Orange Walk Glasgow: 8 people arrested at year’s biggest march

Eight people were arrested during a planned Orange Walk in Glasgow, the biggest of the year.

Members of the Orange Order take part in the 329th Battle of the Boyne Parade organized by the County Grand Orange Order Lodge on July 6, 2019 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Thousands of people took to the streets yesterday to march in the annual parade, which celebrates the exploits of William of Orange, the Protestant Dutchman who seized the thrones of Catholic King James II and VII in 1688.

For many Catholics, these marches are triumphalist and sectarian – a means of very publicly “rubbing in” a historical wrong – with some traditional Orange routes passing through or by staunchly Catholic and nationalist areas.

Though the majority of yesterday’s march was peaceful, two people were arrested over an alleged sectarian breach of the peace at the event and others for minor public order offences. Three of them will be reported to the Procurator Fiscal.

Several roads throughout the city had been closed to accommodate the Battle of the Boyne Parade yesterday afternoon.

Various groups from across the country and beyond had set off from different areas in the city, with a significant number assembling at Glasgow Green. Efforts had been made to reduce problems around the contentious parade, with re-routing and highly visible policing.

A police spokeswoman confirmed the arrests.

The “marching season” is a period of events from April to August, with the highpoint for participants taking place on 12 July, when Orangemen march to commemorate William’s victory.