113-532: The Newfoundland National Convention of 1946 to 1948 was a forum established to decide the constitutional future of Newfoundland . On 11 December 1945 the British Government announced that there would be an election to a national convention, which would debate constitutional options and make a recommendation as to which options would appear on a ballot in a national referendum. British Prime Minister Clement Attlee wanted to ensure that people from St John's,
226-455: A Newfoundland National Convention would be elected to advise on what constitutional choices should be voted on by referendum. Union with the United States was a possibility, but Britain rejected the option and offered instead two options: return to dominion status or continuation of the unpopular Commission. Canada cooperated with Britain to ensure that the option of closer ties with America
339-457: A Scottish peer, Lord Amulree . Its report, released in 1933, assessed Newfoundland's political culture as intrinsically corrupt and its economic prospects as bleak, and advocated the abolition of responsible government and its replacement by a Commission of the British Government. Acting on the report's recommendations, Alderdice's government voted itself out of existence in December 1933. In 1934,
452-560: A barn which was then set alight, with the Catholic and Protestant rebels ensuring none escaped, not even a child who it is claimed managed to break out only for a rebel to kill with his pike. In the trials that followed the massacres, evidence was recorded of anti-Orange sentiments being expressed by the rebels at Scullabogue. Partly as a result of this atrocity, the Orange Order quickly grew and large numbers of gentry with experience gained in
565-506: A battle when the priest who accompanied the Defenders persuaded them to seek a truce, after a group called the "Bleary Boys" came from County Down to reinforce the Peep o' Day Boys. When a contingent of Defenders from County Tyrone arrived on 21 September, however, they were "determined to fight". The Peep o' Day Boys quickly regrouped and opened fire on the Defenders. According to William Blacker ,
678-523: A colony until the 1907 Imperial Conference resolved to confer dominion status on all self-governing colonies in attendance. The annual holiday of Dominion Day was celebrated each 26 September to commemorate the occasion. Newfoundland's own regiment, the 1st Newfoundland Regiment , fought in the First World War . On 1 July 1916, the German Army wiped out most of that regiment at Beaumont Hamel on
791-513: A commission of enquiry, headed by Thomas Hollis-Walker, reviewed the scandal. Soon after, the Squires government fell. Squires returned to power in 1928 because of the unpopularity of his successors, the pro-business Walter Stanley Monroe and (briefly) Frederick C. Alderdice (Monroe's cousin), but found himself governing a country suffering from the Great Depression . The Judicial Committee of
904-505: A debate about protests against Protestant woman Letitia Dunbar-Harrison being appointed as County Librarian in County Mayo . Two years later he stated: "I have always said that I am an Orangeman first and a politician and a member of this parliament afterwards ... All I boast is that we have a Protestant Parliament and a Protestant State ". At its peak in 1965, the Order's membership
1017-505: A delegation be sent to Washington, DC, to seek terms of union but his motion was not passed by the assembly. Thus, union with the United States was effectively taken off the table. A motion to place confederation with Canada on the ballot was defeated 29 to 16. Joey Smallwood felt slighted by what he called "twenty-nine dictators". Smallwood and his Confederates took the matter public. Newfoundland's Governor, Gordon Macdonald announced on 11 March 1948 that confederation with Canada would be on
1130-519: A heart attack and died suddenly. Smallwood's motion revealed that confederation with Canada had only a minority of support in the Convention, but it was now on the agenda and the confederates used the radio broadcasts of the convention to tell the people of Newfoundland and Labrador of the financial advantages that joining Canada would bring. The convention adjourned on 13 December for the Christmas break, but
1243-569: A landowner who had represented Cavan as a Liberal and who had ridiculed the order's "big drums", donned an Orange sash . Saunderson, who went on to lead the Irish Unionist Alliance at Westminster, had concluded that "the Orange society is alone capable of dealing with the condition of anarchy and rebellion which prevail in Ireland". After Gladstone 's first Home Rule Bill was defeated in
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#17328480882011356-512: A massive police / army operation, and threatened to derail the peace process . The situation in Portadown was likened to a "war zone" and a "siege". During this time, supporters of the Orangemen murdered at least six Catholic civilians. In 1995 and 1996, residents succeeded in stopping the march. This led to a standoff at Drumcree between the security forces and thousands of loyalists . Following
1469-462: A minority in the National Convention. On 28 October 1946, Joseph R. Smallwood moved that a delegation be sent to Ottawa to discuss Terms of Union with Canada. More motions and amendments were passed in the days following, when on 30 October Kenneth M. Brown , the delegate from Bonavista South, collapsed on the floor of the chamber. Tragedy struck again when on 16 November, Judge Fox suffered
1582-404: A more violent and jingoist vehicle for the promotion of Unionism. Some anti-Masonic evangelical Christian groups have claimed that the Orange Order is still influenced by freemasonry. Many Masonic traditions survive, such as the organisation of the Order into lodges. The Order has a similar system of degrees through which new members advance. These degrees are interactive plays with references to
1695-654: A name that recognized the landing of William of Orange in England and the start of the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Its flag, known as the Boyne Standard and Orange Standard , has a field of orange with a purple star and a St. George's Cross in the upper left corner. Orange represents the monarchs in the House of Orange. The basis of the modern Orange Order is the promotion and propagation of "biblical Protestantism " and
