11th Night . . .The Bonfires

At midnight, July 11^th, throughout Northern Ireland, Loyalist communities (Protestants who want Northern Ireland to remain part of the United Kingdom) light massive bonfires. These bonfires are a commemoration of the bonfires lit in 1690 to guide King William III’s ships carrying his army safely up the River Boyne near Drogheda, Ireland for his battle with the pretender-to -the-throne, James II.

These bonfires would never be allowed in the USA. No permits, no effective fencing of the area, no firefighters on standby, no police presence to be seen anywhere. Small children running quite near the fire site.

The bonfire building starts around July 1. It seems to be a job for the teenage boys. As it grows in height, they take turns keeping watch all night so no one lights it prematurely. Lacking any scaffolding, safety equipment, or tools other than a hammer and nails, they build these bonfires to amazing heights using wooden shipping pallets.

On the Morning of the 11^th, a street fair took place in the Sandy Row area of Belfast near our flat. Families were out, booths selling Orange Day souvenirs, flags, batons, and toy drums sat alongside food trucks and inflatable moon bounce options. Kids were able to battle each other with heavily padded pugil sticks.

As afternoon moved on, the party took a more adult flavor. The moon bounces gone, the streets were full of people drinking, singing and dancing to a DJ awaiting the midnight conflagration. (See video).

One repeated song that was sung with a lot of gusto was “Simply The Best” with the words changed to suit an anti-republic point of view. Then there was John Denver's "County Road" rewritten as "Sandy Row."

Near midnight, fireworks filled the sky as a group of about 30 teenage boys and girls huddled near the base of the towering, and leaning, wooden structure. The boys lit and hurled petrol bombs at the base, hoping to ignite the dry wood, but these proved ineffective. Then it got interesting. A few young men scaled the tower with cans of flammable liquid while others concentrated on lighting a fire at the base. These men were climbing this leaning, partially lit, 3 story structure while sort of hanging off the side and carrying what appeared to be a kerosene container between their teeth. They would soak paper with the kerosene then throw the paper inside the structure. Then as one area would ignite, they would climb sideways to light another area. Shortly thereafter, the flames engulfed the entirety of the tower. Amazingly, nobody fell off the tower and not even one person got burned.

The flames and heat were unbearable as everyone retreated farther and farther. After a few minutes, the tower toppled to the cheers of the crowd. (See video)

The fire burned through the night as a DJ blasted dance tunes, people danced in the street, and entrepreneurs with their extra-legal beer stands saw brisk business.

There is an unfortunate element to these bonfires. While they are promoted as a celebration of Protestant culture, which they are, sectarianism is front and center. The bonfire is adorned with the Flag of the Republic of Ireland—a flag associated with the Catholic/Republican community and the IRA. The Orange Festival has the potential to become a big tourist attraction, but the sectarianism—on both sides—can’t be part of it for that to happen.