Here are two new small boards on the fence where Hawthorn Avenue and Sandes Court meet between Woodburn and Sunnylands. Above, “Remembering our fallen everyday [sic]” with images of soldiers from the World Wars and UVF emblems in the corners. Below, an Ulster Grenadiers flute band (Fb) board, similar to the large board mounted last year (2024) in St Bride’s Street – see Never Forget, Always Remember.
The main board, on the gable beyond – “Loyalist Woodburn celebrates 100th anniversary Northern Ireland” – and Captain Sir Tom Moore remain as in 2022’s entry – see Maintain The Union.
Here is a gallery of small boards on flower boxes in “the Village Green community park of remembrance”: “The Protestant faith we will maintain. Your culture needs you. Join your local band, Orange lodge, Apprentice Boys, Royal Black historical group”, with Kitchener pointing at the viewer; “Deserted – Well, I can stand alone!“; “Ulster Day, 28th September, 1912“; “No Home Rule. Let our flag run out straight in the wind. The old red shall be floated again. When the ranks that are thinned shall be thinned. When the names that are twenty are ten“; – Edward Carson and the formation of the Ulster Volunteers in 1913; – All nine counties of Ulster are “Hands up!” “against Home Rule”.
The tribute to the new UK monarch King Charles III at the northeastern corner of Tiger’s Bay has been completed, with Ulster Banner and Union Flag on either side of a circular board showing a crown with the flowers of the “four nations” – thistle, shamrock, daffodil, and rose – both inside (in blue) and out (in red).
There is another piece using the same central board inside the estate – see I Will Plant Them.
The title of this entry comes from Charles’s coronation service, on May 6th, 2023 (pdf).
For ‘Loyalist Tiger’s Bay’ on the front wall, see the Stop The Boats; for the Orange Order symbols on the side wall (in the final image) – including the crown and Bible in the apex of the main wall – see Your Kingdom Will Endure Forever.
“Promoting Culture, Preserving Identity”. Here are a pair of new boards Mount Vernon Park, north Belfast, launched on August 11th, 2024, celebrating three Scottish bands and the local Fifes And Drums. Each of the bands’ emblems includes the Roman numeral “III”, which also appears in the bottom corner of the ‘Band Of Brothers’ board. It stands for the 3rd Belfast (i.e. north Belfast) battalion of the UVF, “Tiger’s Bay”. The St George’s Cross in the top-left corner and the purple background (of the ‘Band Of Brothers’ board) come from the UVF flag, which typically also has an orange star in the bottom right, here replaced by a swirling musical staff and Union Flag.
“Band Of Brothers. This artwork is a tribute to the unbreakable bond that we in North Belfast, share along with the following bands: Craigneuk [Scotland] True Defenders flute band, formed 1947 [Fb]; Andrew Murphy Memorial flute band [Scotland], formed 1988 [Fb]; City Of Belfast Fifes And Drums, formed 2003 [Fb]; Bellshill [Scotland] Defenders flute band, formed in 2017 [Fb]. For decades, these bands have remained faithful, and been a credit to the loyalist cause that binds us. When on parade, the honour and dignity displayed by each band, is impeccable. In timeless memory of the Fallen, each band proudly and respectfully bears the Colours and Emblems of: the Ulster Volunteer Force, the Young Citizen Volunteers, the 36th (Ulster) Division. ‘More than friends, comrades’.”
The two passages cited here have been cited before on the side wall at the junction of the Limestone Road and N Queen St, with images of Orange symbols and Union Flags, in order to promise that Your Kingdom Will Endure Forever. That theme has now been invoked in upper Tiger’s Bay, to celebrate the latest king (Charles III) of the everlasting kingdom demarcated by the shields of the “four nations” in the corners of the main gable, Northern Ireland included.
The people in question in the second book of Samuel are the people of Israel but as with previous scriptural references on the lower wall (Lamentations | Chronicles | Revelations | Psalms | Genesis), the Protestant people in Ireland and Britain are under discussion (though they might also refer to contemporary Israel).
