St Mary's Church, Bridgwater facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids St Mary's Church
St Mary's Church from the southeast (April 2015)
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Location	Bridgwater, Somerset, England
Denomination	Church of England
History
Status	Parish church
Founded	c. 1066
Dedication	Mary, Mother of Jesus
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade I
Designated	24 March 1950
Style	Decorated Gothic, Perpendicular Gothic
Years built	c. 1300-1430
Specifications
Spire height	174 feet (53 m)
Bells	12 + flat sixth
Tenor bell weight	25 long cwt 1 qtr 1 lb (2,829 lb or 1,283 kg)
Administration
Parish	Bridgwater St. Mary
Benefice	Bridgwater St Mary and Chilton Trinity
Deanery	Sedgemoor
Archdeaconry	Taunton
Diocese	Bath & Wells
Province	Canterbury

The Parish Church of St Mary, often called St Mary's, is the main Church of England parish church in Bridgwater, Somerset. This church was first built a long time ago, even before the Norman Conquest in 1066. The building you see today is very old and impressive. Most of it was built in the 1300s and 1400s. It also has older parts and some newer additions.

The church is famous for its Gothic architecture, which means it has tall, pointed arches and large windows. It also has a very tall spire, which is like a pointed tower top. Spires are quite rare in Somerset, a county known for its grand church towers. At 174 feet (53 meters) tall, it is the tallest medieval spire in the county. A famous architectural historian, Nikolaus Pevsner, described the spire as "exceedingly elegant," meaning it looks very graceful.

Inside, the church has a very special and large painting. It shows the Descent from the Cross, which is when Jesus's body was taken down from the cross. No one knows for sure who painted it, but some think it was by the Spanish painter Murillo or the Italian painter Carracci. Both were active in the 1600s. This church is a major landmark in Bridgwater. Because of its amazing architecture and valuable items, it is a Grade I listed building. This is the highest possible rating from Historic England, showing it is very important. The Church of England also calls it a 'Major Parish Church' because of its size and history.

Church History: From Old Times to Today

How the Church Began

Records show there was a church here around the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066. However, we don't know exactly where that first church was or much about it. The earliest record of a church on the current spot is from 1107. At that time, its income was given to Bath Priory. This gift was made by the wife of Walter de Douai after he died. Walter's son, Robert of Bampton, confirmed this gift. In 1156, Pope Adrian IV also approved it.

In 1180, Walter's grandson, Fulk Pagnell, owned the land where the church stood. He gave the church to Marmoutiers Abbey in France. The first vicar, or priest, of the church was recorded a few years later in 1187.

Building the Gothic Church

In 1203, William Brewer became the Lord of Bridgwater. He changed the earlier gift to Marmoutiers. He returned the church to Bath Priory, agreeing to pay them 100 shillings each year. From 1209, Brewer started rebuilding the church in the Early English Gothic style. This work was done with the architect William Briwere. In 1214, Bath Priory, which was now a cathedral, gave its remaining rights to Brewer's new Hospital of St John in Bridgwater. In return, they received a yearly payment until the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

In the early 1300s, the church was made longer towards the west. Side sections called aisles were added to the main part of the church, the nave. A tower was also finished at the west end. We don't know the exact dates for the aisles and nave. However, the tower must have been ready by 1318 when a "great" bell was put in. In 1367, work began on the spire, designed by Nicholas Whaleys. Money for the spire came from local people, from wills, and from donations. To support the heavy spire, huge corner buttresses were added to the tower between 1383 and 1385. The spire cost £137, which would be about £100,000 today.

The late 1300s and early 1400s saw a lot more building work. The chancel, the area around the altar, was rebuilt in the Decorated Gothic style from 1395 to 1420. The rood screen, a decorative screen separating the chancel, was built from 1414 to 1420. The nave was rebuilt next, from 1420 to 1430. It kept some parts of the earlier Early English work. Building continued into the mid-1400s, paid for by taxes called tallages. The lady chapel was rebuilt or changed from 1447 to 1448.

