Thousands to attend NI’s Orange Order parades

Crowds will line the streets of cities, towns and villages all over Northern Ireland on Saturday to attend Twelfth of July parades.

Thousands of Orange Order members take part in the annual marches to commemorate the anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

The event is also a celebration of Protestant traditions and Ulster-Scots heritage.

Members of local Orange lodges will be joined on parade by visiting lodges from Scotland and further afield.

They will be accompanied by marching bands and supported by tens of thousands of spectators, many of whom dress up in colourful costume for the occasion.

This year’s events are concentrated at 18 locations, with members travelling to converge with neighbouring lodges at the nearest host venue.

This year marks the 335th anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne, which took place outside Drogheda in what is now the Republic of Ireland.

The battle ended in victory for the Protestant King William III over his Catholic father-in-law, the deposed King James II.

On Friday night, hundreds of bonfires were lit to mark Eleventh Night – a tradition observed by many unionist communities on the eve of the Twelfth.

The bonfires commemorate the actions of King William III’s supporters in 1690, who lit fires across the countryside to welcome and guide him to the battle site.

Most Eleventh Night bonfires pass without incident, but some are controversial due to their height or location, or because they contain symbols considered offensive.

This year a bonfire in south Belfast caused concern because of the presence of asbestos on the site, and the fact it was close to an electricity substation which supplies power to two nearby hospitals.

The bonfire, between the Donegall Road and the Westlink, was lit on Friday night after police confirmed they would not assist in removing it.