1808-526: A national flag and established an external affairs department in 1931. Although the legislature of Newfoundland gave its assent to the passage of the Statute of Westminster, when the Statute was finalised the Newfoundland delegation requested that it not come into effect in Newfoundland until the legislature had consented to the application of the statute. The legislature of Newfoundland never gave its consent, so
1921-512: A national referendum ballot along with dominion government and the Commission. On 3 June 1948, the first of two Newfoundland referendums was held on the advice of the convention. Voters had three options: The option for responsible government (dominion status) won a plurality, but not an absolute majority. The Governor and Commissioners called for a second national referendum, one between confederation and dominion status. Anti-Confederates wanted
2034-756: A native of Prince Edward Island , won a parliamentary majority over Sir Hugh Hoyles and the Conservatives . Little formed the first administration from 1855 to 1858. Newfoundland sent two delegates to the Quebec Conference in 1864 which resulted in Canadian Confederation , but the option of joining was not popular in Newfoundland. In the 1869 general election, Newfoundlanders rejected confederation with Canada. Sir John Thompson , Prime Minister of Canada , came very close to negotiating Newfoundland's entry into Confederation in 1892. Newfoundland remained
2147-712: A new Independent Orange Order (IOO). Within the year, the Independents had nine lodges in Ballymoney alone. The split had first occurred in Belfast. In laying the foundation stone of the Working Men's Institute in Belfast in 1870, William Johnston had welcomed Catholics and Protestants uniting "around the flag of 'The United Working Classes of Belfast' determined to show that there are times and circumstances when religious differences and party creeds must be forgotten". Others within
2260-507: A one-way affair, because any union between the two dominions was dictated by the provisions of the British North America Act (BNA), under which Canada had come into being in 1867. P. W. Crummey had the hardest portfolio. Because the economy of his district was almost exclusively fishery-oriented, he was assigned to negotiate maritime issues. Crummey quickly discovered that after Confederation, Newfoundland would lose control of
2373-583: A part in framing the laws of the land. The likelihood of Irish Catholic members holding the balance of power in the Westminster Parliament further increased the alarm of Orangemen in Ireland, as O'Connell's 'Repeal' movement aimed to bring about the restoration of a separate Irish Parliament in Dublin, which would have a Catholic majority, thereby ending the Protestant Ascendancy. From this moment on,
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#17328480882012486-549: A persecution is now raging in this country ... the only crime is ... profession of the Roman Catholic faith. Lawless banditti have constituted themselves judges ... and the sentence they have denounced ... is nothing less than a confiscation of all property, and an immediate banishment. A former Grand Master of the Order, also called William Blacker, and a former County Grand Master of Belfast, Robert Hugh Wallace have questioned this statement, saying whoever
2599-469: A seat, the first time that Labrador had elected representation. The National Convention was convened on 11 September 1946. Judge Cyril J. Fox of the Supreme Court of Newfoundland chaired the proceedings until his death. He was succeeded as chairman by Convention Member Gordon Bradley for most of the rest of the convention's duration, but after Bradley's resignation, the lawyer J. B. McEvoy served in
2712-655: A senior Orange fraternity. Since the Fenian -organised funeral in Dublin for Terence McManus in 1861, Johnston had been asking: "If Nationalists are allowed such mobilisation, why are loyal Orangemen not allowed to march freely". On the Orange Twelfth 1867, he forced the issue by leading a large procession of Orangemen from Bangor to Newtownards in County Down . The contravention of the Party Procession Act earned him
2825-648: A significant amount of debt by building a railway across the island , which was completed in the 1890s, and by raising its own regiment during the First World War . In November 1932, the government warned that Newfoundland would default on payments on the public debt. The British government quickly established the Newfoundland Royal Commission to inquire into and report on the position. The commission's report, published in October 1933, recommended that Newfoundland give up self-government temporarily and allow
2938-602: A two-month prison sentence. The following year, as the standard bearer of United Protestant Working Men's Association of Ulster, Johnston was returned to Parliament for Belfast. By the late 19th century, the Order was in decline. However, its fortunes were revived in the 1880s after its embrace by the landlords in opposition to both the Irish Land League , presided over by nationalist leader Charles Stuart Parnell , and Home Rule . In response to Gladstone 's first Irish Home Rule Bill 1886 , Colonel Edward Saunderson ,
3051-423: A vote for responsible government) took part. No party advocated petitioning Britain to continue the Commission of Government. Canada had issued an invitation to join it on generous financial terms. Smallwood was the leading proponent of confederation with Canada, insisting, "Today we are more disposed to feel that our very manhood, our very creation by God, entitles us to standards of life no lower than our brothers on
3164-515: A vote of 52 to 48 percent for confederation. Newfoundland joined Canada in the final hours of 31 March 1949. Orange Lodge Defunct 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
3277-506: A wave of loyalist violence, the march was allowed through. In 1997, security forces locked down the Catholic area and forced the march through, citing loyalist threats. This sparked widespread protests and violence by Irish nationalists. From 1998 onward the march was banned from Garvaghy Road and the Catholic area was sealed-off with large barricades. For a few years, there was an annual major standoff at Drumcree and widespread loyalist violence. Since 2001, things have been relatively calm, but