The Reformation Era

Thomas Strete became the Vicar of St Mary's on August 11, 1528. At that time, the church was still Roman Catholic. After only a few years, King Henry VIII declared himself the head of a new Protestant Church of England. This meant Thomas became the first Protestant Vicar of St Mary's. When he started in 1528, Catholic traditions were very strong. The church had several special chapels called Chantries, each with its own priest. Many masses and special services were held. The church was full of color and light, with possibly ten altars. Records show there were fancy communion plates and colorful robes for priests.

The Reformation brought many changes, but Thomas Strete accepted them and stayed as Vicar. Monasteries and abbeys were closed down. Glastonbury Abbey, for example, became a ruin. The Abbot of Glastonbury was executed for not accepting the King as the spiritual leader. This was a serious warning to people like Thomas about obeying the King. Henry VIII died in 1547, and his son Edward VI became king. During Edward's reign, the Chantries were closed, and all churches were told to use the Book of Common Prayer. After Edward died in 1553, his Catholic half-sister Mary became Queen. But Thomas Strete remained Vicar through her reign. He was still Vicar when Elizabeth I became Queen in November 1558. Thomas stayed as Vicar until he died in 1571. By the time he died, St Mary's had become a "Royal Living," meaning the monarch had a say in who became vicar.

Changes in the 17th, 18th, and 19th Centuries

Illustration of the church in the History of Somerset, Volume 3 (1791)

A big event for the church happened during the First English Civil War. On July 21, 1645, during the Siege of Bridgwater, the church was damaged. It was caught in a fight between the defending Royalists and the attacking Parliamentarians. We don't know exactly how much damage the church suffered.

During the Monmouth Rebellion in 1685, the Duke of Monmouth climbed the church tower. This was on July 5, just before the Battle of Sedgemoor. He wanted to see the forces of King James II gathering at Westonzoyland. The battle was the last conflict of the war. The Duke was executed 11 days later.

In 1814, lightning struck the spire during a bad thunderstorm. This caused a deep crack in the structure. It was fixed "with great difficulty" the next year by Thomas Hitchings, a local builder. Poles and a ladder were used to reach the top. The top stone was too cracked to fix, so it was replaced. To stop this from happening again, a lightning conductor was put on top of the spire. A long metal rod was placed inside, bolted to the tower in the bell area.

From 1848 to 1857, the church was restored by William H. Brakespear. This cost between £4,000 and £5,000. He was an architect from Manchester who had worked on the Houses of parliament after a fire. The roofs of the nave and aisles were replaced. Old internal balconies were removed, and new pews, or church benches, were added. The old Tudor Pulpit and some medieval choir stalls were kept. You can still see the choir stalls in the Sanctuary today.

The hagioscopes in the North transept were removed. These were special openings that let people see the High Altar from the North porch. The tower and spire were also restored, and the parapet, a low wall at the edge of the roof, was rebuilt. In 1854, an eight-sided vestry was added to the north choir aisle. It was designed to look like a small cathedral chapter house. The medieval rood screen was cut in half. One half was placed behind the north choir stalls, and the other behind the south choir stalls.

Another restoration happened in 1878, costing £2,000. Old gas lights were taken out. The blue lias stone floor was replaced with tiles. Pews in the central nave were made shorter to make the aisles wider. The stained glass was repaired. Roof carvings called bosses in the chancel were restored. The arch leading to the tower was unblocked. The stonework was cleaned and repaired. The church reopened on July 29 after being closed for six months.

The 20th Century Church

In 1902, the unique but small octagonal vestry was pulled down. From 1903 to 1954, many new stained glass windows were added as memorials. The first was the Halson Memorial Window in the north transept. Windows were added in 1903, 1909, 1911, 1921, 1924, and 1954.

St George's Chapel

In 1920, a new chapel was created in the Sealy Chapel. It was made to remember those who died in the First World War. It was named after Saint George. The Bishop of Bath and Wells, George Kennion, officially opened it on November 11, 1920. The reredos, a screen behind the altar, was carved by Mr. Taylorson of London. The carving and fitting of the altar, reredos, and panels were done by Messrs Dart and Francis. The figures in the middle of the reredos show Christ on the cross. The Virgin Mary and Saint John are watching him. On the left is Saint George with the dragon. On the right is Saint Louis of France with the banner of Saint Denis. The chapel has panels on the east and south walls listing the names of those who died in the war. A new panel was added later for those who died in World War 2, and the Korean and Falklands wars. The main Bridgwater War Memorial is in King Square. It was unveiled by General the Earl of Cavan on September 25, 1924.

