See the St Leonard’s Church section for more information about our church, services and history…
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About Us and our Bell Ringing
The St Leonard’s ringing band are a very sociable group of dedicated volunteers from Keevil, Steeple Ashton and Great Hinton, and we are always looking to develop our band – so if you are a former ringer or think you might like to learn to bell ring, you’ve come to the right place. Bell ringing is open to everyone, young and old, and is incredibly rewarding; it helps keep you fit, keep your brain active, and is very mindful in the focus it demands – so you’re doing something great for your own wellbeing as well as keeping a precious tradition – part of rural village life for centuries – alive. Practice night is usually Wednesday and we often alternate with St Mary’s in Steeple Ashton, however its best to check as these are not always regular.
Novices are normally taught by the Tower Captain, Michael Moore, and we are also lucky, as Joint Benefice with St James in Trowbridge, to have access to the St James Bellringers excellent training opportunities at their 12-bell tower, including on the dumb-bell with Branch Ringing Master Giles Wood. There is also the nearby Edington Ringing Centre, our 10-bell branch training facility at Edington Priory. A warm welcome – and occasionally, chocolate – is ALWAYS guaranteed wherever you go! Get in touch with Michael if you’re interested on 01380 870280.
Useful links:
- Salisbury Diocesan Guild of Ringers – St Leonard’s Keevil: sdgr.org.uk/keevil
- Doves Guide for Church Bell Ringers – Keevil: dove.cccbr.org.uk/tower/13960
- Ringing performances at Keevil listed on Bellboard: bellboard.uk/search.php?place=keevil
- Wiltshire Times article 2013: Steeple Ashton & Keevil Bell Ringers mark historic moment
- Central Council of Church Bell Ringers: cccbr.org.uk
- Learning to Ring: cccbr.org.uk/bellringing/learn
- Discover bellringing: bellringing.org/discover-bellringing
- Should I try ringing? video
- Bellringing – the inside story: video
- Full Circle Ringing: wikipedia.org/wiki/Full_circle_ringing
- Change Ringing: wikipedia.org/wiki/Change_ringing
News
Visitors from Cambridgeshire in Keevil on ‘Wiltshire & Beyond’ ringing tour…
A band of visiting ringers from Cambridgeshire came to St Leonards on 28th August 2025 as part of a bell ringing tour in Wiltshire and Dorset; they rang a QP at Steeple Ashton then came straight to Keevil (see the QP on Bellboard here) before going on to Erlestoke and Great Cheverell. One of the organisers is the son of the late Derrek Bailey, previously Tower Captain of Great Cheverell, where he leaned to ring before moving to Cambridgeshire.
Todays QP at St Leonards was a spliced doubles performance of 1260 Doubles (11m) (120 each of Rev Canterbury, St Remigius,Huntley Pl, St Nicholas, Winchendon Pl, Plain Bob, St Osmund, Eynesbury, St Simon, St Martin and 60 Grandsire), rung in celebration for the life of Derrick Bailey who died 18/5/25, father of conductor who is sadly missed.
Bell ringers part of Midsummer & Open Gardens Day!
On 21st June 2025, St Leonard’s and much of Keevil opened its doors for a host of events as part of A Midsummer Day with Open Gardens, raising a magnificent £3000 for much needed repairs to the Church roof! Under the careful watch of Captain Michael Moore, and with support from Giles Wood and Ben Kipling (Branch Ringing Master and St James Tower Captain respectively) plus members of the Keevil band, visitors were treated to ringing demonstrations, trips up the tower to see the bells, as well as the chance to safely try the bells for themselves. Hopefully we’ve sown a few seeds for potential future new ringers!
Monthly branch ringing practice comes to Keevil
On the first Saturday in June 2025, the Keevil bells were ringing loud and clear when Guild members from across the Devizes branch came to Keevil for the monthly branch ringing practice, followed by an excellent bring-and-share tea!
VE-Day 80 Ringing For Peace
As part of the national commemorations on Thursday 8th May 2025, we rang the bells at St Leonard’s Keevil and then St Mary’s Steeple Ashton – joining with church bells across the nation in commemorating the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe at 6.30pm and at other times throughout the day and evening.
Visiting Marmadukes!
