Religion, Riots and Rebels the Incredible History of Brown's Square Belfast

Want a scary Christmas? Join me at Whites Tavern or the Henry's Jailhouse for the only Belfast Ghost Story and Paranormal Tour for Christmas. Visit Belfast Tourism NI You can book here - https://belfastlad.com/top-guided-tour-company/belfast-walking-tours/belfast-darkside-tours/

Brown's Square tour on for tomorrow. Will include a visit to old John Brown's grave itself.

‘Religion, Riots and Rebels’ the Incredible History of Brown’s Square ‘Religion, Riots and Rebels’ the Incredible History of Brown’s Square and the United Irishmen in 1798 tour

The last of the 3hproject lectures was completed this week. The project is a runaway success and the project will now go mobile. So if you start to see tours guides appearing around Brown's Square you know they are telling their customers the history of Brown's Square 1720 - 2013. The story will also be told on the many tour buses that pass by and watch this space on how John Brown's square, Haye's and Alexander's taverns will be brought back to virtual life. A big thank you to the citizen's of Brown's Square down through the years and to the latest citizen's who are moving in as I write this post. You now live in the most historic square in Ireland.

Lecture Six of the history of Brown's Square took place on Thursday night. The era was the 1950's and 60s focusing on the families on the area that shaped its history including the Kinghan's, Calderwood's, West's, McCrea's and Phillip's. Next week is the last lecture before the project goes mobile and covers the men and women who saved the soul and heart of Brown's Square when the bulldozers came for it. Oh and of course the Troubles.......

Last week's lecture on Brown's Square covered the history of Lt Col Philip Woods who led the 36th Ulster Division to safety on the 2nd and 3rd of July at the Battle of the Somme and who planned, led and succeeded at the crucial battle of Messines at 3.10am on 7 June 1917. Woods had trained the Division in trench tactics extensively based on his own experience at the front line trench at Thiepval. The Irishmen not only took their objectives they took German command bunkers too. Woods then served as the Officer Commanding of the 'King’s Royal Irish Kareilan’s' in North Russia before returning home. Sickened by the treatment of Veteran’s by Northern Ireland’s government he stood for election in West Belfast and campaigned in his uniform on the Falls and Shankill Roads. He won. He was elected again but lost his seat when the new Stormont administration changed the voting rules. This photograph is courtesy of the Woods family and Dr Nick Baron of Nottingham University. Woods is truly a forgotten hero and if you want to find out more you can buy the story of his life here - https://www.amazon.co.uk/King-Karelia.../dp/1903427320

The 3Hproject on the history of Brown's Square took on another dimension this week with two history professors a doctor of history and an expert on Irish heritage joining the course that has now grown to 22 participants. This week we uncovered Brown's Square links to a Brown's Square man's Army billeting in the same huts as IRA internees 7 years later and how the man who saved the 36th Ulster Division has been written out of history. Until now! as Lt Col Woods was the only independent MP in the first parliament of Northern Ireland and he got elected by campaigning in his army uniform on the Shankill ...... and the Falls roads!!! Next week it's 'Yes we have not Banana's' the outdoor relief march at Brown's Square and how the end of Brown's Square was secretly being planned in the Smokey rooms of Belfast City Hall and Stormont.

Lecture four of the 3Hproject covered the Home Rule riots and the drilling and arming of Protestants at Brown's Square a full 20 years before 1912. It also covered the arming and drilling of the Irish Volunteers in the area and the hidden Brown's Square Rifle Range where the UVF trained during the Home Rule Crises. Next week's lecture covers the UVF man who became the commander of the 36th Ulster Division on the Somme and who led the 36th to victory at the battle of Wytschaete in June 1917. Returing home to Belfast he was sickened by the treatment of veterans and won election to the new Northern Ireland parliament after campaigning in full uniform on both the Shankill and the Falls.

The 3Hproject has tour guides from Glenarrif to Newry, Lisburn to Groomsport learning about the history of Brown's Square. This week it was the first segregation of urban housing and education in Ireland. Next week its Home Rule to the MP for Brown's Square who led the 36th Ulster Division and who campaigned for decent conditions for all veterans in his full uniform on the Falls, Shankill and of course Brown's Square!

