greatly outnumber them in most parades. Larger walks, especially on the Twelfth, may be headed by a figure on a white horse dressed as William of Orange. A few parades include others in historical fancy dress; or, more rarely, a float, such as that constructed for the 1990 Twelfth celebrations to represent the Mountjoy, the ship which lifted the Siege of Derry.
Regalia and accessories
Parading Orangemen usually wear dark suits. Some Orangemen wear bowler hats and walk with umbrellas, although it is not mandatory. Walkers wear V-shaped orange collarettes (often inaccurately referred to as sashes) bearing the number of their lodge, and often badges showing degrees awarded within the institution, and positions held in the lodge. Some lodge officers also wear elaborate cuffs, and many walkers wear white gloves, although has become less common. Most lodges carry at least one flag, most commonly the Union Flag. Other common flags include the Ulster Banner, the Flag of Scotland and the Orange Order flag. Lodges also usually carry a banner with the lodge's name and number, and usually depicting William of Orange on at least one side. Other popular banner subjects include deceased lodge members, local landmarks, and the Bible with a Crown.
The "Red Hand Defenders" flute band marching with the Orange Order in Newtownstewart on 12 July 2010. The flags being carried are the Union Flag, Ulster Banner and Boyntandard.
Bands
Typically, there is one band per lodge. Some bands have formal connections with the lodge, but in most cases it is simply hired for the day. Bands and lodges pair up by word of mouth, through the band or lodge advertising in Protestant publications such as the Orange Standard, or as a result of a lodge member hearing the recordings many bands produce. Most bands have a strongly Protestant ethos and display bannerettes and flags associated with loyalism, and in some cases, paramilitary groups. Many are associated with or named after Protestant areas such as the Shankill Road in Belfast, although the number of "Shankill Road" bands suggest that many of their members must also be from elsewhere. In 1985, concerned that some bands' behaviour was bringing the Order into disrepute, the Grand Orange Lodge instituted a system of contracts requiring bands to behave appropriately. According to writer and former Orangeman Brian Kennaway, the contracts have been largely ineffective, mostly because of the Order's reluctance to enforce them.[6]
Controversy
Throughout the history of the Orange Order, Orange walks have faced opposition, both from Catholics and nationalists, who have seen them as sectarian and triumphalist; and from the general public, due to inconvenience and controversies associated with them. Although many nationalists find the parades offensive, conflict usually arises only when a walk passes through or near a Catholic-dominated area. During The Troubles, many marchers were verbally abused, had objects thrown at them, and were involved in abusing onlookers, something walkers following the march still do today.[7] The marching season requires a significant police presence to avert violence. In the early 1970s, parading was banned on several occasions, although never on 12 July.[8]
Currently, of the more than 2000 annual parades in Northern Ireland, only a handful are considered majorly contentious. The best known is the Drumcree conflict. The Drumcree area, near Portadown has a history of parading disputes going back to the 19th century. The current dispute centres on the refusal of the Parades Commission to allow the Portadown lodge through the Catholic Garvaghy Road during their annual celebrations in early July.[9] The conflict led to severe rioting in the late 1990s, but the area has been relatively calm in recent years.
Parade opponents in Drumcree and elsewhere have put forward several arguments against the parades:
That they are sectarian regardless of their route
That they celebrate the defeat of Irish Catholicism
That when they go through majority- or traditionally-Catholic areas, they are particularly insulting and triumphalist
That they cause serious inconvenience to residents, as roads must be closed and, in particularly contentious areas, access to the roads denied
One observer has argued that the Orange Institution and its demonstrations deny Nationalists and Catholics their human rights.[10]
The Orange Order and its supporters have countered that:
The parades are not sectarian, and that any sectarian activity or violence is perpetuated by outsiders and "hangers-on" over whom the Order has no control
That inconvenience is caused mostly by the need for police to protect marchers from the violence of their opponents
That the disputes are not actually about parading, but are a way for republicans to attack Protestantism.
