Early Orange Societies 1688 - 1800
The Orange Association
The Orange Association, we are taught, was founded at Exeter Cathedral in November 1688. As a statement this is true, but it poses the questions, what was the Orange Association?, who were its members?, and what were they doing in Exeter?
When Charles II died in 1685 he was succeeded on the throne by his brother James the Duke of York, who became James II of England and VII of Scotland. His accession was controversial because he was a Roman Catholic at a time when most of his subjects had a fear and distrust of the Roman church. On the whole, the nation was prepared to give James a chance, and uprisings in Scotland and the west of England failed, partly due to insufficient support. In the next three years James was to antagonise almost all of his subjects by recklessly pursuing two ambitions which were deeply offensive to them. These were the re-conversion of Britain to the Church of Rome, and the establishment of an absolute monarchy on the lines of the French king, Louis XIV.
The Whig party had always opposed James. In the last years of Charles II’s reign they had made great efforts to prevent the succession, and some had lost their lives in the attempt. The Tory party upheld James’ right to succeed, but when he became king his attempts to advance Roman Catholicism were seen by them as a threat to the Church of England. This they could not tolerate, and by the summer of 1688 events came to a head when seven bishops of the Church of England were put on trial by James for refusing to read a “Declaration of Indulgence” from their pulpits. Their acquittal was a cause of great rejoicing all over the country, but at the same time James’ wife gave birth to a son and the nation was confronted by the prospect of a Roman Catholic dynasty. By this time some Tory leaders had already joined their erstwhile Whig enemies in a conspiracy to invite William, the Prince of Orange, to intervene.
William was the leader of the Dutch Republic and had led the Dutch people’s resistance to French aggression for almost twenty years. He was also seen as the foremost champion of Protestantism in Europe. He was James’ nephew on his mother’s side and was also married to James’ eldest daughter Mary.
William’s preparations were meticulous. He set sail from Holland and sailed westwards down the Channel with his expeditionary force. He landed at Brixham in Torbay on 5th November, and when his army was safely ashore he moved on Exeter which he reached on the ninth.
The Orange Association came into being at Exeter and its first members were the men who had accompanied William to the city or who joined him there. Eventually, it spread over the country and was joined by all William’s adherents, and it is interesting to see who they were. In fact, it is possible to detect several distinct groups whose interests led them to unite in support of William.
The first group was composed of William’s most trusted officers and advisors. These were the army officers Godert de Ginkel and the Count of Solms-Braunfels, together with the politician and diplomat William Bentinck. There were also Protestant refugees from all over Europe who had fled to Holland for refuge. The most famous of these was the Duke of Schomberg, who had left the service of the French king rather than abandon his Protestant faith.
There was a large contingent of Scottish refugees who had fled the persecution of the “killing times”. Some were extreme Covenanters who were already organised in a secret brotherhood with signs, code-names, and passwords. Among William’s Scottish contingent was included Gilbert Burnet, a famous clergyman and historian; Archibald Campbell, the Earl of Argyll, whose father had been executed for rebelling against James in 1685; Sir Patrick Hume, who had taken part in the 1685 rebellion; David Melville, the Earl of Leven, leading a regiment of Scottish exiles; William Carstares, one of William’s secret agents and a future moderator of the Church of Scotland; James Johnston, William’s spy-master and propagandist; and Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun, who had been in Monmouth’s expedition.
There were also Englishmen who had gone to Holland to offer their services to William and who were now returning to England with him. These included the Earl of Macclesfield, who had spent time as a prisoner in the Tower and had narrowly escaped death for opposition to James; Lord Mordaunt, one of the first to urge William to go to England; and Lord Grey, who had commanded Monmouth’s cavalry. There was also Colonel Thomas Talmash, one of the best young officers in the British army and heavily involved in Williamite groups in the officer corps.
The invitation to William to come to England was signed by seven prominent men. Three of them had subsequently found their way to William’s court and now returned with him to England. One of these was the Earl of Shrewsbury, a converted Roman Catholic whose London home was the headquarters of the English side of the plan to bring William to England. The other two were Edward Russell and Henry Sidney. Russell’s cousin and Sidney’s brother had been executed in the wake of the so-called “Rye House Plot”.
The other four signatories had remained in England and, because they were not present in Exeter, joined the Association at a later date. Henry Compton, the Bishop of London, stayed in the capital from where he helped Princess Anne to escape and take refuge with the Williamite forces, when it was feared that she might be sent to France by James and used against her sister Mary.
It had been pre-arranged that the Earl of Devonshire would raise the midlands for William. This he successfully did, seizing Nottingham and using it as his base. He was able to call for support on a network of prominent Whigs in the midlands which included the Earl of Stamford, the Earl of Rutland, the Earl of Manchester, the Earl of Cholmondeley, and the Marquis of Winchester.
The remaining signatories were the Earl of Danby and Lord Lumley. Danby used Ribston Hall near Knaresborough, the home of Sir Henry Goodricke, as his base and with his sons, Lord Dunblane and Edward Osborne, he captured York. Lord Lumley, another convert from Roman Catholicism, captured Newcastle.
The Earl of Bath did not sign the invitation to William, but he was certainly a party to the conspiracy. He was commander of the garrison at Plymouth and he handed the city over to William, thereby securing the Prince’s western flank. Bath joined the Association at a later date and won much support for it in Cornwall.
Another of the conspirators, though not a signatory to the invitation, was Arthur Herbert, a career sailor who had fought in the naval wars against the Dutch and the Algerian pirates, where he lost an eye. Herbert carried the invitation to William, moving from England to Holland disguised as a common sailor with the invitation sown into his jacket. William put Herbert in command of the invasion fleet which conveyed him and his army to England.