On 2nd May 2025, the St Leonard’s bells were host to a touring band of ringers that call themselves St Marmadukes… Geoff Horritt of Royston, one of the group organisers, told us the group started some time ago as a Suffolk Tower outing – the name has no significance except it was on a sign when a name was being chosen. Most of the group are experienced ringers from across the UK, and the majority will have rung at over 4500 towers across the world.
Teddies & the Tower
On Saturday 6th July 2024, Tower Captain Michael Moore joined forces with PCC member Rachel Howe and her team for a fabulous and unique fundraising event sending teddies down a zipwire from the roof of the bell tower. It was a smashing afternoon full of fun, with more than £600 raised towards the church roof repairs. See Teddies Towers & Teas for the full write up and a gallery of pictures – here’s a small selection…
DD80 Ringing For Peace
As part of the national commemorations on Thursday 6th June 2024, we rang the bells at St Leonard’s Keevil and then St Mary’s Steeple Ashton – joining with church bells across the nation in RINGING FOR PEACE at 6.30pm and at other times throughout the day and evening in a poignant marking of the anniversary of the D-Day landings that began in Normandy villages after D-Day in June 1944.
And with James’ kind permission, here’s a couple of wedding pictures, congratulations to the new Mr & Mrs Vingoe! James & Samantha were married at the beautiful St Katharine’s Church in East Woodlands, on the edge of the Longleat Estate.
In April 2024 our regular ringing practice was delightfully interrupted by a visit from James Vingoe and his soon-to-be-wife Samantha… James learned to ring at St Leonard’s many years ago and although he now rings at our sister church of St James in Trowbridge, we’ll soon be seeing more of him when he and Samantha are settled in their new home near Keevil. Petra made a brilliant cake which we washed down with some bubbly after Tower Captain Michael Moore led a toast to the happy pair. We hope the two ringers from Kidderminster who joined our practice while on holiday locally enjoyed the impromptu party!
History of St Leonard’s Bells and Ringers
The St Leonard’s Bell Ringers
By Ray Ward, one of the authors of the Books of Keevil, written in the late 1990s… It is not known when the bells of St Leonard’s Church first rang out over Keevil. In the early 16th century the church was remodelled and a tower was also added or rebuilt. Certainly there were four bells and a Sanctus Bell recorded in 1553 and of the present peal of six bells, the second and third were cast by John Wallis in 1609. Whether these bells were cast specifically for Keevil – or acquired at some later date is not known.
The present [late 1990s] generation of [then, eleven] ringers, ensure that the church’s presence is not forgotten on Sunday, Feast Days and other special occasions. Apart from the service ringing commitments, practice ringing takes place every Wednesday, alternating St Leonard’s and St Mary’s, Steeple Ashton.
The Summer months bring the anticipation of the ringing tour, usually visiting towers in the surrounding counties. Ringers are always curious to try other bells, making a comparison – invariably unfavourable, with bells of their own tower.
On the 2nd March 1902, as the bells were ringing for morning service, the tenor bell, weighing one ton, fell, causing a stampede of the ringers. Happily it was held up by the wooden frame, but it was necessary to rehang the bells and an iron frame was constructed and placed in position in 1903. The bells have received no attention, other than regular maintenance, since that date, until an inspection in 1997 revealed a deteriorating situation. A fairly major refurbishment [was commenced] at a cost of £20,000.00. Images below from Ray’s archive, original source unknown. Click to view full size.
A short history of the bells of St Leonard’s Church
Records show that the monks of Edington Priory began the construction of St Leonard’s church in 1393 and the earliest reference to its bells was in 1395 in the Edington Cartulary when John, Bishop of Salisbury, took corporal possession of the church, one of his acts being “ringing the bells”. From this record then we know there was more than one bell in 1395. In 2017 the church has seven bells: one a Sanctus bell and the others a ring of six.
You can read a more detailed history of the St Leonard’s Church Bells written by Ian Woodhead in the Book of Keevil Volume 3 pages 109 – 114, also a couple more pictures on pages 120 and 123
Sanctus Bell The Sanctus, which is rung five minutes before the start of Holy Communion and during the service at the consecration of the bread and wine, is housed in its cot at the east end of the knave. It is thought to be 12thC. Nicholaus Pevsner, in his series of books on The Buildings of England (2), states it is one of the two oldest bells in the country.
