The Dolly's Brae conflict occurred in

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

on 12 July 1849. A contested procession by

Orangemen Orangemen or Orangewomen can refer to: *Historically, supporters of William of Orange *Members of the modern Orange Order (also known as Orange Institution), a Protestant fraternal organisation *Members or supporters of the Armagh GAA Gaelic foot ...

resulted in a skirmish between the Orangemen, local Catholics and

Ribbonmen Ribbonism, whose supporters were usually called Ribbonmen, was a 19th-century popular movement of poor Catholics in Ireland. The movement was also known as Ribandism. The Ribbonmen were active against landlords and their agents, and opposed "Ora ...

and the police. The Catholics dispersed, following which the Orangemen proceeded to attack local Catholics and destroy property. An official report on the conflict stated that there were thirty deaths. However, this figure is contested by historians. The violence led directly to the

Party Processions Act The Party Processions Act (''13 & 14 Vict c2'') was an 1850 Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom which prohibited open marching, organised parades and sectarian meetings in Ireland in order to outlaw provocative movements in the wake of the ...

, curtailing activities perceived to be

sectarian Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups which are often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. Nevertheless, the conflict entered

Ulster Protestant Ulster Protestants ( ga, Protastúnaigh Ultach) are an ethnoreligious group in the Irish province of Ulster, where they make up about 43.5% of the population. Most Ulster Protestants are descendants of settlers who arrived from Britain in the ...

folk memory as the Battle of Dolly's Brae.

Context

The 1840s were a significant decade in

Irish history The first evidence of human presence in Ireland dates to around 33,000 years ago, with further findings dating the presence of homo sapiens to around 10,500 to 7,000 BC. The receding of the ice after the Younger Dryas cold phase of the Quaterna ...

. The Great Famine began in 1845, resulting in around one million deaths. A nationalist rebellion by William Smith O'Brien's

Young Ireland Young Ireland ( ga, Éire Óg, ) was a political movement, political and cultural movement, cultural movement in the 1840s committed to an all-Ireland struggle for independence and democratic reform. Grouped around the Dublin weekly ''The Nati ...

movement occurred in 1848. Sectarian tensions rose during the decade. The Orange Order experienced a revival, having been suppressed in previous years and were once again allowed to hold processions, which they did. Catholic groups also held their own processions. Early in 1849 a riot broke out in

Crossgar Crossgar () is a village and townland in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is about south of Belfast – between Saintfield and Downpatrick. Crossgar had a population 1,892 people in the 2011 UK Census. History Crossgar has had an interesti ...

in County Down raising tensions before the traditional Orange marching season in July. Sectarian tensions had been building up in South Down throughout the 1840s. In 1848 local magistrates had persuaded South Down Orangemen to re-route their annual

12 July Events Pre-1600 * 70 – The armies of Titus attack the walls of Jerusalem after a six-month siege. Three days later they breach the walls, which enables the army to destroy the Second Temple. * 927 – King Constantine II o ...

march away from areas with a majority Catholic population. This included Dolly's Brae, which was known as the site of a sectarian murder of a Catholic at the beginning of the century. The Orangemen's compliance brought taunts of cowardice from Catholic Ribbonmen, who had even composed a song about the affair. The Orangemen were determined to march their traditional route the next year. It had become a point of honour for them.Maddox, p. 254.

12 July 1849

On the morning of the 12th the Orangemen set off on their march from Ballyward Church to Lord Roden's demesne at Tollymore Park (now

Tollymore Forest Park Tollymore Forest Park was the first state forest park in Northern Ireland, established on 2 June 1955. It is located at Bryansford, near the town of Newcastle in the Mourne and Slieve Croob Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It covers an area ...

). Lord Roden was serving as deputy grandmaster of the Orange Order at the time. Historian Sean Farrell estimates there were between 1,200 and 1,400 marchers.Sean Farrell (2000), ''Rituals and Riots: Sectarian Violence and Political Culture in Ulster, 1784-1886''. University of Kentucky, p. 3. One magistrate estimated that about five hundred had guns. A large group of Catholics from both the local area and beyond attempted to prevent the Orangemen marching through the Brae. Sources disagree over how many were present, though they seem to have been outnumbered. They had taken positions on a nearby field and were armed with scythes, pikes and firearms. However, the large police presence and the intervention of two Catholic priests seeking to prevent physical conflict meant that there was no attack. Drumcree

At Lord Roden's estate, numerous speeches were given and alcohol was consumed. None of those present who were magistrates, including Lord Roden, attempted to convinced the Orangemen to return via a different route. In some cases, the opposite occurred. The Orangemen were once more determined to return via the Brae. They arrived there at about five o'clock, with a large Catholic crowd waiting for them. After two-thirds of the marchers had gone through the pass a gunshot or a similar sound was heard. Both sides fired at each other. The police charged the Catholics at the top of the hill, causing them to disperse. The skirmish was over in a matter of minutes. Following the retreat the Orangemen proceeded to attack Catholics and their property in the vicinity. They may have caused several fatalities. None of the Orangemen were arrested over these actions.Farrell, p. 4. Government estimates placed the number of dead Catholics at over thirty, with no casualties among the Orangemen and one injury on the police side. Larger numbers of dead have been given. However, at least one historian believes that the number of dead has been greatly exaggerated and did not exceed single figures.Richard McMahon (2013). ''Homicide in Pre-Famine and Famine Ireland''. University of Liverpool Press. P. 131.

Aftermath

The uproar over the conflict led directly to parliament passing the

of 1850, which prohibited open marching, organised parades and sectarian meetings. Actions such as using banners, emblems and flags constituted an offence, as did music "calculated or tend to provoke animosity". Violation of the Act was classed as a misdemeanour. The act was reluctantly accepted by the Orangemen. However,

Irish nationalists Irish nationalism is a nationalist political movement which, in its broadest sense, asserts that the people of Ireland should govern Ireland as a sovereign state. Since the mid-19th century, Irish nationalism has largely taken the form of cu ...

later felt restricted in their activities by it, and it was repealed in 1872. As well as the act of parliament Roden and two other Orange magistrates were dismissed from the magistracy, following a report by

Walter Berwick Walter Berwick (1800–1868) was an Irish judge, who perished in the Abergele rail disaster of 1868.Hart p. 163 He was a much loved public figure, especially in Cork, where he is commemorated by the Berwick Fountain on the Grand Parade in Cork c ...

QC, which criticized their handling of the incident.Maddox, p. 255. Despite these setbacks the 'Battle of Dolly's Brae' entered Ulster Protestant folklore. As Sean Farrell says, 'the

Rathfriland Rathfriland () is a market town in County Down, Northern Ireland. History In older documents written in English, the town's name was usually spelt ''Rathfylan'' or ''Rathfrilan''.

Orangemen had won back their honour, but only at a very high price.' A song, still recorded to these day, was composed to commemorate what was considered to be a great victory against the Ribbonmen. Ulster Protestant soldiers serving in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

the Somme The Battle of the Somme (French language, French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. I ...

are said to have shouted 'Remember Dolly's Brae' as they went into battle.

References

{{reflist, 2

External links

Modern recording of 'Dolly's Brae'

RTE Radio 1 documentary on the conflict
1849 in Ireland Battles involving Ireland Conflicts in 1849 Orange Order Sectarian violence