William spent almost two weeks in Exeter during which time he had many prominent men join his ranks. Some had been party to his plans and intended to join him, whilst with others it was a spontaneous act on hearing of his landing. Captain Hicks, whose father lost his life supporting Monmouth, had tried to raise men for William in Exeter on 7th November and was imprisoned for his rashness. When William took the city on the ninth, Hicks was freed. On 12th November Captain Burrington of Crediton arrived to offer his support.
The next day Viscount Colchester, Thomas Wharton, and Colonel Charles Godfrey came in with their supporters . These men were part of William’s support in the army and had been organised into a clandestine group known as the Rose Tavern Club from their meeting place in Covent Garden. Other such groups were the Treason Club and the Association of Protestant Officers. Of the latter, John Cutts had accompanied William from Holland, while Major Thomas Langston joined him in Exeter with most of the St. Alban’s Regiment. Other members were Charles Trelawney, brother of one of the seven bishops; Percy Kirke, who was imprisoned by James; and John Churchill, the future Duke of Marlborough. Another Whig peer, Lord Lovelace, attempted to reach William but was intercepted by a superior force at Cirencester and captured.
William wanted to appeal to as wide a section of the nation as possible and, given that most of his early supporters were Whigs, he badly felt the need of support from the Tories. He got this on 14th November when the Earl of Abingdon and Lord Cornbury arrived in Exeter, for both were significant Tory figures. The Earl of Abingdon was a wealthy and influential politician, but it was Cornbury who caused a sensation. Although he was not himself a very impressive figure, and he had failed to bring many of his troops over with him, he came from the Hyde family who were the staunchest of Tories. James’ first wife was Anne Hyde.
More Tory support came in the following day with Sir Edward Seymour and his cousin Sir William Portman. These were men from one of the most powerful Tory families in the country. Seymour was a politician of vast experience and had been Speaker of the House of Commons twice. Portman was a substantial figure in his own right and brought a large following with him.
It was Seymour who urged the formation of a formal organisation to strengthen the basis of William’s support. Macauley tells the story in his “History of England”, -
“Seymour, a keen politician, long accustomed to the tactics of faction, saw in a moment that the party which had begun to rally round the Prince stood in need of organisation. It was as yet, he said, a mere rope of sand, no common object had been publicly and formally avowed: nobody was pledged to anything. As soon as the assembly at the Deanery broke up, he sent for Burnet, and suggested that an association should be formed, and that all the English adherents of the Prince should put their hands to an instrument binding them to be true to their leader and each other. Burnet carried the suggestion to the Prince and to Shrewsbury, by both of whom it was approved. A meeting was held in the Cathedral. A short paper drawn up by Burnet was produced, approved and eagerly signed. The subscribers engaged to pursue in concert the objects set forth in the Prince’s declaration; to stand by him and by each other; to take signal vengeance on all who should make any attempt on his person; and, even if such an attempt should unhappily succeed, to persist in their undertaking till the liberties and the religion of the Nation should be effectually secured.”
A declaration was written by Burnet and read as follows, -
“We do hereby associate ourselves, to the utmost of our power, to support and defend our great deliverer, His Highness the Prince of Orange, in his present enterprise for the delivery of the English Church and nation from Popery and arbitrary power; for the maintenance of the Protestant religion, and the establishment of a Free Parliament, for the protection of His Highness’ person and the settlement of Law and Order on a lasting foundation in these Kingdoms. We further declare, that we are exclusively a Protestant Association, yet, detesting as we do any intolerant spirit, we solemnly pledge ourselves to each other, that we will not persecute any person on account of his religious opinions, provided the same be not hostile to the State; but that we will, on the contrary, be aiding and assisting to every Loyal subject, of every religious description, in protecting him from violence and oppression.”
In response the Prince said to his followers, -
“… since God is pleased that we shall make preservation and happiness, let us not neglect making use of human means, and not expect miracles for our use of this gracious opportunity; but with prudence and courage put in execution our honourable purposes. Therefore, Gentlemen, friends, and fellow Protestants, we bid you, and all your followers, most heartily welcome to our court and camp.”
Although the Association was known as “The General Association of the Gentlemen of Devon, to his Highness the Prince of Orange”, the movement became nationwide. All who offered their support to William were asked to subscribe. They were engaged in a rebellion against a man who was still, at that time, King, and James was known to have a special revulsion for the Association. Members, therefore, had to take extreme precautions and early adopted a system of signs and passwords for recognition. An early form of password was “What did you say ?”, “Nothing more”, giving the password “Seymour” in recognition of that gentleman’s part in starting the Association.
There were spontaneous uprisings for William in most parts of the country. The Duke of Norfolk ordered troops into King’s Lynn and Norwich with instructions to disarm Roman Catholics. Lord Herbert of Cherbury and Sir Edward Harley took Herefordshire and Worcestershire and captured Ludlow Castle. The most vigorous of the provincial rebels was probably Lord Delamere in Cheshire. On hearing of William’s landing he led fifty of his retainers into Manchester and, having gathered further support, led his force to join the Earl of Devonshire at Nottingham. The Earl of Chesterfield was, by contrast, strangely lukewarm. He was known to disapprove of James’ policies but could not be persuaded to give active support to William. When Bishop Compton brought Princess Anne from London to Nottingham, however, Chesterfield appeared with 100 horsemen and escorted her to Warwick.
William advanced on London and James’ nerve broke and he fled to France. It was decided to ask William and Mary to become joint monarchs. The coronation took place on 11th April 1689. Of the Lords and commons present, 75% were wearing Orange and Blue ribbons, signifying their membership of the Association.
Another Association ?
Unfortunately, the Association was composed of many different sorts. Some of them were bitter political rivals who had come together under the pressure of the unique events of 1688, but once the crisis was past they began to argue amongst themselves once more. William frequently had his patience exhausted. It must also be true that some who joined the Association did so out of sheer political opportunism rather than settled conviction. As a result, the Association could not long maintain its cohesion. At moments of danger the old spirit could be revived.
