Coldwaltham, St GilesColdwaltham has a peal of three bells, hung in a west-facing tower. The tower is one of the few remaining structures from the 12th century, along with part of the south arcade wall. It has small corner buttresses and a beautiful 19th-century mock-Tudor boarded belfry. The boarded stage was built in 1870 by H. Woodyer, showing the influence of the black-and-white revival. Prior to this, it had another boarded belfry and spire, similar in style but simpler.
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About the Bells
3 Bells, in B (tuning 2,3,5 of 8)
The earliest reference to bells we have are the two trebles, both of which are uninscribed. George Elphick suspects they were cast by John Langhorne owing to the similarities in the design of the moulding wires and canons of that at Folkington.
Sixteenth century
Bells are mentioned in two wills in the 16th century, both only 5 years apart, meaning a possible project to restore the fittings?
1543, May 28. "I will to the Bels iiijd" Roger Grayng
1548, Dec. 31. "I will to ye Belles iiijd" Robert A'Stapull
The tenor
In 1665, William III and Roger II Purdue supplied the tenor bell. Since the three-bell frame dates back to about 1260, it is very likely that the Purdues replaced or recast an earlier bell. This suggests that Sussex may once have had a complete ring of three by John Langhorne. The inscription appears to have been made by pressing a stamp into the outer mould. Like most Purdue bells, it also has decoration. Around the inscription band are the names of the churchwardens, the founders’ initials, and two ornaments showing a tulip and a bell. One of the churchwardens, Thomas Hunter, may be the man buried at Sullington in 1685, although Hunter was a common surname in Sussex. Another, John Hale, seems to have been baptised at Coldwaltham around 1605 and buried there about 1679. The bell was cast with a conventional canon, and is a fairly good casting.
Tuning of the bells
All three bells are very well tuned, each being near Simpson tuned. As a peal, they show that Langhorne knew how to achieve bells a whole tone apart, since his are no more than 15 cents out. The tenor is only slightly sharp of being two tones below the second. The Coldwaltham tenor, along with the 5th and 6th at Chichester Cathedral, also shows that William Purdue understood bell design very well, as they too are near Simpson tuned.
The Chichester Diocesan Survey of 1724 states that there were "3 bells". Undoubtably the ones still here today.
Whitechapel overhaul of 1951
In 1951, Mears & Stainbank of Whitechapel rehung the bells in the existing frame for swing chiming. All three were given new fittings, full wheels, and ropes. A sketch by George Elphick suggests they may once have had stays and sliders, although there are pulleys on the sills to allow for full-circle ringing. A plaque at the base of the tower records that the rehanging was carried out through the generosity of Mrs J. Austin, who may be the Jill C. Austin who got married here in 1982.
The earliest reference to bells we have are the two trebles, both of which are uninscribed. George Elphick suspects they were cast by John Langhorne owing to the similarities in the design of the moulding wires and canons of that at Folkington.
Sixteenth century
Bells are mentioned in two wills in the 16th century, both only 5 years apart, meaning a possible project to restore the fittings?
1543, May 28. "I will to the Bels iiijd" Roger Grayng
1548, Dec. 31. "I will to ye Belles iiijd" Robert A'Stapull
The tenor
In 1665, William III and Roger II Purdue supplied the tenor bell. Since the three-bell frame dates back to about 1260, it is very likely that the Purdues replaced or recast an earlier bell. This suggests that Sussex may once have had a complete ring of three by John Langhorne. The inscription appears to have been made by pressing a stamp into the outer mould. Like most Purdue bells, it also has decoration. Around the inscription band are the names of the churchwardens, the founders’ initials, and two ornaments showing a tulip and a bell. One of the churchwardens, Thomas Hunter, may be the man buried at Sullington in 1685, although Hunter was a common surname in Sussex. Another, John Hale, seems to have been baptised at Coldwaltham around 1605 and buried there about 1679. The bell was cast with a conventional canon, and is a fairly good casting.
Tuning of the bells
All three bells are very well tuned, each being near Simpson tuned. As a peal, they show that Langhorne knew how to achieve bells a whole tone apart, since his are no more than 15 cents out. The tenor is only slightly sharp of being two tones below the second. The Coldwaltham tenor, along with the 5th and 6th at Chichester Cathedral, also shows that William Purdue understood bell design very well, as they too are near Simpson tuned.
The Chichester Diocesan Survey of 1724 states that there were "3 bells". Undoubtably the ones still here today.
Whitechapel overhaul of 1951
In 1951, Mears & Stainbank of Whitechapel rehung the bells in the existing frame for swing chiming. All three were given new fittings, full wheels, and ropes. A sketch by George Elphick suggests they may once have had stays and sliders, although there are pulleys on the sills to allow for full-circle ringing. A plaque at the base of the tower records that the rehanging was carried out through the generosity of Mrs J. Austin, who may be the Jill C. Austin who got married here in 1982.
