FOR the first time in almost two decades yesterday, an Orange Order parade passed Ardoyne in north Belfast unopposed by nationalists.
Up to 200 Orangemen and several bands marched through the nationalist district before 9am.
While a large security operation was put in place by the PSNI, it was scaled down compared to previous years.
The Sash was sung as members of one band drummed close to the junction of Crumlin Road and Woodvale Road.
However, the feeder parade to the main Belfast city march passed off without incident and the Orange Order and nationalist politicians praised the transformed atmosphere on the day.
The Ardoyne shops area has been at the centre of a bitter parades dispute for many years which often resulted in clashes between nationalists and security forces.
In 2013 the Parades Commission banned Orangemen from passing the interface as they made their way home from Twelfth celebrations, sparking fierce rioting as loyalists attacked police.
A protest camp was later set up in nearby Twaddell Avenue, but was dismantled last year - after a cost of more than £22m to police - when a deal was struck between the Crumlin and Ardoyne Residents Association (Cara) and local Orange lodges.
The agreement, which saw an early morning march take place past Ardoyne in October, included a voluntary moratorium on future return parades.
There was no nationalist protest during the parade yesterday morning and the Orange Order did not return through the area last night.
Sinn Fein assembly member Gerry Kelly said local people were relieved.
"The atmosphere is entirely different, there was a much more relaxed atmosphere. You can come here this morning with some relief and some knowledge that it is going to be passed over in a very short period of time and relationships can be built upon that,” he said.
"Relationships amongst people, not amongst politicians, in this wide Ardoyne area can improve because we don't have to deal with the type of sectarianism that we have been dealing with up to now."
SDLP assembly member Nichola Mallon also welcomed the peaceful outcome.
"Given past experiences there was understandably a degree of nervousness locally in the lead up to the Twelfth but for the first time in a long time people had high hopes that the day would pass off peacefully,” she said.
“It's great to see people's hopes rather than fears materialise for once.
“We are delighted that the day passed off peacefully.”
Fr Gary Donegan, who was present during the march, said parades are always going to be divisive.
"Every step I would count as a success,” he said.
"There are always going to be issues about parading.
“It is unique in Ardoyne in the sense that there were people who were killed in the vicinity of where the parades take place, so there is hyper-sensitivity about that."
There was no protest yesterday by either Cara or another residents group, Greater Ardoyne Residents Collective (Garc), which has rejected the parades deal.
However, spokesman Dee Fennell criticised the singing of The Sash and said it may hold protests in future.
“We took a responsible decision in the interests of reducing the impact on local residents who are already facing a security operation,” he said.
“We could protest at the next event in August.”
