Tens of thousands are set to take to the streets across Northern Ireland for the Orange Order’s annual 12 July parades.
The festivities will be spread across 18 main locations to mark the 336th anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne, where the Protestant King William of Orange triumphed over the Catholic King James II.
Orangemen and women from more than 1,000 lodges will be accompanied by around 600 marching bands.
The Co Armagh demonstration is generally regarded as the largest parade, while Belfast has the longest Twelfth parade route of the day, with participants walking more than 9.6 kilometres to the field.
The celebrations come after the burning of bonfires at hundreds of locations in loyalist neighbourhoods across the region on Friday, Saturday and last night.
As 12 July fell on a Sunday this year, the main Twelfth parades are instead taking place today, 13 July, with the forecast predicting warm and sunny weather.
The Orange Order parade in Rossnowlagh in Co Donegal took place on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the traditional 13 July events organised by the Royal Black Preceptory in the village of Scarva, Co Armagh, will instead take place tomorrow.
The event includes a parade as well as a sham fight between actors playing rival monarchs William and James.
The PSNI will undertake one of its biggest policing operations of the year today to facilitate the parades
While most of the bonfires which were burnt in recent nights were uncontentious, there was condemnation after a replica of a mosque was placed on top of a bonfire in Moygashel, Co Tyrone.
The fire was lit earlier than anticipated on Thursday after the Police Service of Northern Ireland commenced an operation to remove the effigy.
A man died in hospital on Saturday after falling off a loyalist bonfire in east Belfast on Friday night.
The main Orange Order parades will take place today in Ballymena, Larne, Ballymoney, Portglenone, Glenarm, Newtownhamilton, Belfast, Rathfriland, Killyleagh, Hillsborough, Ballymartin, Ballywalter, Maguiresbridge, Limavady, Kilrea, Cookstown, Castlederg and Aughnacloy.
The PSNI will undertake one of its biggest policing operations of the year today to facilitate the parades.
Orange Order Grand Master Harold Henning said the significance of Orange culture and tradition is “underlined by the scale of the parades”.
The celebrations come after the burning of bonfires at hundreds of locations in loyalist neighbourhoods
He said: “The tradition of Orange parades stretch back 230 years, and the Twelfth continues to draw huge attendances of both participants and spectators.
“Our parades are a vibrant public expression of our identity, culture and heritage and that tradition is one which is held dear by a great many people in our community.”
He added: “The colour and pageantry on show on the Twelfth has increasingly been proven to be an attraction to visitors to Northern Ireland seeking an authentic cultural and heritage experience.
“The hundreds of bands on display include some of the very best marching flute, pipe, brass and accordion bands in the world. The iconic traditional sound of the Lambeg drum is another unique aspect of the Twelfth, and one which we are glad to see flourishing with a new generation of fifers and drummers.”
Two homes at Knockleigh Walk in Greenisland near Belfast were destroyed after a bonfire spread
Woman who lost home after bonfire spread ‘so distressed’
Meanwhile, Alliance party MLA for East Antrim Stewart Dickson has described the devastation of a family who lost their home due to a fire from a bonfire as “absolutely heart-breaking”.
Two homes at Knockleigh Walk in Greenisland near Belfast were destroyed and two others in the terraced row were badly damaged when burning embers from a Twelfth bonfire set them alight on Saturday night.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Mr Dickson said: “Just for anyone to think, what would happen if your house was burnt down and you lost everything?”
Mr Dickson said he had spoken to Esther Haighton, whose home was destroyed in the fire, and she was “so distressed.”
“She couldn’t even remember who her house insurance was with. She made a phone call to a helpline and they didn’t help and that distressed her even further because they were asking the usual stupid questions about your bank account.
“’Where is your insurance certificate?’ I don’t know if you could say to them, my house has been burnt down, I don’t have anything.”
He said that he has had calls from a number of organisations offering immediate accommodation for the family, and that they will be helped to begin to recover and rebuild after the fire.
On whether the regulation of bonfires is needed, Mr Dickson said that it “absolutely” is required.
“There really does need to be regulation. All of these bonfires, with the exception of a few beacons, which are organised by community groups through their local authorities, are illegal.
“All of these bonfires are illegal. They do not have the landowner’s permission. Mostly it belongs to the housing executive, the land. Sometimes it’s other pieces of land.
“They don’t have the landowner’s permission and the bonfires themselves are illegal under any concept of that term. So, we do need regulation.
“We need to have that regulation, hopefully done through the local authorities.”
Leadership ‘needs to come from unionist politicians’
In relation to the loyalist communities who organise these fires being open to moving them, he said; “That takes leadership. I’m happy to give that leadership, but perhaps politically, I’m not the best person to deliver that.
“It probably needs to come from unionist politicians and unionist councillors on the ground. They need to give that leadership and say, ‘come on, folks, we need to make this.
“There are children’s parties, there are small bonfire events that occur, and they are good events, they are celebrations. They’re supported by the local authority, with some money for children’s parties and for smaller bonfires.
“But these huge 50-metre high pyres are just simply illegal bonfires. You’ve no idea what is inside them because you might see from the outside a neat stack of pallets.
“That in itself is polluting, but you’ve no idea what goes inside the bonfires, tires, mattresses, furniture, all of that polluting into the atmosphere.
“And as we saw two days ago, the tragic consequences of not knowing which direction the wind was going to blow in, having the bonfire too close to homes and then we see the results.”