Sketch by George P. Elphick
The frame
The dendrochronology test carried out by Elphick shows the frame timbers date back to c.1261. A large clearance groove in the treble's pit shows that the previous bell was 5.5" taller. The frame is positioned at the base of the spire, requiring a short ladder to access the bells. Since the frame heads rest on the walls of the tower, it is of the 1.D truss group. Each head has a centre post going down to a sill which is braced to the frame heads, making it the eighth variant of 1.D ,1.D.viii truss. All the bells are hung in a row next to each other, making it a 3.1 layout. This is by far one of the oldest and one of the most interesting frames in the county.
Access and condtition
Access to the belfry is by a long ladder up the side of the west wall to a hatch. From here, a 12 rung ladder is used to reach the bells from the belfry floor. All the bells are in great condition and show no signs of wear.
Visited: 28/05/2022
The dendrochronology test carried out by Elphick shows the frame timbers date back to c.1261. A large clearance groove in the treble's pit shows that the previous bell was 5.5" taller. The frame is positioned at the base of the spire, requiring a short ladder to access the bells. Since the frame heads rest on the walls of the tower, it is of the 1.D truss group. Each head has a centre post going down to a sill which is braced to the frame heads, making it the eighth variant of 1.D ,1.D.viii truss. All the bells are hung in a row next to each other, making it a 3.1 layout. This is by far one of the oldest and one of the most interesting frames in the county.
Access and condtition
Access to the belfry is by a long ladder up the side of the west wall to a hatch. From here, a 12 rung ladder is used to reach the bells from the belfry floor. All the bells are in great condition and show no signs of wear.
Visited: 28/05/2022
Recordings of the bells:
How the bells are tuned in relation to their nominal, using Simpson's theory.
Key [measured in cents]:
-99 ~ -90 -89 ~ -80 -79 ~ -70 -69 ~ -60 -59 ~ -50 -49 ~ -40 -39 ~ -30 -29 ~ -20 -19 ~ -10 -9 ~ -0
0 ~ 9 10 ~ 19 20 ~ 29 30 ~ 39 40 ~ 49 50 ~ 59 60 ~ 69 70 ~ 79 80 ~ 89 90 ~ 99+
-99 ~ -90 -89 ~ -80 -79 ~ -70 -69 ~ -60 -59 ~ -50 -49 ~ -40 -39 ~ -30 -29 ~ -20 -19 ~ -10 -9 ~ -0
0 ~ 9 10 ~ 19 20 ~ 29 30 ~ 39 40 ~ 49 50 ~ 59 60 ~ 69 70 ~ 79 80 ~ 89 90 ~ 99+
Bell 1
Hum - 346Hz - F-15
Prime - 651.5Hz - E-19
Tierce - 818Hz - Ab-25 (minor 3rd)
Quint - 1020Hz - C-43
Nominal - 1371Hz - F-31
Prime - 651.5Hz - E-19
Tierce - 818Hz - Ab-25 (minor 3rd)
Quint - 1020Hz - C-43
Nominal - 1371Hz - F-31
| coldwalthamone.mp3 |
Bell 2
Hum - 310.5Hz - Eb-2
Prime - 611Hz - Eb-31
Tierce - 744.5Hz - F#+11 (minor 3rd)
Quint - 916.5Hz - Bb-29
Nominal - 1232.5Hz - Eb-16
Prime - 611Hz - Eb-31
Tierce - 744.5Hz - F#+11 (minor 3rd)
Quint - 916.5Hz - Bb-29
Nominal - 1232.5Hz - Eb-16
| coldwalthamtwo.mp3 |
Bell 3
Hum - 254Hz - B+39
Prime - 475Hz - Bb+33
Tierce - 589Hz - D+5 (minor 3rd)
Quint - 756Hz - F#+37
Nominal - 997.5Hz - B+17
Prime - 475Hz - Bb+33
Tierce - 589Hz - D+5 (minor 3rd)
Quint - 756Hz - F#+37
Nominal - 997.5Hz - B+17
| coldwalthamthree.mp3 |
Inscriptions:
*Underlined text is around the inscription band*
1 |
(Uninscribed) |
2 |
(Uninscribed) |
3 |
♟ THOMAS HVNTER IOHN HALE 1665 CHVRCHWARDENS WP🔔 RP 🔔🔔 |
♟ = Fig. XXXI,e
🔔 = Fig. XXXI,f
🔔 = Fig. XXXI,f
Photographs:
*Click on the images to enlarge them*
Sources:
© Kye L Leaver 2025. All rights reserved.
- ELPHICK, George. P (1970): Sussex Bells & Belfries
- https://www.findmypast.co.uk/search/results?sourcecategory=life%20events%20(bmds)&firstname=thomas&firstname_variants=true&lastname=hunter&keywordsplace=coldwaltham%2c%20sussex%2c%20england&keywordsplace_proximity=5&sourcecountry=great%20britain&sid=999
- https://sussexparishchurches.org/church/coldwaltham-st-giles/
© Kye L Leaver 2025. All rights reserved.