Next week's 3Hproject's lecture is on religion, riots and education at Brown's Square 1800 - 1914. Bet Mrs Stewart (pictured with Mr Stewart who taught P7) who presented me with this award 50 years ago would never have guessed she was inspiring a future teacher!

The 3Hproject is hotting up with 16 professional tours guides on the course from across the North of Ireland. This week's lecture was the Heart's of Steel men on Friday, 21st December, 1770 at Brown's Square followed by the location of the pubs were the Presbyterian United Irishmen met to plan the 1798 Rebellion...... and yes that was at Brown's Square too! Illustrated are the Heart's of Steel at the attack on the Belfast Barrack's beside Brown's Square.

This is the coat of arms of John Brown who founded Brown's Square. His motto in Latin is 'Suivez Raison' or Follow Reason in English. John was a man of the Enlightenment and the new tour guiding class learned the initial history of Brown's Square from the Bronze Age to Pope Adrian IV to John's mansion on Peter's Hill. The course was so popular the original plan for 6 to 10 has now been increased to 18 the the eminent historian John Gray has now been appointed as the project's independant evaluator. Next weeks lecture is on John Brown and another Brown's Square man Jemmy Hope's part in the 1798 Rebellion and how Brown's Square was at the heart of the rebellion.

The story of Brown's Square and its citizen's is being told in an exciting new project starting this week, the Healthy & Historic Heritage (3Hproject) project. The project for professionally qualified tour guides will see up to 15 guides learn and be qualified in the history of Brown's Square from 1750-1995 then transfer that knowledge to their own tours as required. The project is funded by the Department of Communities through the National Lottery Covid recovery funds. Paul Mullan, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Heritage has an essential role to play in making communities better places to live, creating economic prosperity and supporting personal wellbeing. All of these are
going to be vitally important as we emerge from the current pandemic.”

Belfast Lad Tours receives grant of £5000 from the
Heritage Recovery Fund to help recover from the COVID-19 Pandemic
Belfast lad Tours Director Francis Higgins said “This funding has come at a time that has not only kept our former tours alive it has also gave us a chance to invest in the future of heritage tourism here in Ireland by training new professional guides currently studying tour guiding at Belfast Met and the Ulster University.” Mr Higgins went on “Things will get better and this funding means that we will be more able to deliver better trained tour guides armed with greater knowledge of the incredible history and heritage of Ireland.”
Belfast Lad Tours specialise in academic research tours of Belfast focusing on the built and human heritage story. Belfast Lad will be using this valuable grant to train ten student tour guides studying at Belfast Met and the Ulster University in the hidden and controversial history of an area of Central Belfast. The funding will allow the creation of walking and vehicle tours that tell the human stories of Belfast’s heritage from the 1798 Rebellion to the creation of Northern Ireland and the Troubles. The project will reveal for the first time the tragedy and triumph of an area of Belfast that has been forgotten for over 100 years and its central roll in the history of Belfast if not Ireland itself. The funding has been awarded to help Belfast Lad tour guides to maintain and hopefully regenerate the tourist and student business lost during COVID-19 and develop new resources that uncover, specify and celebrate Ireland’s wonderful heritage.
• 91 organisations and individuals have been awarded grants through the
Heritage Recovery Fund to help recover from the effects of the COVID-19
pandemic
• The Heritage Recovery Fund is being distributed by The National Lottery
Heritage Fund on behalf of the Department for Communities
• The fund is part of the £29million Executive allocation to support the arts,
culture, heritage and language sectors in Northern Ireland.
Belfast Lad Tours has been awarded £5000
to help recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund announced grants to help 50 organisations and
41 individuals adapt, recover and re-open following the impact of the COVID-19
pandemic.
Grants from the Heritage Recovery Fund were awarded to a wide range of
organisations and individuals in the heritage sector, from historic sites, attractions
and landscapes, to tour guides and specialist heritage conservators.
Belfast Lad Tours will use the recovery fund to develop an exciting new project the ‘HEALTHY & HISTORIC HERITAGE’ project that will see ten tour guides learn, engage and explore the hidden history of Belfast and how that history can be a part of the regeneration of heritage tourism once the restrictions of the pandemic are reduced.
This funding will enable new professional tour guides to inform generations of future tourists, travellers, students and academics on the beautiful yet sometimes tragic history of inner city Belfast using a specially created web site and validated materials before going onto to track those former citizens who changed Irish history forever. This funding not only secures the future of Belfast Lad Tours it also allows the project to develop new tour trails that challenge the perceived notion of history and heritage in Ireland itself.
The Heritage Recovery Fund is part of the £29 million Executive allocation that was
made to the Department for Communities to support the arts, culture, heritage and
language sectors which have been severely impacted by COVID-19.
This is the latest package of support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to
support the heritage sector across the UK throughout the COVID-19 crisis. Last year,
the organisation committed over £600million of National Lottery and Government
funding to more than 1,500 heritage organisations, along with expertise and advice
on adapting to the pandemic.
Paul Mullan, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said:
“We are grateful to the Department for Communities for providing this funding and
enabling us to help a wide range of organisations and individuals in Northern
Ireland’s heritage sector to recover from the current crisis.
“The risks to heritage sites, attractions and organisations from a sudden and
dramatic loss of income as a result of the pandemic, have put the heritage and visitor
economy in crisis, and this funding will play a vital role in their recovery.
“Heritage has an essential role to play in making communities better places to live,
creating economic prosperity and supporting personal wellbeing. All of these are
going to be vitally important as we emerge from the current pandemic.”
To find out more about The National Lottery Heritage Fund, go to:
www.heritagefund.org.uk