They have also argued that they have a fundamental "right to march"—that any group should be able to walk down "the Queen's highway" without interference. In practice, however, the Order has tended to oppose marches by republicans and other "disloyal" groups on the grounds that there is no right to parade sedition.
The Order has a policy of non-negotiation with residents' groups, as it believes they are dominated by Sinn Féin and do not represent residents' actual opinions.[11]
In a 2011 survey of Orangemen throughout Northern Ireland, 58% said they should be allowed to march through nationalist areas with no restrictions, and 20% said they should negotiate with residents first.[12]
The only remaining walks in the Republic take place in County Donegal and County Monaghan, Ulster counties which border Northern Ireland. Within County Donegal, several small Orange walks take place each year in East Donegal, while the main walk within the county takes place each year at Rossnowlagh in South Donegal.[13][14][15][16][17] A major Apprentice Boys 'demonstration' takes place each August in Raphoe, also in East Donegal.[citation needed] The annual picnic in Drum, County Monaghan features a small scale peaceful march. Another small scale march occurs annually at Killeevan.[17] A march organised by Love Ulster, a unionist group inspired by the Orange Order, was scheduled to be held in Dublin in 2006; however, the march was canceled when rioting broke out before it began.[18][19]
In 2003, a survey of 1,029 Scottish people revealed that 53% were either in favour or strongly in favour of banning Orange Walks, and 24% opposed banning them. Of these respondents, Catholics were more likely than Protestants to say that Orange Walks should be banned (66% and 39%, respectively).[25]
It is accepted that events such as national days are marked by parades by other organisations, religious and otherwise, such as the Scouts and the Boys' Brigade—but apart from one-off anniversaries such as centenaries, that tends to be the limit of such activity. This is in stark contrast to Orange Walks which—in some areas of Glasgow—can be seen and heard almost every day during parts of the summer months. Consequently, and also due to disproportionate costs, initiatives have been introduced to the Glasgow City Council to restrict the number of marches.[26]
This disconnect between the frequency of Orange walks and wider societal norms has caused the walks to be more broadly criticised as incitements to hatred and violence.[27] The Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland has supported police moves to fine spectators for sectarian activity.[28] Grand Master Ian Wilson has said: "All the effort that has gone into defending our interests can be destroyed by the stupidity of the few".[27]
Marches were common in Australia at the turn of the 20th century. The Kalgoorlie and Boulder marches in the 1890s and 1900s attracted conflict between Catholics and Protestant marchers. An increase in membership in recent years has seen a revival of the Orange Order in Australia, and an annual Twelfth of July parade is currently held in Adelaide.[29][non-primary source needed] In New Zealand, walks continued until at least the 1920s, but no longer take place.[30]
In Canada, Orange Walks on 12 July were once large public occasions, particularly in the provinces of Ontario and Newfoundland that have a strong Loyalist heritage dating from the time of the American Revolution. Toronto's Orange Parade has been held annually since 1821,[31][32] but its turnout has dwindled in recent decades. Some parades continue to be held in other parts of Canada. Orange walks have occurred in Liverpool.[33]
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↑ Helen Robinson, 'Remembering War in the Midst of Conflict: First World War Commemorations in the Northern Irish Troubles', 20th Century British History, 21, 1 92010), pp86-7.
↑ Brian Kennaway, The Orange Order: A Tradition Betrayed, London, 2006, pp.73–4.
↑ 'Future policy on processions etc., First Report of the Joint Working Party on Processions etc. (Final Draft)', December 1970, p.9, HA/32/2/39, Public Records Office of Northern Ireland.
↑ "Orange parades 'pass peacefully'". BBC News. 5 July 2008. Retrieved 6 May 2024. Police said the marches in Glasgow and Lanarkshire passed peacefully.
Ulster is one of the four traditional or historic Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland ; the remaining three are in the Republic of Ireland.
The Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF) was an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed by Billy Wright in 1996 when he and his unit split from the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) after breaking its ceasefire. Most of its members came from the UVF's Mid-Ulster Brigade, which Wright had commanded. In a two-year period from August 1996, the LVF waged a paramilitary campaign in opposition to Irish republicanism and the Northern Ireland peace process. During this time it killed at least 14 people in gun and bomb attacks, almost all of them Catholic civilians killed at random. The LVF called off its campaign in August 1998 and decommissioned some of its weapons, but in the early 2000s a loyalist feud led to several killings. Since then, the LVF has been largely inactive, but its members are believed to have been involved in rioting and organized crime. In 2015, the security forces stated that the LVF "exists only as a criminal group" in Mid-Ulster and Antrim.
Ardoyne is a working class and mainly Catholic and Irish republican district in north Belfast, Northern Ireland. In 1920 the adjacent area of Marrowbone saw at multiple days of communal violence between Protestants and Catholics. Ardoyne gained notoriety due to the large number of incidents during The Troubles.
The Apprentice Boys of Derry is a Protestant fraternal society founded in 1814 and based in the city of Derry, Ireland. In 2021 it had over 10,000 members worldwide, with membership open to Protestant men only. There are branches elsewhere in Northern Ireland, Ireland, Scotland, England, Australia and Canada. The society aims to commemorate the 1689 Siege of Derry when Catholic James II of England and Ireland and VII of Scotland laid siege to the walled city, which was at the time a Protestant stronghold. Apprentice Boys parades once regularly led to virulent opposition from the city's Irish nationalist majority, but recently a more conciliatory approach has taken place and now the parades are virtually trouble-free. The 2014 'Shutting of the Gates' parade was described as "the biggest in years" and was violence-free.
The Imperial Grand Black Chapter of the British Commonwealth, or simply the Royal Black Institution, is a Protestant fraternal society.
Sectarianism in Glasgow takes the form of long-standing religious and political sectarian rivalry between Catholics and Protestants. It is particularly reinforced by the fierce rivalry between Celtic F.C. and Rangers F.C., the two largest Scottish football clubs sometimes referred to as the Old Firm, whose support base is traditionally predominantly Catholic and Protestant respectively. A 2003 report for Glasgow City Council indicated that people clearly believe "sectarianism is still prevalent in Glasgow", but that members of the public were divided on the strength of the relationship between football and sectarianism.
The Twelfth is a primarily Ulster Protestant celebration held on 12 July. It began in the late 18th century in Ulster. It celebrates the Glorious Revolution (1688) and victory of Protestant King William of Orange over Catholic King James II at the Battle of the Boyne (1690), which ensured a Whig political party and Anglican Ascendancy in Ireland and the passing of the Penal Laws to disenfranchise and persecute the nation's Catholic majority, and to a lesser extent Protestant Dissenters, until Catholic Emancipation in 1829.
Drumcree Parish Church, officially The Church of the Ascension, is the Church of Ireland parish church of Drumcree in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It sits on a hill in the townland of Drumcree, outside Portadown. It is a site of historic significance and is a listed building.
Ulster loyalism is a strand of Ulster unionism associated with working class Ulster Protestants in Northern Ireland. Like other unionists, loyalists support the continued existence of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom, and oppose a united Ireland independent of the UK. Unlike other strands of unionism, loyalism has been described as an ethnic nationalism of Ulster Protestants and "a variation of British nationalism". Loyalists are often said to have a conditional loyalty to the British state so long as it defends their interests. They see themselves as loyal primarily to the Protestant British monarchy rather than to British governments and institutions, while Garret FitzGerald argued they are loyal to 'Ulster' over 'the Union'. A small minority of loyalists have called for an independent Ulster Protestant state, believing they cannot rely on British governments to support them. The term 'loyalism' is usually associated with paramilitarism.
The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants. It also has lodges in England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland, as well as in parts of the Commonwealth of Nations and the United States.
The Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland, or Loyal Orange Institution of Scotland, Orange Order in Scotland, The Orange Order is the oldest and biggest Protestant fraternity in Scotland. The Loyal Orange Institution was an official participant in the 2014 independence referendum. Its headquarters are in Motherwell, having previously been in Bridgeton, Glasgow with 15,000 members in the Scottish Lowlands.
