Independent Loyal Orange Institution

{{Short description|Northtern Ireland Protestant fraternal group}} {{Use British English|date=October 2013}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}} {{Infobox fraternity | name = Independent Loyal Orange Institution | crest = The crest of the Independent Loyal Orange Institution.png | image_size = 180px | founded = {{start date and age|1903}} | birthplace = Belfast, Northern Ireland | affiliation = Independent | type = Fraternal order | status = Active | scope = National | emphasis = Protestant Reformation | colors = {{color box|#333399}} Blue and {{color box|#FF7F00}} Orange  | chapters = 44 (1907) | nickname = Independent Orange Order | address = 10 Edward Street | city = Ballymoney | postal code = BT53 6JE | province = Northern Ireland | country = United Kingdom | website = {{URL|http://www.iloi.org/}} }}

[[File:Dunaghy Independent Orange Hall.jpg|thumb|right|An Independent Orange Order Hall in Dunaghy, County Antrim.]] The '''Independent Loyal Orange Institution''' is an offshoot of the Orange Institution, a Protestant fraternal organisation based in Northern Ireland.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lurgan Ancestry ~ The Orange Order |url=http://www.lurganancestry.com/orangeorder.htm |access-date=2026-01-09 |website=www.lurganancestry.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Brennan |first=Rory |last2=Haddick-Flynn |first2=Kevin |last3=Doherty |first3=Gabriel |last4=Keogh |first4=Dermot |last5=Kiely |first5=Benedict |last6=Augusteijn |first6=Joost |date=2004 |title=Books as Gravestones |url=https://doi.org/10.2307/20632738 |journal=Books Ireland |issue=269 |pages=185 |doi=10.2307/20632738 |issn=0376-6039|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Initially pro-labour and supportive of tenant rights and land reform, over time it moved to a more conservative, unionist position.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Secretary |first=Online Lodge |date=2020-04-28 |title=Lodge Life |url=https://iloi.org/rights/ |access-date=2026-01-09 |website=Independent Loyal Orange Institution |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Kennaway |first=Reverend Brian |title=The Re-invention of the Orange Order |work=The Contested Identities of Ulster Protestants |url=https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137453945.0012 |access-date=2026-01-09 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |isbn=978-1-137-45394-5}}</ref>

==History== It was formed in Ireland in 1903 by Tom Sloan and others associated with the Belfast Protestant Association who had been expelled from the Orange Order when they voiced opposition to it being used for party political ends by Ulster Unionist Party. Originally it was associated with the labour movement, but it soon realigned itself with traditional unionist politics.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Boyle |first=J. W. |date=1962 |title=The Belfast Protestant Association and the Independent Orange Order, 1901-10 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/30005103 |journal=Irish Historical Studies |volume=13 |issue=50 |pages=117–152 |doi=10.1017/S0021121400008518 |jstor=30005103 |issn=0021-1214|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The class tensions within the Orange Order flared into rebellion in 1902. At an unruly Belfast County demonstration in Castlereagh, Thomas Sloan, Worshipful Master of the Belfast Protestant Association, challenged the County Grand Master, Colonel Saunderson MP, to say how he voted on the 'Inspection of Convent Laundries' bill. As the title suggests, this piece of legislation was an attempt to embarrass and annoy the Catholic Church by requiring that its convents (which militant Protestants suspected of exploiting the labour and the sexuality of young girls) be subject to government inspection. The point Sloan wished to make was that Saunderson, like most Unionist leaders, had put government interest before the anti-Catholic principle. Although popular enough to win the Belfast South Westminster seat previously held by William Johnston of Ballykilbeg (a Protestant hero since his prison sentence in 1867 for defying a parades ban) Sloan was disciplined by Grand Lodge for embarrassing a grandee and led a breakaway.<ref name="order split">{{cite book |last1=Bruce |first1=Steve |title=Paisley : religion and politics in Northern Ireland |date=2007 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-928102-2 |page=195 }}</ref>

The organisation enjoyed steady growth, mainly confined to working-class Belfast and the liberal, pro-tenant right redoubt of north Antrim. By early 1904, it claimed nine lodges in Ballymoney alone. The organisation peaked at 44 lodges in 1907.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Morrissey|first=Conor|date=2017|title=Rotten Protestants: Protestant Home Rules and the Ulster Liberal Association, 1906–1918|journal=The Historical Journal|volume=61|issue=3|pages=743–765|doi=10.1017/S0018246X1700005X|s2cid=148801140|url=https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/9ac238d2-7766-4293-aedc-0c62d4e3cfee |language=en}}</ref>