Changes were made to the east end of the church in 1937. The floor tiles from 1878 were removed, and the floor was lowered. The east window was blocked to make the painting of the Descent of the Cross stand out more. The walls were plastered. The tower and spire were also repaired at this time. The tower and spire were repaired again from 1993 to 1994. Scaffolding was put up all the way to the top.

Modern Updates in the 21st Century

South porch

On June 6, 2016, the church closed for a big restoration project costing £1 million. This work lasted thirteen months. It was the most extensive in the church's history. The goal was to make the space modern for the 21st century. It also aimed to restore it by undoing many changes made in the Victorian 1800s. When the old flooring in the nave was removed, they found the tops of several burial chambers. This made the project cost go up by over £130,000.

A big part of the project was cleaning the nave's large hammerbeam roof. It was covered in layers of wax, dirt, and other old finishes. Scaffolding was put up to clean the roof starting in August 2016. The oak roof was cleaned using soda blasting. This method is usually for smaller items but worked well on the large wooden areas. Soda is a gentle cleaner that removes dirt without harming the wood underneath. The roof cleaning finished at the end of September. Then, the walls were repainted, and the internal scaffolding was removed in October.

For the rest of 2016 and winter 2017, new underfloor heating pipes were laid. Electrical systems and foundations for the new floor were also put in. Starting in February, 800 slabs of Blue Lias stone tiles were laid across the entire church floor. These replaced the medieval tiles that the Victorians had removed in 1878. The stone came from a quarry in Somerton. The first tiles were laid in the transepts. It took until June to lay them across the rest of the floor. During this time, the pews were also worked on. They were made smaller, restored, and put on movable frames. This allows the church space to be used more flexibly. A new kitchen was built from oak, with modern cabinets. New lighting was installed throughout the building.

The church reopened in July 2017 to great praise. The main builders were Ellis & Co, working with designs from Mark Richmond Architects. Ellis & Co received a 'Highly Commended' award in 2018 for their work.

Church Leaders and Staff

There have been 51 Vicars of St Mary's since Ralph, the clerk of Bruges, around 1170. Before the Reformation, there were also Chantry priests who served the special chantry chapels. Since then, there have been curates. The Vicar and Chantry priests used to live in houses across St Mary's Street, south of the church. This area is now part of the Old Vicarage Restaurant.

Some of these church leaders became nationally known. These include:

John Norman (Commonwealth Minister of Bridgwater 1647-1662)
Moses Williams (Vicar of Bridgwater 1732-1742)
Michael Ferrebee Sadler (Vicar of Bridgwater 1857-1864)
Henry Dixon (Vicar of Bridgwater 1920-1923)

Education and Schools

A church school existed in Bridgwater during medieval times. In 1561, after the Dissolution of the Monasteries, it became the Free Grammar School. By 1819, it had no students. However, Dr. Morgan’s school, founded in 1723, had taken over. In 1888, Dr. Morgan's school received the funds from the Free Grammar School.

Various schools were started in the town during the 1600s. These included the well-known Dissenting Academy of John Moore at Christ Church Chapel. This school continued into the 1700s. Christ Church Sunday School was founded in 1780, and a Wesleyan Sunday School existed by 1800.

In the early 1800s, there were disagreements between the Church of England and other Protestant groups (Nonconformists) about how children should be educated. This led to two competing groups being formed to fund new schools. These were:

Church of England: National Society for promoting the Education of the Poor in the Principles of the Church of England.
Nonconformist: British and Foreign School Society.

Between 1824 and 1870, several schools were set up in Bridgwater by these two groups. Many schools also closed or merged during this time. In addition, many churches had Sunday schools.