In 1696 a plot to assassinate William was discovered, and in parliament Sir Roland Gwyn MP proposed an Association for the defence of the sovereign and the country. This was seized on and carried forward by Montague. Of 513 MP’s, “about” 420 joined the organisation. It was carried in the House of Lords, with its most enthusiastic supporters being Burnet, Wharton, the Earl of Tankerville, the Duke of Leeds, Devonshire, and Portland.
After parliament, tens of thousands in the country and in the colonies subscribed to the Association. The form of Association was published by the Speaker and, within thirty-six hours, it was subscribed by the Lord Mayor, the Aldermen, and almost all the members of the Common Council of the City of London. At Warwick, all male inhabitants over the age of sixteen signed except two Papists and two Quakers. At Taunton, every man who could write signed the form of Association, and all the churches of the town were packed with people who wanted to give thanks to God for the preservation of “William the Deliverer”. At Ipswich, all freemen signed but two, whilst in Norwich, where a majority of the magistrates seem to have been against William, the common people of the town gathered in multitudes to show their support for the Association. Macauley records the number of supporters in various parts of the country as, -
Westminster 37,000
Tower Hamlets 8,000
Southwark 18,000
Surrey 17,000
Lancashire 50,000
Norfolk 48,000
Suffolk 70,000
Macauley says that there were 317,000 signatures on twenty-seven rolls, and that the total number of rolls was 500. Members wore a red ribbon in their hat, bearing the words “General Association for King William”. Support was secured from British subjects abroad. Fishermen in the Scilly Isles, English merchants in Malaga and Genoa, and colonials in New York, Virginia, and Barbados are all mentioned by Macauley.
Parliament passed an act whereby all MP’s and office-holders “solemnly recognised William as their rightful and lawful king, and bound themselves to stand by him and by each other against James and James’ adherents.” Should William fall victim to one of the Jacobite assassination plots, the members of the Association would avenge themselves on his murderers and uphold the order of succession laid down in the Bill of Rights.
The Kit-Cat Club
Another Orange organisation went by the curious name of “The Kit-Cat Club”. This was a group of influential men pledged to uphold the Glorious Revolution and the Protestant succession. In its early days meetings were held at Christopher Cat’s tavern in Shire-Lane near Temple Bar. Cat was famous for his mutton pies which were known as “Kit-Cats”, and so the Club got its name. One account says that the Club was formed in 1688 by some “men of wit and pleasure about town” without reference to politics, but from a very early stage it became one of the most formidable networks of Whig politicians.
The heart of the Club was a group of veterans of 1688. The Marquis of Wharton had gone to Exeter then to join William and had been a prominent member of the Association. William liked him and was godfather to his son, but never gave him a really important job as he was too much of a party politician when William needed to build a wartime coalition. Anne loathed him and dismissed him from all his offices when she became queen, but he remained politically active and when Anne died he played a part in ensuring that she was succeeded by the Hanoverian line. He died in 1715.
The Duke of Somerset was a court politician from the Seymour family. He supported William in 1688 but William was never fond of him. He had great dignity and bearing which sometimes shaded into pomposity. Because of his gravitas he became something of an ornament at state occasions. He was second mourner at the funeral of Charles II and was later present at the funerals of Mary, William, Anne and George I. When the Tories returned to power under Anne they did not like Somerset, but he was able to maintain his position due to his popularity with the Queen. He used his influence to help ensure that the succession passed to George I, and that king restored him to all his offices. Two years later he fell out with the king when his son-in-law was suspected of corresponding with the Pretender. He spent the rest of his life tending his large estates and died in 1748.
One of the leading members of the Club was John Somers, a strong Protestant and a brilliant legal mind. He made his reputation by acting as junior council for the Seven Bishops, and his closing appeal to the jury decided the case. He rose rapidly under William and the “Declaration of Rights” was largely of his composition. He became Lord High Chancellor in 1697. In 1700 William engaged in foreign negotiations with France. Somers advised against this privately but went along with it from a sense of loyalty. The negotiations were very unpopular in Parliament, and impeachment proceedings were commenced against Somers. William supported him and he was cleared, but his political career never recovered. He actively supported the Union with Scotland and the Hanoverian succession, and died in 1716.
Another major figure was Charles Montagu, Earl of Halifax. He joined the Williamites in Northamptonshire in 1688, was elected to parliament in 1689, and was introduced to William shortly after. He made a considerable impression, and was appointed a lord of the Treasury in 1692. The war with France was requiring more money than any previous government had ever needed and existing arrangements could not meet these needs. Montagu solved this problem through a series of brilliant financial transactions which led to the founding of the Bank of England and the beginnings of the national debt. When peace came there was less need for Montagu’s services and his political opponents achieved his removal from office. During Anne’s reign he remained in eclipse, but on the queen’s death he was asked to serve as one of the lords justices who acted as a caretaker government until George I arrived from Hanover. He died in 1715.
Arthur Maynwaring was an unlikely member of the Club at first. He had been a supporter of James and his uncle had gone to jail for his opposition to William. His first literary work was a bitter satire on William and Mary, but he was persuaded by Somers to change his views. He became a Whig and, with a reputation for honesty and principle, his advance was swift. He became a successful journalist and Montagu obtained for him a commissionership of customs. He died in 1712.
George Stepney was an old schoolfriend of Montagu’s. On James’s accession he wrote some lines comparing him to Hercules, but by 1688 he had become an opponent. At the Revolution, Stepney supported William. He was an expert on German affairs and from 1695 to 1707 he was in the diplomatic service, mostly in Germany. Here, he did great work in keeping the German princes in support of the Alliance against France which was one of William’s greatest achievements. He died in 1707. It was said of him “No Englishman ever understood the affairs of Germany so well, and few Germans better”. He was also a poet of some note.
Evelyn Pierrepoint was Earl, later Duke, of Kingston. He was a staunch Whig, and the father of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu.