In the King James version, 2 Samuel 7:10-16 the prophet Nathan is speaking to David: “Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as beforetime, and as since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel, and have caused thee to rest from all thine enemies. Also the Lord telleth thee that he will make thee an house. And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.”
In Luke 1:31-33, an angel is speaking to Mary: “And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.”
Here is a gallery of the smaller boards in the Whitehill area of Bangor – other specific pieces can be found in The Elite and Long To Reign Over Us.
The area is a UVF stronghold but split between the North Down and East Belfast battalions – see Welcome To Bowtown and North Down UVF. The very bottom of the estate is UDA – “RUFF touts” is on the border-line, Skipperstone Road.
Two flute bands are mentioned: Pride Of Whitehill (Fb) and Bangor Protestant Boys (Fb).
The plaque above – “Ormeau Road in memory [of] Fergie” – is now somewhat incongruously above painted signage for a coffee-and-donuts shop (Bunelos | web) on the Ormeau Road, a commercial road which is also at the edge of the Ballynafeigh neighbourhood.
“Fergie” is perhaps Iain Ferguson, who died in 2021 (Belvoir & Ballynafeigh UPRG on Fb) and is remembered in a tarp on the side of the flats in Belvoir, shown below. (UPRG is affiliated with the UDA – hence the red hand and the six-pointed star in the plaque, alongside the flowers of the four nations – rose, shamrock, daffodil, thistle – and orange lily.)
“Always remembered by the officers and volunteers of South Londonderry/Randalstown Ulster Volunteer Force.” This memorial mural and plaque in Magherafelt names Charlie Wright, Jonathan Wallace, Ken Wilkinson, and Ian McArthur.
Of these, Wilkinson seems the most well-known, as he served as a PUP representative for the area. He commented on sectarian tensions in Randalstown in 1999 (An Phoblacht) and in Coleraine in 2009 (Irish Examiner), and spoke against sueprgrass trials in 2011 as a member of FAST (Irish Times | see previously FAST and FASTing For Human Rights And Justice); he was accused of intimidation of Catholics in Antrim in 2003 (An Phoblacht). He stood for a number of elected positions (e.g. 2013) but was unsuccessful.
Ostensibly for his stand against drug-sellers, in 2010 a pipe-bomb (BBC), and in 2011 a make-shift car-bomb (BelTel), were placed against his home and he received death threats in 2013 (politics.ie). He died in 2021 (BelTel | News Letter | Irish News).
The plaque in the memorial garden (shown below) reads, “This plaque is dedicated in memory of all of the loyalist people of Ulster who have suffered at the hands of the enemies of our land. Lest we forget.”
“Welcome to Muckamore, loyalist heartland – lead the way.” “In defence of our heritage and culture.”
In the Muckamore/Ballycraigy areas of Antrim the insignia of the LVF are still in place. “Lead the way” was the slogan of the LVF (see e.g. D01246 for a prominent instance in Ballycraigy). The organisation called a ceasefire and decommissioned some weapons in the years after the Agreement but persists in some form in Antrim (WP).
The Sons Of Ulster also used to use the slogan “Lead the way” (as described in J1947) but it is not present in the board shown in the recent (2022) Old Ulster’s Battle Cry.
The two boards below are on gables above Woodgreen, which is the site of the bonfire (ig) featured in the third image. They used to claim that it was the biggest bonfire (see C06695) but Craigyhill (in Larne) is more recently the tallest – see Commonwealth Handling Equipment.
There is also a memorial garden to Billy Wright in Ballycraigy – see M05203.
“Loyalist Woodburn celebrates 100th anniversary Northern Ireland”. Maintain the union of (left to right) England (St George’s Cross), Wales (The Red Dragon), Northern Ireland (Ulster Banner), Scotland (St Andrew’s Saltire). Along the fence we have the NI coat of arms and Captain Sir Tom Moore.
Paddy Duffy Collection 