3390-1146: Is a tribute to the Dutch-born Protestant king William of Orange , who defeated Catholic king James II in the Williamite–Jacobite War (1689–1691). The Order is best known for its yearly marches , the biggest of which are held on or around 12 July ( The Twelfth ), a public holiday in Northern Ireland. The Orange Order is a conservative, British unionist and Ulster loyalist organisation. Thus it has traditionally opposed Irish nationalism / republicanism and campaigned against Scottish independence . The Order sees itself as defending Protestant civil and religious liberties, whilst critics accuse it of being sectarian , triumphalist , and supremacist . It does not accept non-Protestants as members unless they convert and adhere to its principles, nor does it accept Protestants married to non-Protestants. Orange marches through Catholic neighbourhoods are controversial and have often led to violence, such as
3503-702: The Battle of the Boyne . Since the 1690s commemorations had been held throughout Ireland celebrating key dates in the Williamite War such as the Battle of Aughrim , Battle of the Boyne , Siege of Derry and the second Siege of Limerick . These followed a tradition started in Elizabethan England of celebrating key events in the Protestant calendar. By the 1740s there were organisations holding parades in Dublin such as
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3616-582: The Drumcree conflict . The Orange Order celebrates the civil and religious privileges conferred on Protestants by William of Orange , the Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic who became King of England , Scotland , and Ireland in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. The Order regularly commemorates the victories of William III and his forces during the Williamite War in Ireland in the early 1690s, especially
3729-525: The House of Assembly ) and forced Prime Minister Squires to flee. Squires lost an election held later in 1932. The next government, led once more by Alderdice, called upon the British government to take direct control until Newfoundland could become self-sustaining. The United Kingdom, concerned over Newfoundland's likelihood of defaulting on its war-debt payments, established the Newfoundland Royal Commission , headed by
3842-490: The House of Commons on 8 June 1886, Irish Home-Rule MPs in the House accused the Order's Belfast Grand Master, the Church of Ireland rector Richard Rutledge Kane of fomenting the violent rioting in Belfast that took 32 lives. RIC constables had been brought in from other parts of Ireland, many of them Catholic, when revellers, celebrating the defeat, had begun attacking Catholic homes and businesses. Kane did not counter
3955-575: The Irish Free State in 1922 and then in 1949 a Republic . The Orange Order had a central place in the new state of Northern Ireland. From 1921 to 1969, every prime minister of Northern Ireland was an Orangeman and member of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP); all but three Cabinet ministers were Orangemen; all but one unionist senators were Orangemen; and 87 of the 95 MPs who did not become Cabinet Ministers were Orangemen. James Craig ,
4068-666: The Irish Transport and General Workers' Union leader, James Larkin . The Grand Master of the Independents, R. Lindsay Crawford outlined the new order's democratic manifesto in Orangeism, its history and progress: a plea for first principles (1904). However, his subsequent call in the Magheramorne Manifesto (1904) on Irish Protestants to "reconsider their position as Irish citizens and their attitude towards their Roman Catholic countrymen" proved too much for Sloan and most of
4181-704: The Irish language , he was in company of Henry Henry , the Catholic Bishop of Down and Connor , but also Thomas Welland , the Church of Ireland Bishop of Down, Connor and Dromore , and George Raphael Buick, Moderator of the Presbyterian Church and branch vice president. The Branch president was Kane's parishioner, Dr. John St Clair Boyd . There was a time, historian Brian Kennaway remarks, when Orangemen, still regarding themselves as Irish patriots, "had no problem with
4294-543: The Newfoundland Act, 1933 , and on 16 February 1934, the British government appointed six commissioners, three from Newfoundland and three from the United Kingdom, with the governor as chairman. The system of a six-member Commission of Government continued to govern Newfoundland until Newfoundland joined Canada in 1949 to become Canada's tenth province. The official name of the dominion was "Newfoundland" and not, as
4407-682: The Republic of Ireland , as well as in parts of the Commonwealth of Nations and the United States . The Orange Order was founded by Ulster Protestants in County Armagh in 1795, during a period of Protestant–Catholic sectarian conflict , as a fraternity sworn to maintain the Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. The all-island Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland was established in 1798. Its name
4520-640: The Ulster Unionist Council decided to bring these groups under central control, creating the Ulster Volunteer Force , an Ulster-wide militia dedicated to resisting Home Rule. There was a strong overlap between Orange Lodges and UVF units. A large shipment of rifles was imported from Germany to arm them in April 1914, in what became known as the Larne gun-running . However, the crisis was interrupted by
4633-470: The first day on the Somme , inflicting 90 percent casualties. Yet the regiment went on to serve with distinction in several subsequent battles, earning the prefix "Royal". Despite people's pride in the accomplishments of the regiment, Newfoundland's war debt and pension responsibility for the regiment and the cost of maintaining a trans-island railway led to increased and ultimately unsustainable government debt in
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4746-682: The Bible. There is particular concern over the ritualism of higher degrees such as the Royal Arch Purple and the Royal Black Institutions . The Order considers important the Fourth Commandment , and that it forbids Christians to work, or engage in non-religious activity generally, on Sundays. When the Twelfth of July falls on a Sunday the parades traditionally held on that date are held
4859-578: The Boyne Club and the Protestant Society, both seen as forerunners to the Orange Order. Throughout the 1780s, sectarian tension had been building in County Armagh , largely due to the relaxation of the Penal Laws . Here the number of Protestants and Catholics (in what was then Ireland's most populous county) were of roughly equal number, and competition between them to rent patches of land near markets
