The Bells and Tower
There are examples of detached bell towers throughout the British Isles, but Malmesbury is unusual in that the bell tower was once part of a different church — St Paul’s — the original 15th century parish church. All that now remains is the 120ft broach-spired tower.
Originally there were 5 bells in the tower, the oldest of which is the current 4th, understood to have been cast in the early part of the 16th century. The bells were rung from the ground floor and Walters in his book Church Bells of Wiltshire, published in 1929, describes them as “dirty and neglected.”
The Malmesbury Abbey Guild of Change Ringers was officially formed in 1947 and in 1950 they started fund-raising to augment the bells to a ring of 8, and to re-locate the ringing chamber to the upper old clock room. At this time the clock mechanism was electrified and the 1859 mechanical apparatus re-sited in the original ground floor ringing chamber.
In Spring 2014 we plan to add an extra beam to support the frame and replace all bearings and pulley blocks. The bells will also be quarter turned. This work is anticipated to take some 6-8 weeks. Details will be posted on the “Latest News” page.
