[Bell Historians] St Clement Danes

[David Cawley]

This is a very interesting and apparently conclusive posting. I had always 
been under the clearly mistaken impression that they were taken down when 
the blitz started. In London, this was done at
St Magnus
Southwark
St Bartholomew the Great
St Bartholomew the Less (back 2)
St Andrew Undershaft
All of which survived the War with their churches and towers knocked about, 
but largely intact!
I had always understood that it was done at SCD but Alan's letter seems to 
give chapter and verse. The picture I have does show the fallen bells with 
iron stocks and the chiming and clock machines in something of a heap.

Just one query - I understood that the note D chiming bell - a sharp fifth - 
was an addition to the set, after the war, to improve the 'Oranges and 
Lemons' tune. Apparently not, so when was the original one put up and by 
whom?  When Jarram inspected the bells in 1902 there was the ring of ten, 
the back eight by Wightman 1693 and the trebles by Oliver 1844, together 
with the Sanctus, Mot 1588 - a truly marvellous survivor. Rehung 1919.

Re Wilton Road, there is a picture, the only one I know, in Robinson p. 217. 
A bit Star-Streety in appearance, Warner bells too (1878): what happened to 
them? The church was badly damaged and was demolished in a purge of such 
buildings (e.g. Holy Trinity, Vauxhall Bridge Road and Christ Church 
Victoria Street) in this locality in 1954.

DLC

Thankas again to Alan for his posting.

DLC
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <alantaylor1 at 5iaj2rrmkR6JNh-rrStWLHIeCUMBDwTrvCrglJc_rWYRuCFWOS9Uop84heC8rn3B5FitbRp7N-DKjElxHon_0bVvQZDgTv4.yahoo.invalid>
To: <bellhistorians at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, February 02, 2006 10:51 AM
Subject: [Bell Historians] St Clement Danes


>I have been doing some research, in the excellent Westminster Archives
> Centre in SW1, on St Clement Danes. The Archive Centre holds all of the
> records of SCD. This is a rich vein of material.
>
> It would seem the church was hit on two nights by incendiary bombs. The
> first raid did most of the damage, including gutting the tower. Material 
> in
> the archives talks of the difficult task of getting the bells down from 
> the
> burnt out tower. And then goes onto say that the bells were then placed in 
> a
> brick shed. To keep them safe. When the bells were finally collected by
> Whitechapel, 10 of the 12 bells were cracked. That is the ringing 10,
> Sanctus bell and accidental used by the carillon. The Sanctus bell was in
> fact hung in the steeple and is now hung with the new bells.
>
> Alan Hughes tells me, that his grandfather told him, that the bells looked
> like aero bars. They had so many holes in them.
>
> Lastly the tower layout. The present tower is the medieval tower plus 2
> stories. When the tower was raised by 2 stories, so were the bells. After
> the war the bells were brought down 2 stories. So, the present belfry was
> the pre-war ringing room. But, the pre-war ringing room was the medieval
> belfry.
> There is even a picture of the pre-war ringing room.
>
> Alan
>
> PS, I have recently found 2 pictures of the interior of St John's Wilton
> Road. This was an 8 bombed in the war. The Archives Centre had no pictures
> of this but now do.
>
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