There’s a party atmosphere in Carrickfergus. Thousands of spectators line the streets, and the screeches of children fight for attention over a chorus of tin whistles. The town is closed to cars, save for the hired coaches decanting excitable bandsmen and tour groups into its ancient lanes. A Norman castle, looming above the pageantry, surveils the crowds. A statue of William of Orange stands just outside its gates, a thick wig sweeping past his shoulders, a seagull perched upon his head. So far, so Ulster. Yet if this warm summer day is like many others in Carrickfergus’s history, commemorating William’s “Royal Landing” at the harbor in the summer of 1690, look a little closer. There, amid the pomp of marching season, is a sight that many visitors might not be expecting: countless young p