Visit Wales, Gresford Bells, Welsh tourist attractions

Gresford Bells image The earliest record of the six bells goes back to 1775 when the parish register noted that the two bells had been returned after being recast.
The church itself is much older, having being mentioned in the Doomsday Book, but it's not known whether it was on the present site at this time.

The steeple of this famous rhyme, which can be seen for many miles as the tallest building in the town, is not a steeple at all, but the 16th century tower of the Wrexham Parish Church of St. Giles.

The Gresford Bells can be found in the 15th century All Saints Church in Gresford, Wrexham, one of the finest church buildings in Wales. Perched on a pillar of coal above the Vale of the Alyn, its tower has dominated the skyline for centuries. Its peal of bells can be heard on Tuesday evenings and Sundays.

Pistyll Rhaeadr and Wrexham steeple,
Snowdon's mountain without its people,
Overton yew trees, St Winefride wells,
Llangollen bridge and Gresford bells.

Gresford Bell's image The earliest record of the peal of Gresford bells dates back only to 1714. An apparatus was installed in the belfry in 1877 so that all eight bells could be chimed by one person. The bells are rung regularly for church services, and the old custom of ringing on November 5th is still continued, though it is unclear whether this is to commemorate the successful landing of William of Orange in 1688, or the Gunpowder Plot of Guy Fawkes to blow up Parliament in 1605. During World War II, the custom of tolling the passing bell was discontinued, as the bells were to be rung only as an invasion warning.
Inside the impressive church, one of the most remarkable finds was discovered in 1907 by workmen, the Gresford Stone. This is a Roman altar that was hidden for centuries, being used as a stone block in the rebuilding of the medieval church. The altar has four carved sides and a decorative depression at the top, used for the placement of offerings to the goddess Nemesis depicted on one side. The altar was probably part of a Romano-Celtic shrine dating back to 100 to 350 A.D.
The Church is surrounded by a grove of Yews, twenty-five of these were planted in 1726, but one growing near the south gate is an older. It was already an ancient tree at the time of Richard II's proclamation that ordered the general planting of yews to support the army.

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Crafts from Wales .Gresford Bells Wales' on-line craft fair - Enter our Shop

Gresford Bells

Crafts from Wales .Gresford Bells
Wales' on-line craft fair - Enter our Shop