4972-664: The British Parliament passed the Newfoundland Act, 1933 which suspended Newfoundland's Legislature and established the Commission of Government . Letters patent passed under the act provided that Newfoundland was ruled by the governor, who reported to the Colonial Secretary in London, and the commission, appointed by the British government. Newfoundland remained a dominion in name only. The Newfoundland Supreme Court held that
5085-548: The Governor believed were the "lawless banditti", they could not have been Orangemen as there were no lodges in existence at the time of his speech. According to historian Jim Smyth: Later apologists rather implausibly deny any connection between the Peep-o'-Day Boys and the first Orangemen or, even less plausibly, between the Orangemen and the mass wrecking of Catholic cottages in Armagh in
5198-411: The Grand Banks because the BNA designated fisheries as under federal jurisdiction. Crummey also sensed that the federal negotiators intended to draw out the negotiations. A National Delegate named Robert Brown Job suggested economic union with the United States. Another National Delegate named Chesley Crosbie subsequently created the Economic Union Party . On 11 April 1947, David Jackman moved that
5311-532: The Irish language". (Kane's memorial at the Clifton Street Orange Hall over whose opening he had presided in 1885, commends him as a "Loyal Irish Patriot"). Famously, when in 1880, as part of its campaign for the Three Fs (fair rent, fixity of tenure, and free sale) and of resistance to evictions, the Land League organised the withdrawal of labour from Captain Charles Boycott , a land agent in County Mayo , Orangemen from County Cavan and County Monaghan , under military and police protection, helped bring in
5424-415: The National Convention dispatched the Ottawa Delegation to negotiate the Terms of Union for confederation between Newfoundland and Canada. While the British government had offered nothing, the Canadian Government wanted Newfoundland as a province so they were prepared to negotiate support for the new province. There was a limit to that however as it was not possible to offer Newfoundland any special deal that
5537-527: The Orange Institution of Great Britain, advised the Marquess that following "a death of importance" (the passing of the King), the Orangemen would abandon their policy of "non-resistance" to the present "Popish Cabinet, and democratical Ministry" (the parliamentary reform ministry of Earl Grey ) and that "it might be political to join" them. Londonderry demurred: he had no doubt that the Duke of Cumberland would be persuaded that "the present state of liberal Whig feeling in this very Whig county ... entirely preclude
5650-439: The Orange Order re-emerged in a new and even more militant form. In 1835 Parliament conducted an enquiry into Orangeism and declared the oaths of the Orange Order to be illegal and prohibited their demonstrations and parades. In 1836 the Order was accused of plotting to place Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland and Imperial Grand Master of the Orange Order, on the throne in place of Victoria when King William IV died; once
5763-430: The Order regarded such unity as tantamount to religious and national ecumenism . Such differences came to a head in 1902, in the contest to succeed Johnston as MP for Belfast South (and at time when four fifths of lodge masters in the city were workingmen). Thomas Sloan established the Independent lodges after he had been expelled by the Order for running as the nominee of the Belfast Protestant Association against
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#17328480882015876-419: The Order since 1921. On the Sunday before 12 July each year, Orangemen in Portadown would traditionally march to-and-from Drumcree Church . Originally, most of the route was farmland, but is now the densely populated Catholic part of town. The residents have sought to re-route the march away from this area, seeing it as "triumphalist" and " supremacist ". There have been intermittent violent clashes during
5989-410: The Order still campaigns for the right to march on Garvaghy Road. The dispute led to a short-lived boycott of businesses owned by Orangemen and their supporters elsewhere in the region. Membership of the Order was historically lower in areas where Protestants are in the majority, and vice versa. In County Fermanagh , where the Catholic and Protestant populations are close to parity, membership in 1971
6102-454: The Privy Council resolved Newfoundland's long-standing Labrador boundary dispute with Canada to the satisfaction of Newfoundland and against Canada (and, in particular, contrary to the wishes of Quebec , the province that bordered Labrador) with a ruling on 1 April 1927. Prior to 1867, the Quebec North Shore portion of the "Labrador coast" had shuttled back and forth between the colonies of Lower Canada and Newfoundland. Maps up to 1927 showed
6215-414: The Protestant people by the Catholics". Historian Richard R Madden wrote that "efforts were made to infuse into the mind of the Protestant feelings of distrust to his Catholic fellow-countrymen". MP Thomas Knox wrote in August 1796 that "As for the Orangemen, we have rather a difficult card to play ... we must to a certain degree uphold them, for with all their licentiousness, on them we must rely for
6328-455: The Union. In the early nineteenth century, Orangemen were heavily involved in violent conflict with an Irish Catholic secret society called the Ribbonmen . One instance, publicised in a 7 October 1816 edition of the Boston Commercial Gazette , included the murder of a Catholic priest and several members of the congregation of Dumreilly parish in County Cavan on 25 May 1816. According to the article, "A number of Orangemen with arms rushed into
6441-399: The United Kingdom to administer it by an appointed commission. The Newfoundland parliament accepted the recommendations; it then presented a petition to the King to ask for the suspension of the constitution and the appointment of commissioners to administer the government until the country became self-supporting again. To enable compliance with the request, the British Parliament passed