The National Schools included:

Infants’ school near Angel Crescent, 1830. By 1891, it joined with the Girls’ National School.
Boys’ school, Mount Street, 1839. It merged with Dr. Morgan’s school by 1825.
Girls’ school, Northgate, 1830. It was known as St Mary’s Church of England School by 1937. By 1947, it became a Voluntary Controlled school. From 1961, it was only for infants. In 1973, it moved to Park Road. In 1977, it merged with St Matthew’s School in Oakfield Road.
West Street Ragged School, 1860. By 1875, it was called West Street National School. By 1947, it became a voluntary controlled school. In 1958, it was renamed St Matthew’s C. of E. school. In 1964, it moved to a new site in Oakfield Road. St Mary’s school joined it in 1977.

Church Architecture: What it Looks Like

Plan of the church, from Archaeological Journal, Volume 3 (1846)

Church Layout

The church has a traditional but complex cruciform plan. This means it is shaped like a cross when viewed from above. It faces east-west. The building includes a sanctuary with two and a half sections. There is a choir with two sections and chapels on the north and south sides. It has a nave with five sections and side aisles. There are also transepts, which are the "arms" of the cross shape, with porches next to them. A low tower stands at the west end. North of the chancel is a vestry built in 1902. This replaced an older eight-sided structure from 1854. The Church of England says the church has a floor area of 1,085 square meters. This makes it a "very large" building, the 6th largest parish church in the county.

Outside the Church

The outside of the church is built from different materials. These include distinctive red Wembdon sandstone rubble in the tower and chancel. Blue lias limestone and Ham Hill stone are also used. Bath stone is used in the transepts and porches for decoration. The main feature outside is the tower and spire. They reach a combined height of 174 feet. This makes it the tallest medieval spire in the county.

The tower is the oldest part of the outside. It was built in the early 1300s when the church was made longer to the west. It has two main levels, separated by a simple stone band called a string course. The lowest level on the west side has a small two-light window. Smaller windows are on the north and south faces, with pierced stone patterns called quatrefoil tracery. The upper level has two-light bell openings in the Somerset style, with pierced stone tracery. The tower is topped by a simple castellated parapet made of Ham Hill stone. The tower is 60 feet high. On the south side of the tower is a large, castellated, square stair turret. It rises the full height of the tower, with six narrow slit windows and Ham Hill stone details. Above the tower rises a slender spire, about 114 feet tall. It is eight-sided. Unlike other famous spires in South West England, like St Mary Redcliffe and Salisbury Cathedral, this spire has almost no decoration on the outside.

The nave has both side aisles and a clerestory, which is a row of windows above the main arches. These windows have pointed arches and hoodmoulds, which are decorative moldings. The nave is lit by large Perpendicular windows with horizontal bars called transomed windows. The north and south transepts, with their porches, have large round windows called oculus windows. These have star-patterned tracery made from Bath stone. The north transept has a late 1800s window with fancy net-like tracery. Its door has carvings of green men on either side. The chancel, like the tower, is built from Wembdon sandstone. This gives it a distinct red color. It has a large five-light east window, divided by transoms and vertical bars called mullions.

Inside the Church

The inside of the church has a colorful polychromatic Victorian tiled floor and a modern blue lias stone floor. These date from 1878 and 2017. The chancel has a 15th-century panelled barrel vaulted ceiling with shaped supports. Every fourth support is richly decorated. They rest on angels with outstretched wings. The chancel ceiling has 70 carved bosses, which are decorative stone carvings. They date from 1385-1416, with some additions from the Victorian era. These bosses show many things, including flora like ferns, Christian symbols like the Star of David, and mythical creatures like unicorns. The bosses were cleaned and restored from 2016-2017 to remove layers of dirt. The chancel window is blocked by a large altarpiece, which includes a rare 17th-century painting.

The nave also has a notable roof of the hammerbeam type, dating to the 1800s. It rests on painted angel corbels, which are decorative brackets. Like the chancel roof, this was cleaned in 2016-2017. The nave has six sections. It is separated from the aisles by an arcade made of hollow columns with small round capitals. East of the nave are the massive arches where the transepts cross. These arches sit on many-sided pillars.