The Secretary of the Club was Jacob Tonson, who was a leading publisher and a major figure in the London literary world. Tonson was very generous to his friends and regularly held dinner parties for the Club members at his house at Barn Elms. A contemporary poem says,
“One night in seven at this convenient seat
Indulgent Bocaj (Jacob) did the Muses treat.”
One of his faults was a tendency towards pomposity and he was mercilessly made fun of by the Club’s literary members so that, on at least one occasion, he considered resignation, but the threat was never carried out. He died in 1736.
Tonson was a link between the Club’s politicians and soldiers and its literary members, for one remarkable feature of the Club was the famous writers who were in it. They included William Congreve, Sir John Vanbrugh, (also a famous architect), and Joseph Addison. This meant that, unusually for an Orange society, the Kit Cat Club was strongly represented in the arts, and was able to promote Protestant principles in that sphere which, for too long, has been dominated by those hostile to Protestantism.
Another feature of the Club was that, at their numerous dinners, members would toast eminent Whig ladies, and the toasts were written on the toasting glasses. On one occasion Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, when a little girl, was brought by her father, the Earl of Kingston, to a Club dinner and was solemnly toasted by all present.
As the original members died a new generation emerged. These men were at some remove in time from the heady days of the Revolution, and they seem to have been motivated less by principle and more by a party political spirit.
The most famous member in this second phase was Sir Robert Walpole, who dominated British politics in the first half of the eighteenth century. He was the first to hold the title “Prime Minister” and held it longer than any of his successors.
The armed forces were represented by Richard Temple, Viscount Cobham, who was a prominent soldier, and the Earl of Berkeley, who was First Lord of the Admiralty. Most of the rest were politicians who were undistinguished and dull. Of these we may note Spencer Compton, Earl of Wilmington, who was Speaker from 1715 to 1727 and was Prime Minister in 1742, though he did not perform well in that role.
Thomas Pelham-Holles raised a troop for service against the Pretender and was made Duke of Newcastle. He was a loyal Whig and a follower of Walpole. He was a very affable man who had his own following based on patronage and good humour, but he had little else to offer. Lionel Cranfield Sackville, Duke of Dorset, held a succession of officers in Whig governments, but these were mostly uncontroversial. William Pulteney, however, was a controversial character. He was a loyal Whig and supporter of Walpole from the time he entered the Commons in 1705 to 1721. In that year he fell out with Walpole because he did not receive an office, which he felt his loyalty had earned. From that time, and for the rest of a long career he carried out bitter personal attacks on Walpole and had clashes with several other politicians.
In the changing climate the Club declined. In 1725 Vanbrugh wrote to Tonson about the Club as only a memory and expressed a wish to have one more meeting that winter, “not as a club, but old friends that have been of a club, and the best club that ever met”.
The Loyal Societies
There were, in various parts of the country, “Loyal Societies” who celebrated 5th November by holding processions which culminated in the burning of effigies of Guy Fawkes, the Pope, and the Pretender. Even in the eighteenth century there were those who opposed this activity on the grounds that it revived old animosities. In response to these attacks the Loyal Society in London published, in 1718, “a brief history of the double deliverance of these nations on that anniversary”. The London Loyal Society used to hold their procession through Westminster and the City of London, culminating in a bonfire in Cheapside. The only place in England today where the 5th November is still celebrated by processions culminating in a bonfire is in and around the town of Lewes in Sussex. One of the bonfire societies, the Cliffe, still carry a banner bearing the message “No Popery”, and at their bonfire the Pope is still burned in effigy.
The Loyal and Friendly Society of the Orange and the Blew
In 1727 there was formed “The Loyal and Friendly Society of the Orange and the Blew” from the officers of the Fourth Regiment of Foot, sometimes known as King William’s Regiment. Its object was “commemoration of the Revolution of 1688 and the Accession of the House of Hanover, 1st August 1714”. The Constitution read as follows, -
“Loyalty to our Prince, and friendship to each other are the distinguishing characteristics of the members of this sublime Order. Several Officers of the King’s Own Regiment of Foot had the honour of forming this society, and intent of its Institution is a grateful Remembrance of King William the Third, our Glorious Deliverer from Popery and Slavery, and a just regard to the Inestimable Legacy that Monarch Bequeathed to the Nation in settling the Succession of the Crown in the illustrious House of Hanover. When we Reflect on the many Blessings derived from the Revolution, and continued to us by the succession of His Late and Present Majesty, it becomes our inclination, as well as our Duty, to prefer a grateful Memory to the glorious Author of them, and an Inviolable Attachment to our Gracious King upon the Throne. Let other Orders boast a more Ancient Date, whilst none can vie with this in the Noble Subject of its Institution, for, Liberty is our Basis, and Loyalty and Friendship are our Grand supporters.
By these motives we are therefore induced to unite together in the strictest bonds of Friendship, and for the regulation of our Society do constitute and ordain the following articles as entered in Folio Three.”
The Society was governed by a Superior, eleven Wardens and a Registrar. Admission was only by the unanimous consent of all members present, and new members had to make the following declaration, -
“I, A.B., do solemnly promise and declare that I will always have a just regard for the honour, dignity, and welfare of this Loyal and Friendly Society, and will defend its Constitution to the utmost of my power against all opposers thereof, and will from time to time conform myself to the Articles now read unto me as I shall hereafter answer to this Society.”
Members of this Society wore a Blue Ribbon in their shirt collar and a gold medal, fastened by an Orange and Blue Ribbon to a buttonhole on the waistcoat. Besides celebrating the Revolution and the Accession of the Hanoverians, the Society also kept the anniversaries of the Battle of the Boyne and the Battle of Culloden.
The following is a verse which the Society kept in honour of King William, -
Sound, sound ye trumpets,
Proclaim the Heaven-born day
On which our Glorious Hero
First landed at Torbay,
Not to enlarge his Empire,
But to set this nation free,
To curb the haughty tyrant,
And raise the supplicant knee.
