Apprentice Boys: Relief of Derry Parade takes place
- Published
Spectators lined the city's streets early on Saturday morning to claim their spot for the parade
Thousands of Apprentice Boys have marched in a parade in Londonderry.
It is one of the biggest loyal order parades in Northern Ireland and marks the anniversary of the ending of the Siege of Derry in 1689.
The main parade followed a wreath-laying ceremony at the War Memorial and a religious service in St Columb's Cathedral.
About 10,000 Apprentice Boys and more than 100 bands attended the event over the course of Saturday.
Although rain was forecast for most of the day in Derry, it was a dry start as hundreds of marchers walked on the city's historic walls.
Graeme Stenhouse, the governor of the Apprentice Boys, said the week-long Maiden City Festival, which preceded Saturday's parade, had been "truly exceptional".
Graeme Stenhouse, the governor of the Apprentice Boys, said preparations for Saturday's march had gone well
He described Saturday's march as a celebration, and praised the high number of people turning out throughout the day.
"Terrific work has went on over the last 25 years, speaking to relevant stakeholders, to ensure that our parades are facilitated, and largely they go off now in a peaceful manner.
"We appreciate that it is a nationalist city, but we would still say that we have our right to celebrate our history and our culture."
The parade celebrates the ending of the siege in 1689
The Siege of Derry lasted 105 days and cost more than 10,000 lives, the majority of them civilians.
It took place against the background of the deposed Catholic King James II's attempt to regain his crown from his Protestant son-in-law, King William III.
After a parade around the city’s walls, marchers gathered at The Diamond in the centre of Derry
Also known as William of Orange, or King Billy, the new monarch was supported by Protestants in Derry, who shut the gates of the walled city to keep out the advancing Jacobite army.
Members of the Democratic Unionist Party took part in the parade
The Apprentice Boys of Derry is based upon their defiant action of "no surrender" and the parade is held on the second Saturday in August each year to celebrate the ending of the siege, known as the Relief of Derry.