Ring out bells of St Peters!
The darkness of an autumnal evening had already descended by the time we arrived to ring the bells at Forncett St Peter, following in the footsteps of hundreds of years of history.
Known records of bells in the church date back to the 1550’s, yet if the flint walls of the beautiful Anglo-Saxon round tower and medieval wooden staircase could talk, it’s likely they would tell tales of bells even older. Parish accounts from 1737 detail a fee of £10 15 shillings paid for a new bell to be cast by Thomas Newman of Norwich. That bell (number 5) is still in the belfry today. It is joined by bells 1 & 2 cast in the 20th century (1982 & 1937 respectively), along with number 3 & 4 which are the oldest in the tower dating from 1602. Completing the current set is the tenor bell* (number 6) which was cast in 1875. That wonderfully eclectic mix of ages tells us that whilst generations come and go, local people have always been keen to keep the tradition of bell-ringing at Forncett St Peter alive.
The number 5 bell cast in 1737 Photo: A MoskvinaThe sound of church bells is a special one, deeply rooted in English cultural, social and religious history. In the 17th century, the way bells were fitted for ringing evolved to incorporate a wooden wheel, to which the rope is attached. This allows a bell to rotate in a full circle giving much more control, enabling sequences to be rung. In an age of limited recreational activities, the popularity of bell-ringing nationwide grew rapidly, with competing bands arranging competitions with each other. These events were often sponsored by local pubs, with publicans keen to take advantage of all the intrigued locals & ringers who’d gather to listen and perform! Ringing was also used as a form of exercise, with silenced bells resulting in the term ‘dumbbell’ which evolved into the weights we know today.
Our ringing practice in October was the last opportunity before repair work began on the church. For the bell-ringers, it was a privilege to produce the same sounds as have been heard drifting over the South Norfolk countryside for centuries. For villagers, you can be rightly proud of your historic church and it’s equally historic bells.
With special thanks to the ringers. Steve, Trevor, Adrian, Judith, John, Rich, Bev and Pete.
FoSP are very grateful to Matt for his evocative description of bell-ringing at St Peter's and to Matt and all of the ringers who keep this wonderful tradition alive.
*You can hear Trevor tolling the tenor bell here