His mind for ever God-like,
Superior to success,
Declining spoils of conquest
For Liberty and Peace.
Sound, sound ye Trumpets,
Proclaim ye rattling drums,
See here our Hero enters,
Our great Deliverer comes.
Established Freedom claps
In peace her joyful wings,
Proclaims him First of all Men,
And best of all our kings.
Though pillared-marble moulders,
And tablet-brass decays,
Great William ne’er expires
While George the Sceptre sways.
There was also the following verse titled “Anniversary Song in Memory of the Glorious First of August”, -
Old Sr Louis held it out,
Many a First of August;
Though plagued with a Fistula, Pox, and gout,
Many a First of August;
But the unexpected news that day,
Stuck to his heart and wore him away,
And left all Europe bound to pray
For the Glorious First of August.
Great George has given us cause to bless
This glorious First of August
Let’s drink to his memory, we can’t do less,
This glorious First of August.
And he that denies it may he be
From chains and slavery never free,
But thus tormented live to see
Many a First of August.
On the 18th January 1776, as recorded by Lieutenant John Barker, the following took place at Boston, Massachusetts, where the Regiment was then stationed, -
“Being the Anniversary of the Queen’s Birthday, it was celebrated by firing a Royal Salute from the Artillery in Town at 12 o’ clock, at which time the piquets of the army were marched to King Street and fired three volleys…The Loyal and Friendly Society of the Blue and Orange met and dined at the British Coffee House some days previous to which they had a meeting to admit new members and to appoint Stewards; many of the Loyal and Public Toasts were accompanied by the discharge of a volley from 23 Grenadiers of the King’s Own, agreeable to the custom of the Society; there were sixty-eight members present.”
The following are extracts from the diary of General William Dyott, an officer in the 4th King’s Own, -
1785 3rd April Dublin. I had the honour of being admitted a member of the Blue and Orange Society.
4th November. Dublin. Our great Blue and Orange Day. In the morning the Regiment fired three rounds, and the Duke ( of Rutland ) promised to return to dine with the Society, as he was chose Superior of the Order; but he was delayed by unavoidable business; notwithstanding the disappointment we had a most joyous day, and sat till after five o’ clock in the morning.
1787 Charles Fort, near Kinsale. On the 16th April we had a very joyous meeting of the Blue and Orange; dined upwards of forty, and of course got a good deal inebriated.
6th November. Halifax, Nova Scotia. HRH Prince William Henry, (afterwards King William IV), came on shore about twelve, and was made a member of the Loyal and Friendly Society of the Blue and Orange, and dined with the Society at our mess-room. All our officers were members and invited the Governor, the Commodore, the Commissioner, and Major Vesey, of the 6th Regiment, to meet the Prince. We gave him a very good dinner and he was in very good spirits.
10th November. Halifax. We had a meeting of the Blue and Orange, as His Royal Highness gave a dinner to the Society that day at our mess-room, and was chosen Superior of the Order…He desired to dine at half-past three. He took the chair himself and ordered me to be his vice.We had a very good dinner, and he sent wine of his own; the very best claret I ever tasted. We had the Grenadiers drawn up in front of the mess-room windows to fire a volley in honour of the toasts.
1788 26th August. Halifax. His Royal Highness intended landing this day as a Prince of the Blood, to meet the Loyal Society of the Blue and Orange at dinner, as their Royal Highnesses the Prince of Wales and the Duke of York, were to honour the Society this day by being admitted members. About half an hour after three a Standard was hoisted in his Royal Highness’s barge…We sat down twenty to a very good dinner. His Royal Highness presided as Superior, and I had the honour of being his vice.
1st September. He gave a dinner at our mess-room to the Blue and Orange Society; it was as handsome a thing as ever I saw.
1789 16th April. We had a jolly meeting of the Blue and Orange.
1801 1st August.Egypt. This day is a gala day with the Blue and Orange Society; all members serving in this army dined with General Finch, who is of long standing in the Order, and had a jolly day.
The founder members were, -
Lieut.-Colonel John Lee
Captain Thomas Shrimpton
Lieutenant James Thorne (Registrar)
Lieutenant William Williams
The Rt Hon. The Earl of Glencairn
Lieutenant William Trelawny
Cornet Robert Leigh
Joseph Richardson, esq.
Lieutenant John Emmenes
Captain William Newton
Captain Richard Coren
Captain Robert Hepbourne
Captain Joseph Veale
Henry Whitfield, MA (Chaplain)
Captain William Ogle
The Hon. Captain Willmott
Vaughan Thomas Wattson, esq.
Thomas Wattson Junior, esq.
Thomas Younghusband, esq.
Lieutenant William Bush Humphrey Leigh, esq.
Robert Hutchings, esq.
Captain George Walsh
Captain The Hon. Robert Douglas
W. Thomas Bury, esq.
Captain John Carney
Arthur Bradley, Gentleman
Ensign John Fuller(Registrar)
Members at a later date were, -
Colonel the Hon. Thomas Herbert
The Rt Hon. Robert, Lord Walpole
The Rt Hon. Sir William Yonge, Bart., KB
Sir Francis Henry Drake, Bart.Brigadier-General William BarrellLieutenant Robert KingLieutenant William PyllJames Keigwin, esq.Lieutenant Thomas CollierEnsign Henry BalfureMajor William CaulfieldJohn Aitkine, esq.Lieutenant John BarnardCaptain Roger LortCaptain Henry DelabeneThe Rt Hon. Lord John JohnstonThe Rt Hon. Lord SouthwellEnsign William NeilsonPeter Davenport, esq.Henry BaynesThe Rt Hon. Earl of EffinghamCaptain Robert BlakeneyLieutenant John FeltonLieutenant Theodore HosteMajor John WaiteCornet L. WestonSamuel Long, esq.William Fortescue, esq.Captain Richard BendishRobert Foulkes, esq., LL.DEnsign Charles MinziesWilliam Weston, esq.Lieutenant William FitzThomasKyffin Williams, esq.Lieutenant William Thomson
Lieutenant Henry Midgett
In the early 1800’s the Orange Order was opening lodges in the army. The Society merged into it around that time.