6554-408: The United States". Advocates of union with Canada denounced the Economic Union Party as republican, disloyal and anti-British. No American initiative for union was ever created. As soon as prosperity returned during the war, agitation began to end the commission. Newfoundland, with a population of 313,000 (plus 5,200 in Labrador), seemed too small to be independent. In 1945, London announced that
6667-561: The United States, which could be a major source of capital. The result proved inconclusive, with 44.5 percent supporting the restoration of dominion status, 41.1 percent for confederation with Canada, and 14.3 percent for continuing the Commission of Government. Due to no option getting at least 50 percent of the vote, a second referendum with the top two options from the first referendum was scheduled to be held on 22 July. The second referendum, on 22 July 1948, asked Newfoundlanders to choose between confederation and dominion status, and produced
6780-507: The ballot. After much debate, the first referendum took place on 3 June 1948, to decide between continuing with the Commission of Government, reverting to dominion status, or joining Canadian Confederation . Three parties participated in the referendum campaign: Smallwood's Confederate Association campaigned for the confederation option while in the anti-confederation campaign Peter Cashin 's Responsible Government League and Chesley Crosbie 's Economic Union Party (both of which called for
6893-421: The battle was short and the Defenders suffered "not less than thirty" deaths. After the battle had ended, the Peep o' Days marched into Loughgall, and in the house of James Sloan they founded the Orange Order, which was to be a Protestant defence association made up of lodges. The principal pledge of these lodges was to defend "the King and his heirs so long as he or they support the Protestant Ascendancy ". At
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#17328480882017006-445: The capital and largest city, did not dominate the seats, so he recommended that delegates would be elected in the former electoral districts and that each delegate would have to have been a resident of the district. Nominations to the National Convention were held on 31 May 1946, and on 21 June 1946 Newfoundlanders elected 45 delegates. Two women offered themselves as candidates, but neither was elected. Lester Burry of Labrador secured
7119-448: The chair. The Commissioner of Home Affairs issued pay cheques to delegates: $ 15 a day, with a travelling stipend of $ 10 per day. Observers allowed in the gallery and the general public could listen to the debates on radio stations VOCM, VOAR and the state-run Broadcasting Corporation of Newfoundland station, VONF. Some delegates who were critical of the Commission of Government used the opportunity to demand that Commissioners justify to
7232-624: The church and fired upon the congregation". On 19 July 1823 the Unlawful Oaths Bill was passed, banning all oath-bound societies in Ireland. This included the Orange Order, which had to be dissolved and reconstituted. In 1825 a bill banning unlawful associations – largely directed at Daniel O'Connell and his Catholic Association , compelled the Orangemen once more to dissolve their association. When Westminster finally granted Catholic Emancipation in 1829, Roman Catholics were free to take seats as MPs (and take up various other positions of influence and power from which they had been excluded) and play
7345-414: The coastal region as part of Newfoundland, with an undefined boundary. The Privy Council ruling established a boundary along the drainage divide separating waters that flowed through the territory to the Labrador coast, although following two straight lines from the Romaine River along the 52nd parallel , then south near 57 degrees west longitude to the Gulf of Saint Lawrence . Quebec has long rejected
7458-413: The conflict, the Order had a fractious relationship with loyalist paramilitary groups, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), the Independent Orange Order and the Free Presbyterian Church . The Order urged its members not to join these organisations, and it is only recently that some of these intra-unionist breaches have been healed. The Drumcree dispute is perhaps the most well-known episode involving
7571-421: The convention some of their policies. However, Governor Gordon MacDonald explained that delegates were not the Government of Newfoundland, but were convened to debate the constitutional options which would appear on a ballot in a forthcoming referendum. Many delegates believed Newfoundland should return to responsible government and self-determination; delegates sympathetic to Confederation with Canada were in
7684-428: The country and encouraged Defender recruitment, creating a proto-army for the United Irishmen to utilise. The United Irishmen launched a rebellion in 1798 . In Ulster, most of the United Irish commanders and many of the rebels were Protestant. Orangemen were recruited into the yeomanry to help fight the rebellion and "proved an invaluable addition to government forces". No attempt was made to disarm Orangemen outside
7797-404: The current rules use the wording "non-reformed faith" instead. Converts to Protestantism can join by appealing to Grand Lodge. James Wilson and James Sloan, who issued the warrants for the first Lodges of the Orange Order along with 'Diamond' Dan Winter, were Freemasons , and in the 19th century many Irish Republicans regarded the Orange Order as a front group established by Unionist Masons as
7910-418: The dominion was the " Ode to Newfoundland ", written by British colonial governor Sir Cavendish Boyle in 1902 during his administration of Newfoundland (1901 to 1904). It was adopted as the dominion's anthem on 20 May 1904, until confederation with Canada in 1949. In 1980, the province of Newfoundland re-adopted the song as a provincial anthem. The "Ode to Newfoundland" continues to be heard at public events in
8023-405: The entire of its Roman Catholic population", with notices posted warning them "to Hell or Connaught". Other people were warned by notices not to inform on local Orangemen or "I will Blow your Soul to the Low hils of Hell And Burn the House you are in". Within two months, 7,000 Catholics had been driven out of County Armagh. According to Lord Gosford , the governor of Armagh: It is no secret that
