Love's Guide to the Church Bells of Kent

Canterbury Cathedral, Arundel Tower

5 clock bells hung dead and bourdon hung for slow swinging with electric motor
Tenor: 62-2-9 in B.
Grid Ref: TR151579
Denomination: Church of England
Diocese (Anglican): Canterbury
Archdeaconry (Anglican): Canterbury
Building Listed Grade: I Click for Heritage details.

Details of the Bells

	Bell	Weight (most recent)	*(As received 1981)*	Diameter	Note	Date	Founder	Canons	Retuned
҂	Great Dunstan	62-2-9	67-3-0	69"	B	1762	William Chapman, Whitechapel		1981 Whitechapel
ꓕ	Quarter 5	9-2-2	10-2-7	39½"	F♯	1855	Charles & George Mears, Whitechapel		1981 Whitechapel
ꓕ	Quarter 4	8-1-24	8-3-25	36¾"	G♯	1726	Samuel Knight, Southwark		1981 Whitechapel
ꓕ	Quarter 3	7-2-21	8-0-23	35¾"	A♯	1726	Samuel Knight, Southwark		1981 Whitechapel
ꓕ	Quarter 2	6-3-4	7-1-8	33¾"	B	1855	Charles & George Mears, Whitechapel		1981 Whitechapel
ꓕ	Quarter 1	6-3-0	7-1-14	32"	C♯	1802	Thomas Mears I, Whitechapel		1981 Whitechapel

҂ - Hung for swing chiming
ꓕ - Hung dead

Inscriptions

Prior Henry's bells of 1316

5 bells received from the Angel Steeple

The 1635-6 Ring of Six

Bell	Weight (most recent)	Diameter	Date	Founder	Fate
Treble	8 cwt approx.	36¼"	1635	Joseph Hatch	Moved to Central Tower in 1726 as new "Bell Harry"
2nd			1636	Joseph Hatch	Removed 1726
3rd			c.1490	Unknown	Removed 1726
4th			1585	Robert Mot	Removed 1726
5th			1606	Joseph Hatch	Removed 1726
Tenor			1624	Joseph Hatch	Removed 1726

History

	1288		Prior Henry hung the original "Bell Harry" in North West Tower.
	1316		Prior Henry placed 3 small bells and a Chapter bell in the North West Tower.
	1433		Bells moved to the Oxford Tower. The Bells from the Angel Steeple were moved in.
	1490		The smallest Arundel bell was recast.
	1585		Second Arundel bell was recast by Robert Mot of Whitechapel.
	1606		Third Arundel bell was recast by Joseph Hatch.
	1624		Fourth Arundel bell recast by Joseph Hatch.
	1635		The Arundel bells were rehung in a new frame & tuned in 1635-6. The tenor was replaced by 2 smaller bells by Joseph Hatch to produce the first change ringing peal.
	1704		North West tower spire damaged.
	1706		North West tower spire removed.
	1726		Arundel bells removed. Tower is now empty.
	1832		North West tower partially removed & rebuilt.
	1981		5 of the Oxford Bells escaped recasting and were hung from the roof of the Arundel Tower as the Clock Chime. Great Dunstan was hung in a new frame for slow swinging and to sound the hours.
	1988		Great Dunstan was found to be cracked, so was lowered to the ground and welded by Soundweld before being rehung in the tower.
	1990		[Date unsure] One of the clock bells found to be cracked and was welded by Soundweld.
	1997		Great Dunstan again found to be cracked. Whitechapel recommended no action be taken.

Articles

"The Noblest of Bells", Offen, Richard C (The Ringing World and Lovesguide) 1 January 1981

Gallery

Beneath the clock bells, Great Dunstan stands in its own frame. Photo: Dickon Love	Great Dunstan being lowered for the last time from the Oxford Tower. Beside the great bell is the Clerk of the Works (Brian Le Mar) and the Dean (Victor de Waal). In the background, the old 11th and tenor can be seen on the floor. Photo: 1981 ?Kent Messenger	The clock bells hanging from the roof of the Arundel Tower. Photo: Dickon Love
The clock bells hanging from the roof of the Arundel Tower. Photo: Dickon Love	The clock mechanism stands in the chamber below the clock bells and Great Dunstan. This is equivalent in height to the ring of bells in the Oxford Tower. Photo: Dickon Love	Formerly there were only ting-tang quarters, but in 1897, quarter chimes on five bells were put in. They were arranged by the Rev'd Frederick J. O. Helmore, Precentor of the Cathedral to commemorate the thirteenth centenary of the Cathedral and the landin Photo: Provided by Stephen Ivin

Love's Guide to the Church Bells of Kent

Page updated: 1 April 2016