RINGING FOR THE KING PULLS IN UN-BELL-IEVABLE FAMILY CONNECTION! by Kath Norgrove

Resting and Recuperating After Coronation Bellringing!                        credit Kath Norgrove

Like many groups, the Alveley Bellringers had lost members over the years and were down to just three regular ringers in the village. Sunday ringing had stopped during lockdown and never restarted. When King Charles’ Coronation was announced, an appeal went out in the local Parish Magazine to recruit new ringers to be trained in time.

A successful open afternoon at the Belfry produced some locals willing to learn to Ring for the King and practices started on Thursday evenings and Sunday afternoons. Learners needed to develop the skills to control the bell using the rope; experienced bell ringers make it look way easier than it actually is! Once having gained some confidence to ring the bell, rather than let it ring them, the learners then learnt to ring in rounds with call changes.

The Alveley Church bells were cast in 1779, the same year as the Ironbridge was built, by Thomas Rudhall of Gloucester and range from a 4.5cwt treble to a 10cwt tenor bell. The bells were re-tuned and rehung in 1959. Records show that there were bells in the Church at least twenty years before that and these may have been the original medieval bells. So there would have been bellringers here since at least 1759 but probably much earlier.

The inscription on the tenor bell links one of the learners, the author, directly with the founding of the bells. The tenor bell bears the name of two church wardens at the time, both of whom probably gave a sizable donation towards the cost of the bells. One of these was Stephens Cresswell, a local farmer and landowner, buried in Alveley churchyard. There are still descendants living in the area today; including me, his great-great-great-great granddaughter, who rang the 10cwt tenor bell on Coronation Day!

An attempt at a limerick....

There were some learners from Alveley,

who wanted to see if they could be

ringing with the nation

for the King's Coronation

And to ring on May 6^th was the key

They met on an Open Day

up in the yonder bel-fry

In Jan they did start

so they could play their part

For the crowning day in May

 

Pulling on the backstroke

Sally on the frontstroke

Ringing in rounds

Making good sounds

Regular practicing folk

 

The tenor bell, inscribed, was a bombshell,

There was named a man on the 10cwt bell

His 4x Gt granddaughter did ring

when they rang for the King