Today in Ireland

Next Upcoming Event

Battle of the Boyne on 12 July is a statutory public holiday in Northern Ireland only — it does not apply in the Republic of Ireland. It commemorates the Battle of the Boyne fought on 1 July 1690 (Old Style calendar), in which the Protestant King William III of Orange defeated the Catholic King James II, securing Protestant and parliamentary succession in Britain and Ireland. The day is the centrepiece of the Orange Order's marching season and is the most significant date in the Ulster Protestant calendar, marked with parades, bonfires, and community gatherings across Northern Ireland.

• ✦The Twelfth parades — organised by the Orange Order and its affiliated institutions — march through cities, towns, and villages across Northern Ireland on 12 July, with the Belfast parade being the largest, drawing tens of thousands of participants and spectators from the unionist and loyalist communities.
• ✦The holiday does not apply in the Republic of Ireland and is not observed south of the border; it is specific to Northern Ireland and reflects the different constitutional, historical, and cultural context of the two jurisdictions on the island.