It is 15” in height, long wasted and 15” in diameter. In 1553, during the last year of the reign of the young Tudor Monarch, Edward V1, there was a nationwide inventory of church goods. This showed that St Leonard’s Church had four bells and a Sanctus. This was a common number at that time. They would have been hung on a half or three-quarter frame and if rung together would sound as they do on the Continent today, making uncoordinating clanging. It was in the 17thC that change ringing came into being with bells being attached to a wooden circular frame. This heralded the introduction of Method ringing.
Treble Bell – 6 cwt 2 qtrs 2 lbs If we fast forward to the 19thC Whitechapel Foundry records show that on 5th October 1842 Samuel Ferris, churchwarden ordered a new 7cwt bell. The benefactor was William Beach M.P. father of the Houses of Parliament, who lived in Keevil Manor House. This is the lightest bell and brought the number of bells to six.
Bell 2 – 7 cwt 2 qtrs 14 lbs, and Bell 3 – 8 cwt 2 qtrs 18 lbs These were cast in 1609 by John Wallis, a prolific bell caster who lived in Culver Street, Salisbury. He cast 263 bells between 1581 and 1624, the date of his death. Bell no 2 would have been the treble until the installation of the William Beach bell.
Bell 4 – 10 cwt 18 lbs This was formerly the no 3 bell until it developed a severe crack. Records show that at a vestry meeting on 4th August 1809 it was decided that the churchwardens, James Watts and Andrew Burbidge, should “order the recasting of the ruinous bell”. On 3rd May 1810 it was taken by horse and cart to James Wells’ Aldbourn foundry where it was melted down and recast. It was returned on 21st December and rehung by five men.
Bells 5 – 11 cwt 3 qtrs 2 lbs, and the Tenor – 16 cwt 1 qtr 16 lbs The heaviest bell in a ring is known as the tenor. Number 5 and the Tenor were cast in 1761 at Chew Stoke, Somerset, at the foundry of Thomas Bilbie. The Bilbie’s cast 370 bells between 1698 and 1814 when the foundry closed. It was common practice when a bell was cast to inscribe the names of the church wardens on the outside rim such as has been done on the Tenor which reads, “Samuel Atwood Thomas Bell John Marieram John Taylor Ch Wardens 1761 T Bilbie cast me.”
20th Century Events
On Sunday 2nd March 1902 while the bells were being rung for Matins the oak frame collapsed sending the tenor bell crashing to the bell tower floor. The event was reported in the “Amongst the Churches Column” of the Devizes and Wiltshire Advertiser of 3rd April 1902. The quotation for a replacement iron frame and rehanging of the bells by Llewellins and James of Bristol was £300. With the approval of The Bishop of Salisbury, the churchwardens issued an appeal throughout the district as it was “impossible to raise such a sum from within the parish” so said the Devizes and Wiltshire Advertiser.
The bells continued to be rung continuously throughout the 20thC until 1997 when an inspection showed that the bells and their fittings were in need of refurbishment. Quotations were obtained and the one of £22,000 from Taylors of Leicester was accepted by the Parochial Church Council. At a bell ringers’ meeting at the home of the late Ann and Ian Woodhead it was decided by the ringers that they would be the driving force in raising the money for the church. With the support of the villagers, the Parish Council, the former Keevil Society, the Parochial Church Council, Keevil Village Hall Committee and others from outside the village the money was raised in 30 months. To do this the ringers went to numerous car boot sales raising £4500, organised the first Music at the Manor, Keevil Society donated the proceeds of the Keevil Weekend, the Keevil Village Hall Committee put on shows throughout the year, a “Keevil in Pictures Calendar” was produced and sold like hot cakes, and a grant was obtained from Salisbury Diocesan Guild of Ringers as were donations from many people in the village and elsewhere.
The bells’ refurbishment was completed in the year 2000 when they were rehung by a Taylor’s engineer with much help from the villagers. They were rededicated by the Reverend Terry Brighton, the Ramsbury Rural Officer and the Reverend Derek Hart, Vicar, at the Patronal Festival on Sunday 5th November.
You can read the full story of the St Leonard’s Church Bells refurbishment written by Ian Woodhead, including the bells removal and rehanging, in the Book of Keevil Volume 4 pages 127 – 133… copies of this volume are still available, contact Sarah Dow (sarah@keevilparishcouncil.gov.uk) if you’d like to find out how to acquire one.
KEEVIL VILLAGE 