The interior is unusual because of balconies in the transepts. These are formed by the upper parts of the north and south porches, which extend inwards instead of outwards. The north balcony has wide semicircular arches with a central vertical bar. These are flanked by arches with five-leafed patterns. The south balcony has one pointed arch with a wavy, S-shaped curve facing the nave and one facing the transepts. Both balconies have pierced stone balustrades, which are decorative railings.

Stained Glass Windows

Most, if not all, of the church's original stained glass was destroyed during the Reformation and the Civil War. After the restoration by Brakespear, many windows had their clear glass replaced with stained glass. One of the first windows to be replaced was the round window in the south porch. Alfred Beer of Exeter was hired to create it. Later, this window was replaced with clear glass again. We don't have any records of what the stained glass design looked like.

The next year, in 1852, a much larger window in the Corporation Chapel was also made by Alfred Beer. The Mayor of Bridgwater, Thomas Ford, paid for it. This window still exists today and has the oldest stained glass in the church. It shows symbols of the Crucifixion and other emblems, like the town's coat of arms.

The next windows were not added until 1876. These were two windows in St George's Chapel. They were made to remember John Sealy, his wife Emma, and their children John and Edmund. Both windows were designed by the famous London company, Clayton & Bell. Three more windows were installed in 1880, and three more by the end of the 1800s. An additional six stained glass windows were put in between 1903 and 1954. This brings the total number of stained glass windows in the church to fifteen.

Church Fittings and Art

The Altarpiece Painting

Altarpiece in 1860

The most valuable item in the church is its very rare and unusually large altarpiece. This is a 17th-century painting showing the Descent from the Cross. The painting was given to the church in 1780 by Lord Anne Poulet. He got it when the ship carrying it docked at Plymouth. Poulet gave the painting to the church. Its history and who painted it are still debated.

The King's England (1936), a book about Somerset, describes it as a 17th-century French painting but doesn't name the artist. The Victoria County History for Somerset says it was by an unknown artist from Bologna, Italy. The Somerset Archaeological Society (1896) believes it was by the Italian artist Annibale Carracci of Bologna. Other sources from the 1800s and 1900s say it was painted by Murillo. This is because the brushstrokes and style are similar to his known works.

The painting shows the Descent from the Cross, which is the 13th Station of the Cross. It shows Jesus at the foot of the cross. Saint John is bending over him, next to Mary Magdalene and the Virgin Mary, who has fainted. The painting was restored in 1930. It is so large, about 8 feet wide and 13 feet tall, that it blocks the east window.

Woodwork in the Church

The Rood Screen

The Corporation Screen in 1901

The nave, when first built, had a carved medieval rood screen. This screen separated the nave from the chancel. Later, the organ was placed above it. During the restoration from 1848-1857, the medieval rood screen was moved. It was cut into two pieces. One half was placed behind the north choir stalls, and the other behind the south choir stalls. They are still there today. Each screen has five monograms, which are symbols made from the first letters of names. These represent ten unknown people connected to the church.

In the Jacobean period, an extra screen was added to the west of the main screen. This was part of the changes made after the Reformation. It was known as the 'Corporation Screen'. In 1849, the Corporation Screen was turned and used to divide the rest of the church from the Corporation Chapel. This chapel was in the South Transept, where the town's councillors would sit during services. Some material was left over from the 1849 work. In the 1930s, four of the screen's pillars were used as supports for a table. This table is in the Church of St Peter and St John in Northmoor Green, a few miles southwest of Bridgwater. Each pillar is very decorative. The screen has seventeen carved heads facing the Nave and a detailed frieze along the top. The photo shows the screen from the back.

The Credence Table

One of the church's less known treasures is a rare 14th-century desk. It has carvings in the Decorated Gothic style. It is eight-sided, and its sides have carved patterns, making it look like a cage. It was moved to Wemdon Road Cemetery Chapel in the 1800s. In 1930, it was brought back to the church and made into a credence table. We don't know what its original purpose was before it was moved. It might have been the base of a lectern, a stand for reading, or perhaps it was hung from the roof.

