Leaflets for Visitors
The Bells
St Cuthbert's Parish Church. 5 Lothian Road. Edinburgh. UK. EH1 2EP
www.st-cuthberts.net
At St Cuthbert's we are fortunate to have ten bells hung for change ringing.
There are only 17 towers in Scotland at which change ringing takes place, and
only of these have ten bells.
Change ringing - campanology - is an ancient art which evolved in England in
the early part of the 17th century and has changed little since. The bells are
hung in a frame that allows each bell to swing through 360 degrees. Each bell
is attached to a wooden wheel with a rope running around it and the bells are
arranged in the frame so their ropes hang in a circle in the ringing chamber
below. St
Originally eight bells were installed at St
Cuthbert's in 1902. These were cast at the celebrated Taylor's bell foundry in
Loughborough. Over sixty years later, in 1964, two new treble bells were added
to the original eight, to make a ring of ten bells.
The bells range in size and weight, with the heaviest bell in the tower (the
"tenor" bell) measuring four feet one inch diameter and weighing in
at 21 hundred-weights.
The first peal on the bells was rung in 1903, in honour of when King Edward
VII and Queen Alexandra visit to Edinburgh. (A peal is a period of continuous
ringing, generally only rung on special occasions, and takes around three hours
to complete. For a peal to be deemed to have been rung successfully, it must be
rung continuously and without any mistakes - so is quite an achievement for all
those involved!)
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The peal in 1903, was the first peal rung by the St Cuthbert's Society of
Change Ringers, and also the first by a band of Scottish ringers. Many peals
are still rung today, and over the last few years St Cuthbert's have celebrated
some exciting milestones, including the centenary of the installation of the
bells, and in January 2004, the 150th peal on the bells was rung.
At the foot of the stairs is a small bell,
cast in Edinburgh in 1791
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St Cuthbert's current ringers, practise most
Tuesday evenings, and ring for Sunday morning services. The bells are also rung
for special events throughout the year, and for weddings if requested.
Many of the regular band of resident ringers, have been ringing at St
Cuthbert's for many years. They are frequently joined by visiting ringers from
all over the country. Many student ringers also come along to ring during their
time at university in Edinburgh.
Learning the art of change ringing takes time and patience - but having
mastered the basic skills there is always something new for to learn, and as it
brings together people of all ages from all walks of life is a very sociable
activity.
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If you would like to find out more about bell ringing, or would like to
visit to see ringing in progress, please contact the tower secretary through
the Church Office :
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