The Department of Communities has provided £400,000 for events across Ulster marking the 250th anniversary of the American Declaration of Independence.

One such event, organised by Reclaim the Enlightenment, takes place at St Joseph's Church Hall in Sailortown, Belfast, on Saturday 11 July from 2pm to 5pm. Admission is free and tickets are available via Eventbrite.

The date coincides with Bastille Day, a nod to the French support that proved crucial to the American revolutionary cause and helped spark the French Revolution.

Four talks are scheduled. John Gray presents 'Every breeze from the west brings news of fair liberty'. Marty Todd examines Francis Hutcheson, the Ulster-born philosopher whose ideas informed the Declaration. Stephen McCracken discusses United Irish exiles who settled in the United States, while Sylvie Kleinmann's talk, 'Lafayette, nous voilá ; Wars, ideologies and Ireland', addresses the French dimension.

During the revolutionary period, many Ulster Presbyterian emigrants fought in the American forces, and thinkers such as Hutcheson left an intellectual mark on the young republic.

The Department of Communities funding supports a wider programme of initiatives exploring historical and cultural connections between Northern Ireland and the United States.