8136-464: The first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, maintained always that Ulster was in effect Protestant and the symbol of its ruling forces was the Orange Order. In 1932, Prime Minister Craig maintained that "ours is a Protestant government and I am an Orangeman". This was in response to a speech the year before by Éamon de Valera in the Irish Free State claiming that Ireland was a "Catholic nation" in
8249-507: The first paycheques they had seen in years by working on construction and in dockside crews. National income doubled as an economic boom took place in the Avalon Peninsula and to a lesser degree in Gander , Botwood , and Stephenville . The United States became the main supplier, and American money and influence diffused rapidly from the military, naval, and air bases. Prosperity returned to
8362-696: The first to contribute to repair funds for Catholic property damaged in the rebellion. One major outcome of the United Irishmen rebellion was the 1800 Act of Union that merged the Irish Parliament with that of Westminster, creating the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . Many Catholics supported the Act, but the Orange Order saw it as a threat to the "Protestant constitution" and 36 lodges in counties Armagh and Monaghan alone passed declarations opposing
8475-544: The fishing industry by 1943. Government revenues, aided by inflation and new income, quadrupled, even though Newfoundland had tax rates much lower than those in Canada, Britain, or the United States. To the astonishment of all, Newfoundland started financing loans to London. Wartime prosperity ended the long depression and reopened the question of political status. The American Bases Act became law in Newfoundland on 11 June 1941, with American personnel creating drastic social change on
8588-489: The following year. Dominion of Newfoundland Newfoundland was a British dominion in eastern North America, today the modern Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador . It included the island of Newfoundland , and Labrador on the continental mainland. Newfoundland was one of the original dominions under the Balfour Declaration of 1926 , and accordingly enjoyed a constitutional status equivalent to
8701-447: The government hoped to thwart it by backing the Orange Order from 1796 onward. Irish nationalist historians Thomas A. Jackson and John Mitchel argued that the government's goal was to hinder the United Irishmen by fomenting sectarianism , thereby creating disunity and disorder under pretence of "passion for the Protestant religion". Mitchel wrote that the government invented and spread "fearful rumours of intended massacres of all
8814-495: The harvest on his employer's estate. But among Orangemen there was tenant-farmer support for reform. One reason the majority Irish Conservatives at Westminster did not oppose Gladstone's 1881 Land Act conceding the three F's was their recognition that "the land grievance had been a bond of discontent between Ulster and the rest of Ireland and in that sense a danger to the union". Quite apart from participation in local tenant-right associations, they had reports of Orangemen in
8927-625: The island. This included significant intermarriage between Newfoundland women and American personnel. In October 1943, the weather station Kurt was erected in Newfoundland, marking Nazi Germany 's only armed operation on land in North America. A new political party formed in Newfoundland to support closer ties with the US, the Economic Union Party , which Karl McNeil Earle characterizes as "a short-lived but lively movement for economic union with
9040-453: The leader of the confederates and moved for the inclusion of a third option – that of confederation with Canada. The Convention defeated his motion, but he did not give up, instead gathering more than 5,000 petition signatures within a fortnight , which he sent to London through the governor. Britain insisted that it would not give Newfoundland any further financial assistance, but added this third option of having Newfoundland join Canada to
9153-581: The mainland." Due to persistence, he succeeded in having the Canada option on the referendum. His main opponents were Cashin and Crosbie. Cashin, a former finance minister, led the Responsible Government League, warning against cheap Canadian imports and the high Canadian income tax. Crosbie, a leader of the fishing industry, led the Party for Economic Union with the United States, seeking responsible government first, to be followed by closer ties with
9266-559: The march since the 19th century. The onset of the Troubles led to the dispute intensifying in the 1970s and 1980s. At this time, the most contentious part of the march was the outward leg along Obins Street. After serious violence two years in a row, the march was banned from Obins Street in 1986. The focus then shifted to the return leg along Garvaghy Road. Each July from 1995 to 2000, the dispute drew worldwide attention as it sparked protests and violence throughout Northern Ireland, prompted
9379-440: The membership, and Crawford was eventually expelled. From the outset, the Orange Order was instrumental in the formation of a distinct Ulster unionism. In 1905, when the Ulster Unionist Council was established to bring together unionists in the north including, the Order was given 50 of 200 seats, It was a position within the constitution of the Ulster Unionist Party that the order was to maintain until voting to sever ties with
9492-718: The months following 'the Diamond' – all of them, however, acknowledge the movement's lower-class origins. The Order's three main founders were James Wilson (founder of the Orange Boys), Daniel Winter and James Sloan. The first Orange lodge was established in nearby Dyan, and its first grandmaster was James Sloan of Loughgall. Its first-ever marches were to celebrate the Battle of the Boyne and they took place on 12 July 1796 in Portadown , Lurgan and Waringstown . The Society of United Irishmen
9605-416: The official unionist candidate, one of the city's largest millowners. For at least some of his supporters, the split was a protest against what they saw as the co-optation of the Orange Order by unionist political leaders and their alignment with the interests of landlords and employers (the "fur coat brigade"). With other independents, in the great Belfast Lockout of 1907 Sloan was to speak on platforms with
