Dedication of Peal Boards
Thursday, 15th July 2004
There are ten principal ringers for the Abbey's ten bells, which are rung for the major church festivals, for special services and for notable occasions such as the anniversaries of HM The Queen's accession, coronation and wedding.
The peal boards were blessed by the Dean in a short ceremony in the ringing chamber following the 24 June Evensong. Board writing has been brought up to date with the inscription of peals rung over recent years, including those for the 50th Anniversary of V.E. Day (1995), for the Golden Wedding Anniversary of Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh (1997), for the funeral of the Queen Mother (2002) and for the 50th Anniversary of the Coronation (2003).
A peal comprises a minimum of 5,000 different changes completed without break and taking approximately three and a quarter hours. The ringers memorise the method or script, and the conductor also memorises the peal composition to provide essential instructions during the peal's progress. For the Queen Mother's 100th birthday 5,100 changes were rung and following her funeral 5,101 changes were rung reflecting her age at her death.