As Grand Master from 1905, Robert Lindsay Crawford sought to promote the Independent order as "strongly Protestant, strongly democratic" ''and'' "strongly Irish". In the Order's 1904 Magheramorne Manifesto, he invited Irish Protestants to "reconsider their position as Irish citizens and their attitude towards their Roman Catholic countrymen". Ultimately, Crawford's move toward an embrace for Irish Home Rule led to a break with Sloan and the Order's more determined unionist membership. He was expelled in 1908.<ref>Roger Courtney (2013), ''Dissenting Voices: Rediscovering the Irish Progressive Presbyterian Tradition'', Ulster Historical Foundation, Belfast, pp. 286–287. {{ISBN|9781909556065}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Kennaway |first=Reverend Brian |title=The Re-invention of the Orange Order: Triumphalism or Orangefest? |date=2015 |work=The Contested Identities of Ulster Protestants |pages=70–82 |url=https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137453945_7 |access-date=2026-01-09 |place=London |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan UK |isbn=978-1-349-49779-9}}</ref>

In the great Belfast Dock strike of 1907, the labour leader James Larkin was able to engage the support of Sloan and the independent Order. In 1903, Sloan had been the only Unionist MP to vote for the Miners' Eight-Hour Bill.<ref>Collins, Peter (1998). "Larkin, James", S.J. Connolly, The Oxford Companion to Irish History. Oxford University Press. p. 302</ref>

In 2024, the Independent Loyal Orange Institution national headquarters are in Ballymoney, Northern Ireland.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2014-12-13 |title=Contact |url=https://iloi.org/contact/ |access-date=2024-09-18 |website=Independent Loyal Orange Institution |language=en-GB}}</ref>

==Symbols and traditions== The Independent Loyal Orange Institution's name stems from the Orange Associations, a name that recognized the landing of William, Prince of Orange in England and the start of the Glorious Revoluation of 1688.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2020-04-28 |title=Lodge Life |url=https://iloi.org/rights/#:~:text=The%20Order%20still%20has%20many,of%20loyalty%20and%20democracy%20prevail. |access-date=2024-09-18 |website=Independent Loyal Orange Institution |language=en-GB}}</ref> Its colors are blue and orange.<ref name=":0" /> Orange represents the monarchs in the House of Orange. The society also has emblems and a system of passwords.<ref name=":0" />

The Independent Orange Institution possesses three degrees – the Orange, Plain Purple, and the highly ritualistic Royal Arch Purple. The layout of the Independent Orange Institution degree system is outlined in the Independent Loyal Orange Institution 'candidate instruction' booklet which states: "There are three degrees in the Institution, the first being the Orange...Upon receipt of the Plain Purple degree a member is entitled to hold office in his Private Lodge and to attend the meetings of District. The Royal Arch Purple degree is the longest and most detailed degree. A member who receives this degree can attend County and Imperial Grand Lodge meetings."<ref>{{Citation |last=Coleman |first=Patrick |title=Abbreviations |date=2025-01-31 |work=The Orange Order |pages=xii–xiv |url=https://doi.org/10.3366/edinburgh/9781399518147.002.0009 |access-date=2026-01-09 |publisher=Edinburgh University Press |isbn=978-1-3995-1814-7}}</ref>

This degree worked within the Independent Orange, is, in essence, the same as that employed by the Royal Arch Purple Chapter, although like any distinct organisation, it has some slight differences.

==Activities== Like the Orange Order, it is a Protestant fraternal organisation dedicated to the principles of the Protestant Reformation. It takes its name in memory of King William of Orange of the House of Orange who fought at the Battle of the Boyne, brought about the Glorious Revolution and the Bill of Rights giving the Westminster parliament ultimate power of the country rather than the Monarch. The Independent Order is small compared to the main organisation with about 350–400 members.<ref>[https://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/spirit-of-independence-with-loyal-orange-institution-1-8443857 'Spirit of independence with Loyal Orange Institution'] The News Letter 4 April 2018</ref> It is largely based around north County Antrim in Northern Ireland but has lodges around the world, including England, Scotland and Australia. Its annual main Twelfth of July demonstration is held in a north Antrim town or village.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Busteed |first=Mervyn |url=https://doi.org/10.3828/liverpool/9781837645084.001.0001 |title=The Sash on the Mersey |date=2023-12-17 |publisher=Liverpool University Press |isbn=978-1-83764-508-4}}</ref>

