The Harbour Grace Affray was an armed conflict of religious violence that happened on

Saint Stephen's Day Saint Stephen's Day, also called the Feast of Saint Stephen, is a Christian saint's day to commemorate Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr or protomartyr, celebrated on 26 December in Western Christianity and 27 December in Eastern Chri ...

, 1883 in the town of Harbour Grace,

Colony of Newfoundland Newfoundland Colony was an English and, later, British colony established in 1610 on the island of Newfoundland off the Atlantic coast of Canada, in what is now the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. That followed decades of sporadic English ...

, between members of the

Loyal Orange Association 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, particularly those of Ulster Scots people, Ulster Sco ...

and the Roman Catholics.

History

In 1883, the Loyal Orange Association in Harbour Grace decided to postpone the events of their commemoration of Protestant victory over the Catholics at the Battle of the Boyne, from 12 July to

. This was due to the fact that most men were engaged in the ground fishery or seal fishery in July. On Saint Stephen's Day, 400 to 500 Protestants marched down Harvey Street of Harbour Grace in celebration. The leader was said to be holding a

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...

of the bible while they marched. The parade began advancing into what the Catholic's considered their territory. As a result, 100 to 150 Catholics from Riverhead, Harbour Grace, gathered to block the advancing parade. The Catholics were armed with guns and there were unarmed protestant constables monitoring the parade. A riot broke out between the two sides. There was a lot of shouting, which was soon followed by gunfire; gunfire erupted all around. Before the fight, Head Constable, Edward Doyle was seen in the middle, talking to both groups. Const. Doyle, an

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 ...

Protestant, was accused of pulling a gun and killing Patrick Callahan, a Catholic. Callahan died from a gunshot to the head. Three Protestants, William French, William Janes, and Thomas Nicholas, and one civilian, John Bray, were also killed during the conflict. 17 other men were also injured during the conflict. 19 men were charged for the murders and the trials occurred in February 1884 and lasted 47 day; however, all 19 men were acquitted due to conflicting evidence and suspected perjury. This infuriated the Protestants and a second trial was ordered in November 1884. During the trial, Protestants made it known for their intention to parade on the anniversary of the affray. As a result, Governor

John Hawley Glover Sir John Hawley Glover (24 February 1829 – 30 September 1885) was a Royal Navy officer who served as Governor of Lagos Colony, Governor of Newfoundland, and Governor of British Leeward Islands. Naval career He entered the service in 1841 ...

had the HMS Tenedos anchored in Harbour Grace and an additional 50 police constables stationed to keep law and order. The events of the affray and subsequent trials lead to the fall of Newfoundland Premier, Sir William Whiteway's Government in 1885.

In popular culture

In 2011, author, Patrick Collins, of Harbour Grace, published a semi-fictional novel about the event, titled ''The Harbour Grace Affray''.

References

{{Reflist Conflicts in 1883 Military history of Newfoundland Riots and civil disorder in Canada 1880s in Newfoundland Catholic–Protestant sectarian violence