9718-487: The other dominions of the time. Its dominion status was confirmed by the Statute of Westminster, 1931 , although the statute was not otherwise applicable to Newfoundland. In 1934, Newfoundland became the only dominion to give up its self-governing status, which ended 79 years of self-government. The abolition of self-government came about because of a crisis in Newfoundland's public finances in 1932. Newfoundland had accumulated
9831-619: The other twenty-six counties became Southern Ireland . This time period saw intense cross community conflict/violence which took place intermittently and mostly in Belfast. (see The Troubles in Ulster (1920–1922) ) This self-governing entity within the United Kingdom was confirmed in its status under the terms of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921, and in its borders by the Boundary Commission agreement of 1925. Southern Ireland became first
9944-651: The outbreak of " the Troubles " in 1969, the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland encouraged Orangemen to join the Northern Ireland security forces , especially the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) and the British Army's Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR). The response from Orangemen was strong. Over 300 Orangemen were killed during the conflict, the vast majority of them members of the security forces. Some Orangemen also joined loyalist paramilitary groups. During
10057-668: The outbreak of the World War I in August 1914, which caused the Home Rule Bill to be suspended for the duration of the war. Many Orangemen served in the war with the 36th (Ulster) Division , suffering heavy losses, and commemorations of their sacrifice are still an important element of Orange ceremonies. The Fourth Home Rule Act was passed as the Government of Ireland Act 1920 ; the six northeastern counties of Ulster became Northern Ireland and
10170-410: The outcome, and Quebec's provincially issued maps do not mark the boundary in the same way as boundaries with Ontario and New Brunswick . Newfoundland only gradually implemented its status as a self-governing dominion. In 1921, it officially established the position of High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (for which Sir Edgar Rennie Bowring had already assumed the role in 1918), and it adopted
10283-622: The party in 2005. In 1912, the Third Home Rule Bill was introduced in the House of Commons . However, its introduction would be delayed until 1914. The Orange Order, along with the British Conservative Party and unionists in general, were inflexible in opposing the bill. The Order helped to organise the 1912 Ulster Covenant – a pledge to oppose Home Rule which was signed by up to 500,000 people. In 1911, some Orangemen began to arm themselves and train as militias. In 1913,
10396-603: The plot was revealed the House of Commons called upon the King to disband the Order. Under pressure from Joseph Hume , William Molesworth and Lord John Russell , the King indicated measures would have to be taken and the Duke of Cumberland was forced to dissolve the Orange lodges. Hume laid evidence before the House of Commons of an approach in July 1832 to Lord Londonderry . A letter from Lieutenant-Colonel W. B. Fairman, Deputy Grand Secretary of
10509-476: The possibility of successful efforts at this juncture". In 1845 the ban was again lifted, but the notorious Battle of Dolly's Brae between Orangemen and Ribbonmen in 1849 led to a ban on Orange marches which remained in place for several decades. This was eventually lifted after a campaign of disobedience led by William Johnston of Ballykilbeg , Sovereign Grand Master of the Royal Black Institution ,
10622-680: The post-war era. After the war, Newfoundland along with the other dominions sent a separate delegation to the Paris Peace Conference but, unlike the other dominions, Newfoundland neither signed the Treaty of Versailles in her own right nor sought separate membership in the League of Nations . In the 1920s, political scandals wracked the dominion. In 1923, the attorney general arrested Newfoundland's prime minister, Sir Richard Squires , on charges of corruption. Despite his release soon after on bail,
10735-413: The preservation of our lives and properties should critical times occur". The United Irishmen saw the Defenders as potential allies, and between 1794 and 1796 they formed a coalition. Despite some seeing the Defenders as "ignorant and poverty-stricken houghers and rick-burners", the United Irishmen were indebted to the Armagh disturbances as the Orangemen had scattered politicised Catholics throughout
10848-499: The principles of the Reformation . As such the Order only accepts those who confess a belief in a Protestant religion. As well as Catholics, non-creedal and non- Trinitarian Christians are also banned. This includes members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ( Mormons ), Jehovah's Witnesses , Unitarians , and Quakers . Previous rules specifically forbade Roman Catholics and their close relatives from joining but
10961-504: The province; however, only the first and last verses are traditionally sung. Newfoundland was the oldest English colony in North America, being claimed by John Cabot for King Henry VII , and again by Sir Humphrey Gilbert in 1583. It gradually acquired European settlement; in 1825, it was formally recognised as a Crown colony by the British government. The British government granted representative government in 1832, and responsible government in 1854. In 1855, Philip Francis Little ,
11074-557: The rumour that they were on a punitive mission for the Liberal government , declaring that, unless they were disarmed, 200,000 armed Orangemen would relieve them of their weapons. At the same, in 1895 Kane was a patron of the branch in Belfast of the Gaelic League , which in the decade to follow was to become indissolubly linked with Irish nationalism . As a patron of the League's promotion of
11187-426: The second national referendum options limited to "responsible government" and "Commission of Government", believing that if responsible government won, it would be in a position to negotiate better terms with Canada. On 22 July 1948, a second national referendum was held. In the second referendum only two options appeared: The confederation option won by a narrow margin, and Newfoundland became Canada's tenth province
