The Bells of St Mary’s: Ancient crafts and new opportunities
By Chrissie Van Mierlo
The work of craftspeople from centuries past is etched across every inch of our ancient church, from stained glass to stonemasonry and from metalwork to mosaics.
As Work Experience and Volunteer Coordinator on the Reawakening of St Mary Magdalene project, I’ve had chance to explore the built fabric of St Mary’s with young people studying for qualifications in construction-related subjects at Newark College and the Academy Transformation Trust Further Education campuses. One of the aims of the Reawakening project is to encourage young people to pursue specialist training in heritage construction and conservation, using the work undertaken by seasoned professionals at St Mary’s as a source of inspiration.
Having spent much of the past six years delivering a major heritage regeneration project at Taylor’s Bellfoundry in Loughborough, it is perhaps unsurprising that I have been asked to reflect on one specific aspect of the church building for this blogpost - The Bells of St Mary’s!
Adrian, a longstanding bellringer from St Mary’s
It’s easy to take the soundscape of our ‘ringing isle’, as Handel famously called it, for granted. Church bells sing out as part of regular Sunday services across the UK but are better remembered for their role in occasions like weddings and funerals. Bells often play a vital role in times of national celebration or mourning, forming the backdrop to some of our most memorable moments as individuals and as a community.
The ancient art of bell making has a unique history in Britain in general and the East Midlands region in particular. Britain was once home to dozens of founders, but Taylor’s of Loughborough is now the nation’s last major bellfoundry. The pouring or ‘casting’ of a new bell is usually full of significance – both spiritual and practical – for church communities. After years, or sometimes decades, of fundraising and planning, as the molten metal flows into its mould, there’s often a shared sense of wonder. The object created will likely outlive everyone present and could well ring out for centuries to come!
New bells being ‘fed’ after a casting using the same techniques and equipment that would have been used to produce St Mary’s bells back in the 1840s
Early Christian missionaries to the British and Irish islands used small, portable handbells to call a congregation together. As casting techniques and lifting technologies improved, Christian communities were able to produce larger bells, hoisted into position above the church building to extend the call to worship to a far larger geographical area. Developments in everything from bell frame, wheel and rope design led to the present-day art of change ringing that many of us will recognise.
As Brenda M. Pask notes in her comprehensive history of the Parish Church published in the year 2000, bells were likely present at St Mary’s from earliest times. Much of the following potted history comes from Pask’s account.
The first concrete reference to bells at Newark Parish Church came in 1468 when Elizabeth Carlton bequeathed ‘For the ringing of the bells for my soul, 21 pence’. By 1552 there were five bells in the Newark tower, a number that had risen to six by 1663. At the start of the 1680s, the largest bell (known as the tenor) was recast by Noone of Nottingham. Sadly, that bell rang out for only a short time. In 1712-13 all six bells were recast by the well-known bellfounding dynasty Rudhall’s of Gloucester, adding two further bells to the ring.
By the 1840s, the bells of St Mary’s had fallen into something of a state of decay, with the Nottingham Journal observing that ‘the tenor bell at the Parish Church is useless, and the rafters are in a decayed state’ (Nottingham Journal, 14th May 1841). The Churchwardens decided to replace the bells and Taylor’s of Loughborough secured the job, with the new bells arriving by boat at the top Roving on 25th April 1842. John Taylor cast this set of ten bells – the first ‘Taylor Ten’ – at Loughborough, having relocated the family firm from Oxford in 1839.
New bells being ‘fed’ after a casting using the same techniques and equipment that would have been used to produce St Mary’s bells back in the 1840s
The story of our bells does not end there. The new ring of bells had to be rehung shortly after their installation at Newark. Furthermore, in 1846 the treble (the lightest bell) and second bell were replaced. In 1897, the cannons (the crown-shaped hanging device on the top of the bells) were removed to allow the bells to fit into a more contemporary type of headstock (the large fitting that sits atop the bell, securing it to its wheel). The wheels and other bell fittings were also renewed.
St Mary’s bellringers from the 19th century
Owing to serious cracks in the tower caused by a considerable lean, in 1913 the bells were taken down to allow for restoration. The outmoded wooden bell frame was removed and replaced with a cast iron model. An ‘Ellacombe chime’ was provided for under the will of Dr Walker, Vicar, who also made provision for a new Sanctus Bell to be installed in the bellcote above the transept crossing in 1933. Somewhat more recentlye, in 1954 the bells were rehung once again by Taylor’s.
The bells being removed to the Loughborough foundry in 1954
In many heritage sites – museums and stately homes especially – time often seems to stand still, with the work of our ancient ancestors being carefully preserved for posterity. In a living church like ours, nothing stands still. From the bells to the brasses and the pews to the plate, our ancient heritage intermingles with the beats of modern life. As St Mary’s prepares to Reawaken into the next phase of its long history, we can hope that the artforms that have shaped our past help us to ring in the future.
If you are interested in finding out more about bellringing, or joining our bellringing team at St Mary’s then contact Chrissie on chrissie.vanmierlo@stmnewark.org. No experience necessary!
