I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play.
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of Peace on earth, good will to men.
I thought how as the day had come
The belfries of all Christendom
Had roll'd along th' unbroken song
Of Peace on earth, good will to men.
And in despair, I bow'd my head:
"There is no peace on earth," I said,
"For hate is strong and mocks the song,
Of Peace on earth, good will to men."
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep;
"God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
With Peace on earth, good will to men."
Around the world, the bells of Christmas peal, announcing that Christmas has come, that it is time for celebration and prayer. Some say that the ringing of bells is a throwback to very early cultures, which rang bells to drive away evil, but the real story of the bells of Christmas has a great deal more to it than that.
While it is true that bells were used for that purpose, in earlier times they had a vital role in the towns and villages that people lived in. Before pocket watches and clocks in people's homes, the towns and villages kept track of time using various methods. Very early on, they used sundials, and later large mechanical clocks fitted into towers. The big clocks could only be seen at a certain distance, so the towers were outfitted with massive bells that tolled the time, called people to Church, and tolled for important occasions. They were also used as an alarm system because they could be heard for miles. Each tower had its own bell with its own distinctive sound. The bell ringers developed a particular way of pattern of ringing the bell that let people know why the bell was ringing. The Churches used bells to call people to prayer and to announce important Church events, like Christmas. Very often they served the community for the other bell ringing functions.
There are many old traditions associated with the ringing of Church bells. One of the oldest was the ringing of the curfew. When the curfew rang, citizens were expected to extinguish their fires and stay at home. The bells tolled to call people to community meetings, to confession, and to signal the opening of the markets.
The "Passing Bell" was run after death, with the way the bell is tolled indicating the deceased was a man or woman, adult or child. The Angeuls bell was rung in the morning to awaken the community.
Bells were blessed before they were installed and they were named after the Virgin Mary or Saints and sometimes after their donors. As an example, the bells at Oseney Abbey in the 13th century were called Hautclere, Doucement, Austyn, Marie, Gabriel and John.
In England, bell ringing was developed into an art, with bell ringing societies. Multiple bells were used and rung in succession to create the "peal" of the bells. The bells were rung in such a way that no one tone repeated more than once. The more bells you had, the longer the peal of the bells. You'll still hear bells pealing for weddings and other important occasions. The most important occasion and the most distinctive was the pealing of the Christmas Bells, the signal that the joyous occasion had begun.
We hope you are enjoying our Christmas Countdown pages. The images on this page are all restored vintage postcards.
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