Almost 70 lodges and 40 bands will take part in the Twelfth in Comber this year.
Five districts will be represented – Comber, Saintfield, Lecale, Castlewellan and Ballynahinch.
The Twelfth is held in the town every five years and the crowds spectating will be able to see a wide variety of bands, including silver, flute, pipe and accordion.
Comber sits at the gateway to the tourism area of Strangford and is rich in historical significance. The centerpiece of the town is its famous square, which is one of the best preserved in the Province.
The square is dominated by a statue of Major General Rollo Gillespie, a soldier who served the British forces with distinction in the early 1800’s. Since its erection in 1845, the statue has witnessed many Twelfth parades.
This year on the centenary of the Battle of the Somme, the square will be decorated with 12 specially commissioned bannerettes marking the sacrifice of local Orangemen who paid the ultimate sacrifice on the front line.
During the procession, worshipful masters of individual lodges will symbolically place poppy crosses at the Cenotaph’s Garden of Remembrance.
The main parade will commence at 12.30pm from Park Way Playing Fields and will proceed through the town via Park Way, Killinchy Street, The Square, High Street, Braeside, Ballygowan Road, Railway Street, Orange Hall Lane, Brownlow Street, Glen Road, Mill Street, Castle Street (left at SuperValu to) Bridge Street Link, Bridge Street, The Square, Killinchy Street and Park Way before returning to the Playing Fields for a religious service.
The guest speaker will be Rev Stanley Gamble, a Grand Chaplain with the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland, who will also conduct the service. Among the senior Orangemen on the platform will be the County Down Deputy Grand Master, Kyle McIlwrath.
The return parade is due to commence at 4.15pm.