This article recounts the violence and other effects related to The Troubles in Portadown, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. Much of it has been related to the Drumcree parade dispute.
Banners are a significant part of the Culture of Northern Ireland, particularly for the Protestant/unionist community, and one of the region's most prominent types of folk art. They are typically carried in parades such as those held on the Twelfth of July, Saint Patrick's Day and other times throughout the year. Generally these are organised by societies such as the Orange Order, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the Royal Black Institution and the Apprentice Boys of Derry, and the banners are typically commissioned by, and represent, a lodge within one of these societies. Banners are also carried by trade unions and church groups, and by marching bands. Most banners are painted by professionals and executed on silk, although canvas was a more popular material in the past. Most have a painting on each side, usually depicting different subjects, and the name and number of the lodge. Most banners have one subject per side, surrounded by flourishes, scrolls, and other decoration. Despite being in many ways a sectarian art form, Catholic and Protestant banners are usually very similar in terms of style and composition. Apart from subject matter, the main difference is colour: Orange Order banners make heavy use of the colour orange and to a lesser extent red, white, blue and purple, while Catholic banners tend to feature a lot of green.
Parades are a prominent cultural feature of Northern Ireland. The overwhelming majority of parades are held by Ulster Protestant, unionist or Ulster loyalist groups, but some Irish nationalist, republican and non-political groups also parade. Due to longstanding controversy surrounding the contentious nature of some parades, a quasi-judicial public body, the Parades Commission, exists to place conditions and settle disputes. Although not all parading groups recognise the Commission's authority, its decisions are legally binding.
The Loyal Orange Institution, better known as the Orange Order, is a Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland. It has been a strong supporter of Irish unionism and has had close links with the Ulster Unionist Party, which governed Northern Ireland from 1922 to 1972. The Orange Order has lodges throughout Ireland, although it is strongest in the North. There are also branches throughout the Commonwealth, and in the United States. In the 20th century, the organisation went into sharp decline outside Northern Ireland and County Donegal. McGarry, John; O'Leary, Brendan (1995). Explaining Northern Ireland: Broken Images. Blackwell Publishers. p. 180. ISBN 978-0-631-18349-5.; The Orange marches</ref> The Order has a substantial fraternal and benevolent component.
The Drumcree conflict or Drumcree standoff is a dispute over yearly parades in the town of Portadown, Northern Ireland. The town is mainly Protestant and hosts numerous Protestant marches each summer, but has a significant Catholic minority. The Orange Order insists that it should be allowed to march its traditional route to and from Drumcree Church on the Sunday before the Twelfth of July. However, most of this route is through the mainly Catholic/Irish nationalist part of town. The residents, who see the march as sectarian, triumphalist and supremacist, have sought to ban it from their area.
The city of Derry, Northern Ireland, was severely affected by the Troubles. The conflict is widely considered to have begun in the city, with many regarding the Battle of the Bogside in 1969 as the beginning of the Troubles. The Bloody Sunday incident of 1972 occurred in Derry, in the Bogside area.
From 6 to 11 July 1997 there were mass protests, fierce riots and gun battles in Irish nationalist districts of Northern Ireland. Irish nationalists/republicans, in some cases supported by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), attacked the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) and British Army. The protests and violence were sparked by the decision to allow the Orange Order to march through a Catholic/nationalist neighbourhood of Portadown. Irish nationalists were outraged by the decision and by the RUC's aggressive treatment of those protesting against the march. There had been a bitter dispute over the march for many years.
The Dolly's Brae conflict occurred in County Down in Ulster on 12 July 1849. A contested procession by Orangemen resulted in a skirmish between the Orangemen, local Catholics and Ribbonmen and government troops. These troops successfully escorted the Orange procession through the waiting Catholics. However, on the return to Ballyward, the procession was ambushed by the Catholics, namely the Ribbonmen.
The flag of the Orange Order, also known as the Boyne Standard, or the Orange Standard, is the flag used by a Northern Irish Protestant fraternal organisation, the Orange Order. The flag consists of an orange background with a purple star and a Saint George's Cross in canton.
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