This the Corner of Boyd Street and Peter's Hill at Brown's Square Belfast City. Glasshouse Entry is to the left. This was and still is one of the first 'Peacelines' and sectarian Walls in the history of the Belfast Troubles. Within 100 yards of this location over thirty people were murdered during the '21' riots in 1935-37 and 1969 - 1995. On Monday I will be announcing a major new project that will not only commemorate all those who died but also teach a new generation of tour guides the stories of those Belfast and Brown's Square Citizens whose lives have become simply statistics but who will now come alive in the memories of the many tourists who pass by Brown's Square. I will be posting up the details on Monday evening on the Shankill Geneology and Brown's Square pages. Watch this space......

Old qnd new Brown's Square 2020. Brown Street looking towards Melbourne Street before Boyd Street was cut through in the 1920s. It was also the location of Haye's Tavern where the Presbterian United Irishmen met between 1793 - 98 to plan the 1798 Rebellion. Haye's Tavern was on the left of this picture and the most likely location where the informer James McGuckin began to talk Robert Simms out of taking command of the Army of the North. In the end it was Brown Square Lodge member Henry Joy McCracken who took command of the Army of the North at the Battle of Antrim in June 1798 and fought alongside another Brown's Square man Jemmy Hope who became known as the 'Protestant Spartan' for holding the line that famous day. You can read more in my book - https://www.lulu.com/.../paperback/product-6w9qr7.html...

Brown's Square Barrack's was under constant attack from Republicians and Loyalists from it was built until it closed in the mid 1970s. This attack came in 1942 in the middle of World War II and it highlights the little known fact that the IRA declared war on the United Kingdom in 1939 and carried out a bombing campaign even after the Blitz had flattened Belfast City Centre and crippled the shipyards and aircraft factories. The article doe's not state who carried out the bombing but its almost certain it was the IRA. Before anyone goes off on a IRA and the Nazi's rant yes the IRA did collaborate with the Nazi's but the Nazi's also visited Co Down and stayed at Mount Stewart house in the mid 1930's as part of British appeasment. Like all war's it was a dirty war and Brown's Square had its share too.... You can read the full story of Brown's Square in my book - https://www.lulu.com/shop/francis-higgins/shop/francis-higgins/religion-riots-and-rebels-the-incredible-history-of-browns-square/paperback/product-6w9qr7.html?page=1&pageSize=4