A Yorkshire Association
As the eighteenth century progressed the Protestant succession seemed secure and the benefits of the Glorious Revolution were consolidated, at least partly due to the work of the Orange Societies. With the threat of Popery perceived to be receding there was a falling away in support for Protestant organisations. At times of danger, however, they could be very quickly reactivated. In 1745, when the Pretender Charles Stuart briefly seized
Scotland and led an army into England, Thomas Herring, Archbishop of York, raised an Orange society. On 24th September that year an organisation of the Lord Lieutenant, Deputy Lieutenants, nobility, Justices of the Peace, clergy, gentlemen, and freeholders of Yorkshire, with the Archbishop at its head, came into existence with the following declaration, -
“We do voluntarily and willingly bind ourselves, every one of us to the other, jointly and severally, in the bond of one firm and loyal Society; and do hereby promise, with our whole powers, bodies, lives and estates, we, and every one of us, will stand by, and assist each other in support and defence of His Majesty’s sacred person and government; and will withstand, offend and pursue, as well by force of arms as by all other means, all Popish traitors.”
The Old Revolution Club
In Scotland, Orangeism was represented by the Old Revolution Club which was founded in Edinburgh shortly after 1689. Members wore Orange and Blue ribbons and branches were established in various places outside Edinburgh, such as Dundee and Dumfries. Interest waned after a few years, but the Club was re-launched in 1744. Under the stimulus of the Jacobite rebellion the Club thrived, and in 1788 held a banquet in Edinburgh presided over by the Lord Provost, to celebrate the first centenary of the Revolution.
Sir Andrew Agnew was admitted to membership in 1747, at which time he was given a certificate which read,
“Compared to Sir Andrew Agnew and humbly desired to be admitted to be a member of the Old Revolution Club, and having declared the grateful sense he has of the deliverance of the Kingdom from Popery and Slavery by King William and Queen Mary of Glorious Memory, and of the further security of our religion by the settlement of the Crown on the illustrious House of Hanover…we do admit him as a member of the said club.”
The Aldermen of Skinner’s Alley
Ireland, of course, had many Orange societies. The first of these was The Aldermen of Skinner’s Alley. When James and his troops occupied Dublin in 1688 he dismissed the Corporation which was Protestant in composition, and replaced it with a Roman Catholic puppet regime. The Protestant aldermen continued to meet in secret in a tavern in Skinner’s Alley, still using some of their old regalia, and with a marble bust of King William occupying pride of place. After the Battle of the Boyne, William recaptured Dublin and reinstated the Protestant, legitimate, Corporation. “The Aldermen of Skinner’s Alley” was formed shortly after to remember the stirring events of 1688 - 9 and the part played by the Dublin Corporation in acting clandestinely as a Corporation in internal exile, and also to render grateful remembrance for the life and work of King William.
It was this society which began the custom of toasting “the Glorious, Pious, and Immortal Memory” in the following terms, -
“The glorious, pious, and immortal memory of the great and good King William, not forgetting Oliver Cromwell, who assisted in redeeming us from popery, slavery, arbitrary power, brass money, and wooden shoes. May we never want a Williamite to kick the **** of a Jacobite, and a **** for the Bishop of Cork! And he that won’t drink this, whether he be priest, bishop, deacon, bellows-blower, grave-digger, or any other of the fraternity of the clergy. May a north wind blow him to the south, and a west wind blow him to the east ! May he have a dark night, a lee shore, a rank storm, and a leaky vessel, to carry him over the river Styx! May the dog Cerberus make a meal of his ****, and Pluto a snuff-box of his scull; and may the devil jump down his throat with a red-hot harrow, with every pin tear out a gut, and blow him with a clean carcass to hell !”
The society was presided over by a “Lord Mayor” who was elected annually. There was no restriction on the number of members, and no attempt at social exclusivity. Sir Jonah Barrington said “generals and wig-makers, King’s Counsel and hackney clerks, all mingled without distinction as brother-aldermen”. Monthly meetings were usually followed by a dinner at which the favourite dish was sheep’s-trotters, as this was an allusion to James’s running away from Dublin. This society was eventually absorbed by the Orange Order.
County Associations
During the military campaigns of 1688-90, Protestants in various parts of Ireland combined for self-defence. This often took the form of “county associations” such as the Antrim Association and the Sligo Association. These were maintained after the crisis was past and in many cases developed further. Societies such as the County Mayo Club, the Constitutional Club of the Gentlemen of County Kerry, and the Aughrim Club came into existence.
The Royal Boyne Society
Confusion exists about the origin of the Royal Boyne Society. Some say it began in Dublin in the early eighteenth century, being at first confined to Protestant gentry, but that it later spread to all social classes and to
various parts of Ireland, including Ulster. Other sources say that it was founded by Enniskilleners who were veterans of the Battle of the Boyne. An interesting feature of this organisation is that it operated a degree system, which is very unusual for the early societies. The first degree members were called simply “Boyne Men”, but there existed a higher degree named “Knights of the Most Glorious Order of the Boyne”. There were also signs, though no passwords. The signs were based on the wound received by King William at the Boyne. It was given by putting the open left hand upon the right shoulder, (where King William was wounded); and was answered by the other party holding his right arm across his breast as if in a sling, (the manner in which King William held the reins of his horse after being wounded). The following Boyne Societies have been identified as having existed in Cork and Wexford from 1776, -
Date Name by whom commanded
1776 Boyne Colonel Bagwell MP
1776 True Blue Colonel Morison
1776 Union Captain Hickman
1777 Culloden Counsellor Bennet
1777 Enniskillen Captain J. Connor
1778 Aughrim Major E. Jameson
1781 Independent Colonel Hon. R.Hare MP
1781 Muskeny True Blues Lt.-Colonel Hutchinson
The dates given, and the fact that they were “commanded” by men of military rank strongly suggests a link with the “Volunteer” movement, when Protestants banded together to protect Ireland from French invasion during the War of American Independence. The eight Corps named above formed the “Cork Boyne Society”. In 1793 Colonel Bagwell was appointed their Grand Master with Col. The Hon. Richard Hare (afterwards Lord Ennismore) his Deputy.
