Canterbury Cathedral Peals

[Hazel Basford]

I have in mind gathering details of all the peals rung at Canterbury in
order to make good use of a very nice, but totally blank "peal book" in the
tower. However, I am having difficulty with the very first "peal" as listed
by Felstead.

Felstead Online lists 175 peals rung at Canterbury to date but in
correspondence to the Ringing World in 1981 (p.252) Bill Cook questioned
whether the supposed "first" peal of 5040 Grandsire Triples had ever been
rung.

According to Bill, the confusion arises because Ernest Morris, who says in
"History & Art" (p.78) that it was a 5040, did not check the original source
of the information about the "peal", which is the Osborn MSS in the British
Library and which apparently says that it was 504 changes of Grandsire rung
at Canterbury, not 5040.

I have been told that the 5040 of Grandsire is NOT listed in the College
Youths' peal book, which is what Felstead cites against their listing of the
peal. The book does confirm that they rang PB Major at Canterbury on the
same day as the supposed Grandsire, which Felstead lists as peal no. 2.

If anyone has any comments on this matter I will be pleased to hear them.

Hazel Basford
Secretary
Canterbury Cathedral Company of Change Ringers
hazel at b...