Every 1st of July in many towns here in Northern Ireland, marches are held by groups with a Protestant orientation. The marches are organized by Lodges of the Orange Order and they are accompanied by a marching band.

This is to commemorate the Battle of Boyne, which occurred on the east coast of Ireland in 1690. It's also known as "Orangemen's Day", "Orange Day", "the Glorious Twelfth" or simply "the Twelfth".

The Battle of the Boyne

This battle was held on July 1 1690, 30 miles north of Dublin, on the banks of the River Boyne on the East coast of Ireland. The battle was between Prince William of Orange, a Dutch protestant and his uncle, the Catholic James II. Prince William of Orange won the battle and he became King William III.

The Battle of the Boyne symbolizes the struggles between Catholics and Protestants in Ireland. King James representing the Catholics and Prince William representing the Protestants. And the Battle of Boyne began the Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland.

The Battle of the Boyne is now commemorated on July 12 but it was held on July 1, 1690. The shift in the date is due to the Julian calendar changeover to the Gregorian calendar. The Gregorian calendar was adopted in Ireland in 1752 and September 14 followed September 2. Many dates in the calendar were mapped into the new calendar without correcting or checking it. However, the Orange Orders continued to march on the corrected date of July 12.

Participants in the parade, often wear dark suits and they usually remove their jackets if it is hot. Traditionally they wear black bowler hats and white gloves. The participants also wear collarettes which are made from a long thin piece of cloth, draped around the neck of the wearer and joined to form a “V” shape at the front. The collarettes are made from orange cloth and they bear the number of the lodge that the wearer belongs to and badges showing the person’s positions in the lodge.

Most of the Lodges carry at least one flag during the marches. This is normally the Union Flag or the Union Jack, while some carry Ulster, Scottish or Orange Order flags.  Different lodges also carry one or more banner that displays the name and number of the lodge on one side. The other side often displays images of William of Orange, local landmarks, the bible with a crown or deceased lodge members just like in the photo below.

Here are some of the Lodges and Bands that march in Comber on the 1st of July:

Comber True Blues Lodge

Lily of the Valley Accordion Band

This is special because my mother-in-law used to be in this band. She always asks me if I see her band every time we go watch the parade.

That's Mum and my brother in law when he was 5 in the picture. She is playing with the accordion under the Lily of the Valley Accordion Band. If only the accordion was still here I could have asked her to play it for us. But sadly, her sister ask for the accordion last year and she gave it away.

Comber Standard Lodge

Crimson Star Band

Flute Band

Goldsprings of Comber Lodge

The Twelfth is a bank holiday in Northern Ireland. And there's always a local disruption to traffic on this Day as the local lodges and bands march through the town and certain districts. It can also be observed and celebrated in other parts of the United Kingdom (Scotland, England and Wales) where it is not a bank holiday.

Here are some of the bands from all over Northern Ireland here in Comber(2018)

Everyone in our town gathered in the streets to watch the parade. The kids are fun to watch as they enjoy it the most.

And here is Tia when she was wee watching the band:

Thank you for reading!