The earliest Associations formed in the County of Wexford were the following, -
Name by whom commanded
Ogle’s Blues Capt. the Rt. Hon George Ogle MP
The Ballaghkeene Blazers Capt. Hawtry White
Wingfield Yeomanry Capt. John Hunter Gowan
Branty Williamites Capt. Lord Loftus (later Marquis of Ely)
Enniscorthy Rangers Capt. Archd. Hamilton Jacob
Wexford True Blues Capt. James Boyd
Newtown Barry Britons Capt. the Hon. J. Maxwell Barry MP
(afterwards Earl of Farnham) Saunder’s Court Invincibles Capt. the Earl of Arran
There were six clubs in Bandon, with three Corps of armed volunteers called the “Bandon Boyne”, the “Bandon Union”, and the “Bandon True Blues”.
Every year on 4th November and 1st July, in Dublin, there took place a parade to the statue of King William on College Green. The statue was coloured white and decorated with a scarlet cloak and Orange sash. Garlands of Orange lilies and streamers of Orange ribbons bedecked the horse, while a bunch of green ribbons and shamrocks was symbolically placed beneath the horse’s uplifted hoof. The town of Bandon in West Cork was for a long time known as a centre of Protestantism and loyalty. For many years a re-enactment of the Battle of the Boyne was a centrepiece of the annual celebrations there, and bore a great resemblance to the Sham Fight still held every year in Scarva.
It now seems that the Boyne Society played a much more important role in the development of Orangeism than has hithertoo been thought. The book History of the Royal Arch Purple Order, by a Research group of the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland, has been revolutionary in this respect. Branches of the Boyne Society existed in the counties of Ulster, Cork, Dublin, Kerry, Limerick, Louth, Mayo, Sligo, Tipperary, Wexford, Wicklow, and Meath.
The Research Group found in the Armagh County Museum a framed chart of the emblems and scriptural scenes used in ceremonies by the 1st Loyal Orange Boyne Society of Armagh in 1798. The emblems are the same ones used in Orange and Black degrees to this day, strongly suggesting that today’s societies are carrying on a very ancient tradition which was passed on to it by the Boyne Societies.
Apprentice Boys of Derry
The prominent part played by the defenders of Londonderry in 1688-9 ensured that the events of the Siege would be commemorated by the city’s proud inhabitants. Every year 1st August, the date of the raising of the siege, was celebrated. On the twenty-fifth anniversary in 1714 a veteran of the siege, Colonel John Mitchelburne, formed the first Apprentice Boys Club. The founder members were Samuel Norman; Matthew Babington; John Darcus; William Curry; Alexander Skipton; Alexander Lecky; Alexander Knox; William Macky; George Harte; Thomas Ashe; William Leathem; John Gage; William Cunningham; Alexander Cunningham; George Blacker; Henry Campsie; William Miller; Joseph Morrison; and others. Mitchelburne was as much a pillar of the Club as he had been of the defence of the city, and after his death the Club faded away. In 1775, however, the Independent Mitchelburn Club was formed with Thomas Anderson as President. This Club kept alive the Apprentice Boys tradition until 1814, when the Apprentice Boys of Derry Club was formed by Benjamin J. Darcus and the history of the Apprentice Boys entered its modern phase. The rest of the story falls outside the scope of this study, but it is worth noting that there was an Apprentice Boys of Derry Club instituted in Dublin on 7th December 1813, a year before the generally accepted date for the revival of the organisation. This is noted by the Orange historian Sibbet, and has been researched by Dr. Mackey of the Oxford lodge, but it is not generally known.
The Sheffield Revolution Club
When the first centenary of the Glorious Revolution was celebrated in 1788, it gave a stimulus to Orangeism. Several Revolution Societies were formed in various parts of the country. There was a Revolution Club formed in Sheffield on 4th May 1789, “in commemoration of that glorious event, accomplished by our ancestors and by which our civil and religious liberties were happily secured and preserved against popery, slavery, and arbitrary power”. Officers were elected annually and consisted of a Master, Senior and Junior Wardens and twelve Assistants. The Club was diligent in looking after the welfare of its members, with visitation of the sick and sickness payments being made. The Club would also provide a pall and six bearers for the funeral of members. The Club proved to be very popular and had to move to larger accommodation several times in its early years. In 1813 membership was limited to 200, and a waiting list for candidates grew. Fathers would put their son’s names on the candidates’ list at a very early age, two being nominated when only eight days old. The membership became quite exclusive and drawn largely from the professional class. Meetings were monthly and every year on 5th November there was the annual feast. The Club eventually lost its Protestant ethos and by 1892 membership had dropped to twenty-three, with ages ranging from 50 to 82. In that year the surviving members agreed to wind up the Club.
The London Revolution Society
Another Revolution Society existed in the City of London. It had been founded shortly after the Revolution and was, unusually, composed of both Anglicans and Dissenters. At the time of the first centenary in 1788, on 4th November, the Society had a religious service at the Old Jewry church with the sermon preached by Andrew Kippis. This was followed by a meeting at the London Tavern in Bishopsgate which was chaired by Earl Stanhope. Also present were the Marquis of Carmarthen and several MP’s. It was resolved that there ought to be annual celebrations by Act of Parliament and Henry Beaufoy, a Club member, was to move this in parliament. The Society held three declaratory principles, viz. -
1) That all civil and political authority is derived from the people.