There were four mission halls in Brown's Square and the one mentioned in the Northern Whig for the St Stephen's knitting circle in January 1940 stood on former waste ground where the original weaver's cottages stood (and where Jemmy Hope lived and died.) It became St Stephen's church hall once the British Army requisitioned the Millfield Hall in 1969. Brown's Square barrack's also housed the army and the Parachute Regiment took over the Jig in Coates St (turning it into a successful cross community nightclub until the regiment changed tactics when Colonel Derek Wilford took over the regiment.) It was also the school hall for Brown Street school until it was demolished as part of the BUM plan (Westlink.) Thankfully they built lovely spacious bungalows there after a campaign by the Citizen's of Brown's Square led by Robert Cairnduff. You can find out more in my book 'Religion, Riots and Rebels the Incredible History of Brown's Square' available on Amazon.

Hello everyone, this is a merged pic of Brown Street School. There's lots more to come. The sales of the books are going well but I have a favour to ask all those who purchased the book. If you enjoyed the book or want to make constructive criticism please leave a review on Amazon here - https://www.amazon.co.uk/review/create-review/?ie=UTF8&channel=glance-detail&asin=1716364728
Alternatively for Lulu users - https://api.lulu.com/auth/realms/glasstree/protocol/openid-connect/auth?client_id=project-wizard&redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.lulu.com%2Fshop%2Ffrancis-higgins%2Fshop%2Ffrancis-higgins%2Freligion-riots-and-rebels-the-incredible-history-of-browns-square%2Fpaperback%2Fproduct-6w9qr7.html%3Fpage%3D1%26pageSize%3D4&state=b852d148-52b0-48cc-88c0-d1c95a763ed4&response_mode=fragment&response_type=code&scope=openid&nonce=11f0c7dc-df6f-4906-8f4e-c9bbc6557707&kc_locale=en

Brown's Square has been evolving, growing and shrinking for over 250 years. In the late 1800's it was renowned for slum housing and drinking dens. This ‘murder’ happened 157 years ago in and around the 6th – 10th of January 1864 and this would not be the first nor the last ‘murder’ in this small area. To put the date in context the American Civil War was raging at the time and the War of the Potomac was being fought. This incident illustrates what life was like for most working-class people in the Square at the time. A hard sometimes squalid life punctuated occasionally by help from the Church Missions in the area and Brown Street School. At other times sectarian strife reigned as this was the year of the Battle of Townsend Street and the attack on Brown Street School. In this case Alexander Young was still drunk when arrested and it was their own son who went into the room with the Wilson sisters to confirm his mothers death. These hovels of houses where the Young’s and Wilson’s once lived were soon cleared to make way for Henry Taylor’s works and today decent housing now stand there. (Source - THE CALEDONIAN MERCURY, TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 1864.)

The second citizen of Brown's Square to leave us in 2020 was Tazzy Calderwood. Tazzy truly was a hard man but a true sportsman who excelled at football, darts or whatever sport he turned his hand to. Tazzy's father Hugh died in December 1958 and the family had over 100 years of memories of living in Brown's Square. Tazzy was a gentleman who loved a bet and he joins Louis in memory in the history of the area. R.I.P. Tazzy you'll still be kicking a football somewhere for ever.

As we leave 2020 we also leave behind two Brown's Square citizens. The first was Louis West who was baptised in St Stephen's Church in 1940 and also nearly made it to his 80th birthday but sadly Covid took him earlier this year. Louis loved people and his dogs and was an old soldier serving in Germany and as a UN Peacekeeper in Cyprus. In later years he became a community leader and his reputation for fairness and kindness goes with him to the grave. R.I.P. Louis your memory lives on.

The first humans to cross Brown's Square did so in the Neolithic Age as they passed from South to North following the shoreline trail known as Boyd Street today. The area still retains its original built heritage footprint too from 1770. This page will be regularly updated with facts, pics and newspaper articles on the long, long history of Brown's Square from the Ice Age to Last Night like this picture showing the modern and Georgian Brown Street.

Religion, Riots and Rebels the Incredible History of Brown's Square Belfast updated their business hours.

Religion, Riots and Rebels the Incredible History of Brown's Square Belfast updated their website address.