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There have been bells at St Andrew\u2019s since the 1300\u2019s and they have formed part of the soundscape of the village for some 700 years.<\/p>\nOf all of the activities in church, bell ringing is, perhaps, the one that is hardest to ignore!<\/p>\n
There have been bells at St Andrew\u2019s since the 1300\u2019s and they have formed part of the soundscape of the village for some 700 years.<\/p>\n
Our current ring of eight bells was installed in 1914 and are said to be \u201camong the best bells in Yorkshire\u201d*.\u00a0 They don\u2019t sound as loud to our neighbours as they might do because all of the sound louvres are almost totally bricked up.\u00a0 A sound lantern installed on the roof throws the sound out and up, so that, on a good day, they can be heard quite far afield (I’ve never heard them from my home – but that’s perhaps, because I’m not usually at home when the bells are ringing!)<\/p>\n
* … but a lot of towers will all claim that.<\/em><\/p>\n Throughout the day, you will hear the clock chiming.\u00a0 This ancient \u201cCryer\u201d clock was first built in 1709 and then renewed in 1828 by public subscription.\u00a0 The hour chimes were installed when the tower housed only six bells and so the chimes ring the “back six” in what is, as far as we know, a unique pattern or tune. Legend has it that when the stone lions at Kildwick Hall hear the clock strike midnight, they come down to the canal for a drink.\u00a0 (Trouble is, they are deaf; stone deaf!)<\/em><\/p>\n Bells are also an important feature for many weddings and solemn ringing sometimes accompanies a funeral.<\/p>\n Other ringing does take place. Ours are fairly special and unique bells and so visiting ringers like to come (tower tours are a feature of bell ringing – “tower grabbing” is a bit like train spotting!)\u00a0 That’s often on a Saturday.\u00a0 National events, such as the death of Queen Elizabeth and the coronation of King Charles, also call for recognition.<\/p>\n Peals and quarter peals are sometimes rung.\u00a0 These are fixed length pieces that take around three hours (for a peal) or three quarters of an hour (for a “quarter peal”).\u00a0 Our Yorkshire tail ends mean that requests for peals are uncommon.<\/p>\n Our ground floor ringing chamber is easily accessible to all – so come along any time we are ringing and see what we get up to.\u00a0 We\u2019d love to see you! Come and see what we do and maybe even think of joining us. We are always looking to pass on our ancient skills and passions to new ringers.\u00a0 You don\u2019t have to be particularly fit or musical or mathematical. If you can learn to ride a bicycle, you have the coordination to learn to ring a bell.\u00a0 If you can push a child on a swing, you are strong enough to ring a bell.\u00a0 You probably need to have at least a “1” at the beginning of your age – but we have an enthusiastic band of ringers, ranging from primary school age up to the near-geriatric!<\/p>\n We occasionally hold Open Days when there is the opportunity to climb the tower and look at both the bells and our ancient clock that is still wound by hand, three times a week. Sadly, there is no safe public access onto the tower roof.<\/p>\n We are very aware that the bellringers at St Andrew’s are very much a part of a local community that has preserved this ancient English art for many hundreds of years.<\/p>\n Contact us for more information<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Of all of the activities in church, bell ringing is, perhaps, the one that is hardest to ignore! There have been bells at St Andrew\u2019s since the 1300\u2019s and they have formed part of the soundscape of the village for … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/kildwickringers.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/180401-EasterDay-003sm-.jpg\")
Normal ringing happens for about 30 minutes before Sunday morning services and Practice Night is on Thursday evenings. Ringing starts at 7:00pm.\u00a0 We finish by 8:30pm.<\/p>\nYou are welcome!<\/h2>\n
\nWe use the door at the West end of church.<\/p>\n