2) That the abuse of power justifies resistance.
3) That the right of private judgement; liberty of conscience; trial by jury; the freedom of the press; and the freedom of election ought ever to be held sacred and inviolable.
The Society had fraternal links with other, similar bodies such as the Whig Club and the Cambridgeshire Constitutional Society. When news arrived in England of the French Revolution in early 1789, the Revolution Society welcomed it, thinking that the same principles were at work as had been in 1688. They began a correspondence with the French National Assembly, which was carried on in very friendly terms even when the French Revolution began to take on a violent form. This attracted much condemnation and, eventually, attention from the government who were anxious to prevent French revolutionary influence from spreading to England. Finally the Society had to circumscribe its activities to a large extent under government censure.
Orangeism in North America
By the end of the eighteenth century the British Empire was on its way to becoming the largest and greatest empire the world has ever seen, and where the British flag went the Orangemen went also. An article in the Orange Torch of Scotland some time ago said that there was an Orange lodge in the army of George Washington at Valley Forge, though no source was given for this information. It is difficult to know what kind of lodge this was, several years before the lodge system was adopted, but it is well known that Washington regarded the back-bone of his army as being those who were known as the Scotch-Irish. They were Presbyterians who had left Ulster to escape from religious discrimination and a depressed economy, and had sought a new life in America. They had a tradition of radicalism, and took a leading role in the revolt of the American colonies. For all that, they retained the Orange traditions of their forefathers, and some form of Orange fraternity among them would not be unlikely, though it would be untypical.
A far more orthodox expression of Orangeism was present on the North American continent. A lodge was meeting in New Brunswick in 1783 under a Charter issued in 1694, bearing the name “Colonial Patent no.6”. It was issued from the Guildhall in London, signed by Robert Ware, sealed with the Hestercomb Arms, and certified by the Great Seal of the Goldsmiths of Lombard Street. It conferred the right to hold meetings anywhere in North America. The Charter was continuously used in New England and was moved to Saint John by Lieutenant Andrew Stockton. This lodge and another headed by Major Gilbert met in Saint John from 1783 until 1815. By that time, lodges of the newer Orange Order were already in North America.
With the sole exception of the Apprentice Boys, all the societies and clubs mentioned above were absorbed by the Orange Order or went defunct. Quite simply, the Orange Order was a superior organisation which was better able to meet the challenges faced by Protestantism in the years ahead. The picture of Orange societies in the
eighteenth century is one of a group of gentlemen, educated and stylish, meeting for dinners at which loyal toasts were enthusiastically proposed, and relying on informal networks of influence to maintain the Protestant faith in Church and state. This is an attractive picture, but by the 1790’s such an organisation was an anachronism. The Orange Order had a superior organisational structure, and could command a larger membership because it drew on all social classes and, eventually, all Protestant denominations. During the eighteenth century, Methodism had revived Protestant non-conformity, and following the repeal of the Test Acts they were increasingly able to take their rightful place in all walks of life. The extension of the franchise throughout the nineteenth century meant that more and more people were brought into the political life of the nation. The Orange Order recognised these realities and sought to turn them to advantage. With the emergence of the Orange Order in the 1790’s a new era had dawned in the history of Orangeism.
Sources and Suggested Reading
A History of his Own Times by Gilbert Burnet. Published by J. M. Dent & Co. 1906
William Bentinck and William III by Marion E. Grew. Published by John Murray 1924
The English Revolution 1688-1689 by G. M. Trevelyan. Published by Oxford University Press 1938
The Glorious Revolution of 1688 by Maurice Ashley. Published by Hodder & Stoughton 1966
The Descent on England by John Carswell. Published by Barrie & Rockliff 1969
The Revolution of 1688 in England by J. R. Jones. Published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson 1972
William and Mary by Henri and Barbara van der Zee. Published by Macmillan 1973
The Life and Times of William and Mary by John Miller. Published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson 1974
The Glorious Revolution by John Miller. Published by Longman 1983
The Prince it is That’s Come by Joyce Packe. Published by Tre Kemynyon 1984
Reluctant Revolutionaries by W. A. Speck. Published by Oxford University Press 1988
1688 Revolution in the Family by Henri and Barbara van der Zee. Published by Viking 1988
A Plain Man’s Guide to The Glorious Revolution 1688 by Mary Howarth. Published by Regency Press 1988
William of Orange’s Expedition to England 1688 by Derrick R. Johnson. Published by Devon Books 1988
A Kingdom Without a King by Robert Beddard. Published by Phaidon Press 1988
The William & Mary Trilogy by Marjorie Bowen. Published by Inheritance Publications 1993
King William III, Prince of Orange, the first European by Bryan Bevan. Published by Rubicon Press 1997
William of Orange, a Dedicated Life by Cecil Kilpatrick. Published by the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland 1999
From Counter-Reformation to Glorious Revolution by Hugh Trevor-Roper. Published by Pimlico 1993
Britons, Forging the Nation 1707-1837 by Linda Colley. Published by Pimlico 1994
A Monarchy Transformed, Britain 1603-1714 by Mark Kishlansky. Published by Penguin 1996
Orangeism in Ireland and Throughout the Empire (2 volumes) by R. M. Sibbet. Published by Thynne
Orangeism: a new historical appreciation by Rev. M. W. Dewar, Rev. J. Brown, Rev. S. E. Long. Published by the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland
From the Boyne to Brampton by Wm Perkins Bull. Published by the Perkins Bull Foundation
The Story of Orangeism by Leslie H. Saunders. Published by the Grand Orange Lodge of Ontario West
Protestants First: Orangeism in 19th Century Scotland by Elaine McFarland. Published by Edinburgh University Press 1990