Burials, Memorials, and Monuments

In the south aisle of the nave, there are two old, unidentified grave slabs from the Early English period. They are now in Victorian tomb recesses, but they were originally in medieval tomb recesses. These older recesses are now covered by modern radiators. The first slab is 32.5 inches (82.5 cm) long, and the other is 46 inches (117 cm) long. Both have a Greek cross carved on their top surfaces.

Other important monuments include a large marble and Watchet alabaster monument to Sir Francis Kingsmill. This dates from 1620-1621. There is also a royal coat of arms from 1712. A partially damaged Masonic memorial is on the northwestern tower buttress. This memorial, designed in the Regency style, is most likely from the 1800s.

Church Music

The Organ

Early Organs

The first record of an organ at the church is from 1448. A document shows that the churchwardens paid for two "bellows" for the organ. The organ at this time was probably small, like a modern upright piano. It likely had only one keyboard and one row of pipes. This early organ seems to have lasted for several centuries. In the early 1600s, Ralph Chappinton of Netherbury, Dorset, repaired it. There is no record of it being a new instrument, so it was probably the original one.

This organ was replaced in 1700 with a new instrument. We don't know its size or who made it. It was opened on July 17 and placed in an organ loft above the rood screen. It was repaired in 1810 and stayed above the rood screen until 1823. Then, it was decided to move it. It was taken apart early that year. It was rebuilt on a large new gallery being built in front of the tower arch. £102 was paid to repair the organ, and another £37 to move it to the new western gallery.

Organs in the 1800s

During the 19th-century restoration, it was decided to make the organ much bigger and repair it. The organ was rebuilt with a new soundboard and wind chest. The pipes were put back in place, and the whole instrument was re-tuned to concert pitch. The organ was also made larger, with seven new stops, one and a half octaves of pedals, and new bellows. The rebuilt organ was opened on July 22, 1849, at a special service. The church was noted to be "overcrowded." Despite the expensive rebuild, the organ was exposed to dust and weather during the church building work. This caused it to break down in 1852. It had to be taken apart and sent to Bath for repairs.

Even after the repairs in Bath, the organ soon became unplayable. The pipes were collapsing under their own weight. A meeting was held in October 1868 to decide what to do. The church members voted to ask the famous organ builder, 'Father' Henry Wills, for a price quote. At the next meeting, Wills' quote was £550. This included him taking the old organ as a part exchange. By November 1869, the organ had not been ordered. Because the price of materials had gone up, the quote increased to £600. The old organ was finally taken down in April 1871. The new instrument was opened on September 21 of that year.

The Choir

The Victorian restoration followed the ideas of the Oxford movement. The goal was to bring back older church traditions. A male choir was formed with sixty men and boys. They sang music like that heard in Cathedrals, with polyphonic singing in the choir stalls. Before this, few parish churches had robed choirs. Instead, people sang Metrical Psalms, which was a tradition from Puritan times. Later, Anglican church music began to allow hymns, influenced by John Wesley and his brothers. There is no sign that there was a town choir and band singing in the West Gallery before this. It is likely that the church started using the hymn book Hymns Ancient and Modern soon after it reopened.

Organs in the 1900s

The organ was rebuilt in 1922 by Vowles of Bristol. They updated it by adding pneumatic action and a new blowing plant. Only sixteen years later, Willis & Sons returned to service the instrument. They re-tuned the reeds and added a new pedalboard. The organ was repaired, restored, and overhauled three more times before the end of the century.

The organ was rebuilt in 1965 by Percy Daniels & Co of Clevedon. They tried to keep the sound of the instrument as it was when Wills installed it. However, they added six more stops. They also enlarged parts of the instrument using extensions. The work finished in March 1966. Two more overhauls happened in the late 1900s, one in 1975 and one in 1979. Some of the pipes were repainted in the 1980s. The organ was covered during the restoration from 2016-2017 to protect the pipes from dust.