Along with the Orange Order and the Royal Black Institution, the Independent Orange Order in 2006 held talks with the Social Democratic and Labour Party, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), the Ulster Unionist Party, Alliance, the Chief Constable of the PSNI, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, the Presbyterian and Methodist Churches, the Church of Ireland and the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission to try to resolve issues around contested loyalist parades. The Independent Orange Order was represented by Free Presbyterian minister David McConaghie, then a prominent figure in both the DUP<ref>[http://www.nuzhound.com/articles/Sunday_Tribune/arts2005/apr17_battle_for_Upper_Bann__SBreen.php] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303233201/http://www.nuzhound.com/articles/Sunday_Tribune/arts2005/apr17_battle_for_Upper_Bann__SBreen.php|date=3 March 2016}} Suzanne Breen, "The battle for Upper Bann", ''Sunday Tribune'', 17 April 2005</ref><ref>[http://www.billofrightsforum.org/index/working_groups/civil_and_political_rights__including_relevant_equality_issues.htm Bill of Rights Forum] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080704070541/http://www.billofrightsforum.org/index/working_groups/civil_and_political_rights__including_relevant_equality_issues.htm |date=4 July 2008 }} website</ref><ref>[http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/northern-ireland/dup-aide-quizzed-over-toilet-camera-16238776.html News report], Belfast Telegraph, 16 November 2012</ref><ref name="Pdown">[http://www.portadowntimes.co.uk/news/local/former-simpson-aide-is-arrested-over-toilet-camera-1-4491849 News report], ''Portadown Times'', 16 November 2012</ref><ref>[http://www.banbridgeleader.co.uk/news/local/former-simpson-aide-is-arrested-over-toilet-camera-1-4492151 ''Banbridge Leader''] news report, 16 November 2012</ref><ref>[http://www.u.tv/News/Recording-device-found-in-MPs-toilet/a140d2b2-1b19-4cbd-a714-4ed94057fec7 UTV News] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20130419074433/http://www.u.tv/News/Recording-device-found-in-MPs-toilet/a140d2b2-1b19-4cbd-a714-4ed94057fec7 |date=19 April 2013 }} report, 16 November 2012</ref><ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20355161 BBC news] report, 16 November 2012</ref> and the Caleb Foundation, an evangelical pressure group.<ref>[http://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/headlines/orders-to-hold-further-talks-with-the-sdlp-1-1840835 Article] at ''The News Letter'', 3 May 2006</ref> There was no meeting with Sinn Féin; McConaghie called on the IRA to apologise for the "slaughter" of 310 Orangemen who had been killed during the Troubles.<ref>''The Irish Times'', 3 May 2006</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Prohászka |first=Géza |date=2010-01-22 |title=Mervyn Jess, 'The Orange Order' |url=https://doi.org/10.1558/jrff.v1i1.128 |journal=Journal for Research into Freemasonry and Fraternalism |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=128–129 |doi=10.1558/jrff.v1i1.128 |issn=1757-2479|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

The annual Independent Orange Order demonstration on the Twelfth of July was in the past usually addressed by Ian Paisley, the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, although he was not a member. In 2012, the demonstration held in Rasharkin, County Antrim, was led by McConaghie.<ref>[https://archive.today/20130419132538/http://www.ballymoneytimes.co.uk/news/local/veteran-orangeman-celebrates-70-years-in-order-1-4051231 Report of 2012 Twelfth demonstration] at ''Ballymoney Times''</ref>

<!-- ===Bishop Farrar Memorial Lodge=== {{No footnotes|date=August 2011}}

The Bishop Farrar Memorial Lodge was formed in 1982, under the authority of the Loyal Orange Institution of England. This was the year of the Papal visit and members of the lodge organised protests helped by Ian Paisley. These included a demonstration and a Protestant service in Crown Square, Manchester, on the day the Pope visited that city.

In 1989 the Bishop Farrar Lodge left the Loyal Orange Institution of England to join the Independent Loyal Orange Institution, thus becoming the first Independent Lodge in England outside of Liverpool. A "parade of witness" and a memorial service to Bishop Farrar were held in Halifax in May 1991, in which 200 IOO members were led by three bands. The lodge currently publishes a newsletter, ''The Orange Sentinel'' in support of the Independent Loyal Orange Institution. It also maintains an archive of press cuttings concerning the Roman Catholic Church and is in the process of creating a website [http://www.iloi1690.cjb.net]. -->

==See also== * List of general fraternities

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * [http://www.iloi.org/ Independent Loyal Orange Institution]

Category:1903 establishments in Ireland Category:Protestantism in the United Kingdom Category:Culture of Ireland Category:Orange Order Category:Ulster unionist organisations Category:Irish secret societies Category:Fraternities and sororities Category:Fraternal orders