11300-400: The start the Orange Order was a "parallel organisation" to the Defenders in that it was a secret oath-bound society that used passwords and signs. One of the very few landed gentry who joined the Orange Order at the outset, William Blacker, was unhappy with some of the outcomes of the Battle of the Diamond. He says that a determination was expressed to "driving from this quarter of the county
11413-488: The statute was not in force in Newfoundland until it joined Canada. As a small country which relied primarily upon the export of fish, paper, and minerals, Newfoundland was hit hard by the Great Depression . Economic frustration combined with anger over government corruption led to a general dissatisfaction with democratic government. On 5 April 1932, a crowd of 10,000 people marched on the Colonial Building (seat of
11526-663: The surrender of responsible government and the establishment of the commission of government "... reduces the Island to the status of a pure Crown colony". The severe worldwide Great Depression persisted until the Second World War broke out in 1939. Given Newfoundland's strategic location in the Battle of the Atlantic , the Allies (especially the United States of America) built many military bases there. Large numbers of unskilled men gained
11639-435: The west (in counties Armagh , Cavan , Fermanagh and Tyrone ) actually joining the national League. Tension between tenants and landowners, nonetheless, continued within the Order, the focus shifting from tenant right to "compulsory purchase" (the right of tenants to buy out their landlords at fixed valuations). Particularly in north Antrim , where their organisation was strong, from 1903 tenant farmers began to defect to
11752-813: The widespread feeling that Smallwood and the confederates had the upper hand encouraged St. John's businessman F. M. O'Leary and others to form the Responsible Government League . The RGL was dedicated to the resumption of the former (1933) constitution for the Dominion. In 1946, the National Convention dispatched the London Delegation to seek guarantees of continued assistance if Newfoundland were to resume responsible government. The British government favoured Newfoundland joining Canada, so it did not offer any promises of continued financial aid. The members (with their districts) were: On 19 June 1947,
11865-523: The yeomanry because they were seen as by far the lesser threat. It was also claimed that if an attempt had been made then "the whole of Ulster would be as bad as Antrim and Down", where the United Irishmen rebellion was at its strongest. However, sectarian massacres by the rebels in County Wexford "did much to dampen" the rebellion in Ulster. The Scullabogue Barn massacre saw over 100 non-combatant (mostly Protestant) men, women, and children imprisoned in
11978-483: The yeomanry came into the movement. The homeland and birthplace of the Defenders was mid-Ulster and here they failed to participate in the rebellion, having been cowed into submission and surrounded by their Protestant neighbours who had been armed by the government. The sectarian attacks on them were so severe that Grand Masters of the Orange Order convened to find ways of reducing them. According to Ruth Dudley Edwards and two former Grand Masters, Orangemen were among
12091-410: Was around 70,000, which meant that roughly 1 in 5 adult Ulster Protestant males were members. Since 1965, it has lost a third of its membership, especially in Belfast and Derry. The Order's political influence suffered greatly after the unionist-controlled government of Northern Ireland was abolished in 1973. In 2012, it was stated that estimated membership of the Orange Order was around 34,000. After
12204-701: Was fierce. Drunken brawls between rival gangs had by 1786 become openly sectarian. These gangs eventually reorganised as the Protestant Peep o' Day Boys and the Catholic Defenders , with the next decade in County Armagh marked by fierce sectarian conflict between both groups, which escalated and spread into neighbouring counties. In September 1795, at a crossroads known as "The Diamond" near Loughgall , Defenders and Protestant Peep o' Day Boys gathered to fight each other. This initial stand-off ended without
12317-458: Was formed by liberal Presbyterians and Anglicans in Belfast in 1791. It sought reform of the Irish Parliament, Catholic Emancipation and the repeal of the Penal Laws . By the time the Orange Order was formed, the United Irishmen had become a revolutionary group advocating an independent Irish republic that would "Unite Catholic, Protestant and Dissenter". United Irishmen activity was on the rise, and
12430-756: Was not allowed other provinces under the British North America Act . The Ottawa Delegation was supposed to return to Newfoundland after one week. But the negotiations went on longer. Each delegate received a travelling subsidy of $ 25 per day. The members (with their districts) were: At least half of the Ottawa Delegates belonged to the Orange Lodge : Joseph Smallwood, P. W. Crummey and F. G. Bradley were Orangemen ; and two of them had been grand-masters: P. W. Crummey and F. G. Bradley. Newfoundland–Canadian negotiations were largely
12543-530: Was not on the referendum. In 1946, an election took place to determine the membership of the Newfoundland National Convention, charged with deciding the future of Newfoundland. The Convention voted to hold a referendum to decide between continuing the Commission of Government or restoring responsible government . Joey Smallwood was a well-known radio personality, writer, organizer, and nationalist who had long criticized British rule. He became
12656-489: Was sometimes reported, "Dominion of Newfoundland". The distinction is apparent in many statutes, most notably the Statute of Westminster that listed the full name of each realm, including the "Dominion of New Zealand", the "Dominion of Canada", and "Newfoundland". The Newfoundland Red Ensign was used as the de facto national flag of the dominion until the legislature adopted the Union Flag on 15 May 1931. The anthem of
12769-536: Was three times as high as in the more Protestant counties of Antrim and Down, where it was just over 10% of adult Protestant males. Other factors that are associated with high rates of membership are levels of unemployment that more closely match Catholic levels, and low levels of support for the Democratic Unionist Party among unionists. The Orange Order's name stems from the Orange Associations,
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