Call for ‘overwhelming response’ as Orange Order members urged to attend rally opposing Boyne Bridge demolition

Orange Order members are being urged to attend a rally protesting the demolition of the Boyne Bridge in Belfast.

The Save Sandy Row rally is to take place opposite the Boyne Bridge at Durham Street on Tuesday evening, as part of local efforts to prevent the bridge being removed.

Its dismantling is taking place under public realm works following the recent opening of the nearby new Belfast Grand Central Station.

An organiser said urban redevelopment without consideration of local communities was partly to blame for the decline in Orange lodges in unionist working class areas.

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The current bridge was reconstructed in the 1930s, after initially being built in 1863 when it incorporated the remains of a 17th century crossing said to have been traversed by King William and his troops on the way to the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

Durham Street has been closed for a 12 month period in which the bridge will be “sensitively” dismantled, according to Translink, to make way for a new public space to be named Saltwater Square - a reference to the original Saltwater Bridge at the site.

The removal of the bridge has also been opposed by the Ulster Architectural Heritage Society.

Dismantling has yet to fully get underway, and last month saw a placard with graffiti threatening workers placed at the Sandy Row end of the bridge, which police removed and said they were investigating.

Tuesday’s rally will take place at the King William mural in Sandy Row directly opposite the bridge at 7.30pm, and an organiser has called upon Orange Order members to come and show support.

The Sandy Row-based Ulster First Flute loyalist band is also expected to attend along with Lambeg drummers.

Organiser and local historian Billy Dickson told The Irish News the rally was also to highlight wider issues in the Sandy Row area, including a lack of social housing, and also an opportunity to highlight the “abject failure” of unionist MLAs to prevent the dismantling of the bridge.

“I’m a member of Botanic Lodge, which is the oldest lodge in Sandy Row and was once the Boyne Bridge Heroes, which is linked to the naming of the bridge,” he said.

“There’s been a serious decline in the number of lodges in working class areas of Belfast, that’s been caused by this kind of redevelopment.

“The kind of redevelopment we really need is more social housing, not the removal of important parts of our local heritage.”

In a video call for support posted to social media, Mr Dickson said it was “absolutely vital that we get a good attendance at this rally”.

“It must be an overwhelming response form the community and supporters.”

He added: “I’m going to make a special appeal to fellow Orangemen and also the women’s association members as well to support this rally.”

Translink has said it is committed to “preserving and celebrating the history and heritage of the area” and has said it will continue to work with the local community to repurpose key elements of the bridge.

Plans include repurposing the 1930s-era lampposts from the bridge in the new public square.