The Bells

Early Bells

We don't know when the tower first had bells. However, there were five bells in the tower by the mid-1500s. The smallest bell (treble) was recast in 1615 by George and William (II) Purdue. It is both the oldest surviving bell in the tower and the only surviving bell in the British Isles cast by these two founders together. More bells were added to make a ring of six in 1640. A new bell was cast by Robert Austen I of Compton Dundon. The third and fourth bells were recast in 1721 by Abraham Rudhall II of Gloucester. Then, two new bells were cast by Bridgwater founder Thomas Bayley in 1745, making a total of eight bells.

The tower and spire. The bells hang in the uppermost portion of the tower, below the spire

Bells in the 1800s

The bells remained mostly as Bayley left them in 1745 until 1868. That year, John Taylor & Co of Loughborough recast the tenor (largest bell). It then weighed 28 long cwt (3,136 pounds or 1,422 kg). The bells were rehung in 1879 by a local contractor for £80. But this work must not have been good enough. Only twenty years later, the bells needed restoration again. In 1899, Taylor's returned. They took all eight bells and their fittings to their foundry in Loughborough.

The treble and fifth bells were recast, and the other bells were retuned. Retuning, plus removing the tenor's canons (decorative metal loops on the bell's head), reduced its weight to 25 long cwt 1 qtr 11 lb (2,839 lb or 1,288 kg). The bells were rehung with all new fittings, including cast iron headstocks and plain bearings. They were put into a new metal frame.

Modern Bell Updates

In 1899, bell-hanging companies in the United Kingdom used plain bearings. These needed regular oiling to keep them working. By 1979, these bearings were worn, and the bells were hard to ring. So, Taylor's rehung them on ball bearings. The next year, a floor was put in below the west window in the tower. The ringing chamber was moved to sit above it. Before this, the bells had been rung from the ground floor.

In 2012, the four main bell-hanging companies in the country inspected the bells. They reported on their condition and if it was possible to add more bells to make a ring of ten. The appeal to raise money started in 2015. It was later changed to include adding bells to make a ring of twelve. The fundraising goal was £195,000. By 2017, £86,000 had been raised or given through grants.

Work began in October 2019, thanks to a large grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. Two of the four new bells needed were cast. In December, all the existing bells, their fittings, and the frame they hang in were removed from the tower. This took two weeks, and they were sent to Loughborough. The other two new bells were also cast in December. An extra new semitone bell was ordered, making a total of thirteen bells. This thirteenth bell, called a flat sixth, sits between the sixth and seventh bells. It allows for more combinations of bells to be rung. It was cast in March 2020.

At the foundry, the existing 1899 cast iron frame was reorganized and extended. A new base was added to allow for the five extra bells. The fittings from 1899 were repaired and reused. The new bells were given replica fittings to match. The metal frame for the bells returned to the church on June 11, 2020. It was installed in the tower, ready for the added bells. The bells returned two weeks later, on June 25. It took one month to install them. The bells were first rung on July 24. However, due to coronavirus restrictions, only four ringers were allowed in the tower.

It was not until August 17, 2021, that restrictions eased enough for all twelve bells to be rung for the first time. The bells were officially rededicated at a special service by the Right Reverend Ruth Worsley, Bishop of Taunton, on June 12, 2022. The first full peal on the new ring of twelve bells was rung by staff and supporters from John Taylor & Co on March 4, 2023. It included 5,037 changes of Grandsire Cinques. It took 3 hours and 22 minutes to complete.

The current set of bells now has a diatonic ring of twelve bells plus an extra semitone bell (the flat sixth). It includes eight Taylor bells from 1868, 1899, 2019, and 2020. There are two bells by the Rudhall foundry from 1721. There is one bell each by Thomas Bayley (1745), Robert Austen (1640), and George and William Purdue (1615). After the new bells were added, the tenor bell now weighs 25 long cwt 1 qtr 1 lb (2,829 lb or 1,283 kg).

Images for kids

St Mary's Church from the southeast (April 2015)
Illustration of the church in the History of Somerset, Volume 3 (1791)
Plan of the church, from Archaeological Journal, Volume 3 (1846)
South porch
Altarpiece in 1860
The Corporation Screen in 1901
The tower and spire. The bells hang in the uppermost portion of the tower, below the spire