Church Lawford

St Peter 6: 7-3-5 in Bb (GF)

Grid Reference 140/454763 Church Lawford. Source: Mike Chester
Postcode CV23 9EG
Affiliation Coventry DG
Peals Felstead Database
Sunday For Morning Service on a rota
Practice Thursday 1930-2100

History

A nice village on the A428 Coventry to Rugby Road a little before Rugby itself. Turn off the main road, signed Church Lawford NOT Long Lawford which is closer to Rugby and which does not have a ring of bells, go into the village and the church is at the end of a dead end street, (unsurprisingly called Church Road!), off to your right. It is a very sturdy looking tower and the church is well kept.

The church stands on the north side of a large churchyard. It consists of a chancel, nave, north and south aisles, west tower, north porch, and a vestry. It was rebuilt in the gothic style in hammer-dressed sandstone ashlar in 1874, and all that has been retained of the previous church is three bays of the 14th-century north arcade, two piscinas, the font, and some fragments of tracery and early-14th-century slabs with foliated crosses built into the tower walls. A low side window and two lancets, redressed and restored have been re-used in the north wall of the chancel.

Before the rebuilding of the church there were three bells, a treble dated 1741, 3-2-8; a middle bell that was mediaeval, 4-3-0; and tenor by Hugh Watts of Leicester 1621 which weighed 4-3-14. In 1872 three new heavier bells were cast by Taylors and the original tenor made into the treble of four. The new bells weighed 5-1-4, 5-2-27 and 8-1-10. All this cost the princely sum of £189 9s 7d. Their inscriptions are given in Tilley and Walters’ book, “The Church Bells of Warwickshire”

Church Lawford Inscriptons

Today, they are cast iron “H” frame and fittings are by Taylors, 1937. At this time the treble of the existing ring of 4 was recast, with a facsimile inscription and two trebles added and a new cast iron H-frame, layout 6.14, and fittings were provided. The 1872 bells have been quarter turned and their canons have been removed (hence the lighter than supplied weights). The three trebles were cast with flat tops and have not been turned. The bells go well, being rung from the ground floor.

The opening of the bells was reported in The Ringing World of August 6th 1937″

Church Lawford RW 1937

Apart from the founder’s name, location and date on the shoulder, the Taylor bells are inscribed on their waists:

Treble PEACE ON EARTH
2 PRO BENEFACTORIBUS LAUDO DEUM
3 (Founder’s mark)
RECAST 1937

The first peal on the bells was rung in 1946:

Church Lawford First Peal

Parking in on the grass by the churchyard gate – careful if it has been wet as you might get stuck – I did!. Entry is by the North door.

Details of the Bells

1 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough  1937  3-1-20  24.50″   1553.0Hz (G-17c)
2 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough  1937  3-3-10  26.00″   1393.0Hz (F-5c)
3 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough  1937  4-1-09  27.625″  1232.0Hz (Eb-17c)
4 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough  1872  4-3-20  29.625″  1162.0Hz (D-19c)
5 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough  1872  5-0-22  31.50″   1036.0Hz (C-17c)
6 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough  1872  7-3-05  35.375″   923.5Hz (Bb-16c)

Photo Gallery

Church Lawford Looking East Church Lawford Looking West
The Church – Looking East The Church – Looking West
Church Lawford Chancel Church Lawford Ringing Chamber
The Chancel The Ringing Chamber
Layout 6.14
The frame layout