WATCH: Rain fails to dampen spirits at Belfast event to mark the independence of the United States

The ceremony was held in light rain at the residence of the US consulate general for Northern Ireland, James Applegate, who took up his post last summer.

Hundreds of guests attended the annual celebration at Ardnavally, Shaws Bridge, a gathering which traditionally takes place days before Independence Day in the United States, which is July 4.

This year is the 248th anniversary of the independence of the United States, which was declared in 1776. The 250th anniversary will take place two years from now, in 2026.

US Marines present the colours to mark the 248th anniversary of the independence of the United States at Ardnavally Shaws Bridge, on Thursday June 27 2024, days ahead of Independence Day, July 4. Pic by Ben Lowry

The intermittent drizzle did not dampen spirits at the event. Guests, including Northern Ireland’s deputy first minister Emma Little-Pengelly, listened to a speech from Mr Applegate, and were entertained by music and provided with food from a barbecue and drinks.

The News Letter was founded in 1737, 39 years before the declaration, which triggered the War of Independence. The newspaper was not the first in Europe to report the declaration as is sometime claimed. News of the seismic independence statement took six weeks to cross the Atlantic and was first reported in London in mid August, and then in the News Letter later that month.

The News Letter, which is the oldest English language newspaper in the world, is one of the only daily papers still in existence that covered the declaration. The Times of London, for example, was founded in 1785, years after the declaration.