Cheltenham Minster boasts a peal of 12 bells. Only four other churches in the county have a similar number: Cirencester Parish Church, Gloucester Cathedral, Painswick Parish Church and Tewkesbury Abbey.
The first mention of bells of what was then Cheltenham Parish Church occurs in 1680 when the church possessed six bells. Towards the end of that century, in 1697, Abraham Rudhall I of Gloucester installed a peal of eight bells.
On 26th April 1824 a new peal of eight bells was inaugurated and in 1833 two additional bells were purchased enabling a peal of lasting 3 hours 43 minutes to be rung on 23rd September of that year. In 1883 the bells were recast and rehung. In 1889 a peal was rung lasting a record 9 hours 43 minutes.
In 1912 the number of bells was augmented to twelve thanks to a gift from Alderman and Mrs Winterbotham. On 19 March 1914 the first full peal to be rung on the 12 bells was rung lasting 3 hours 28 minutes.
In 1981 the bells underwent restoration and the tenor bell rehung in November 2001. Plans are currently afoot for a complete overhaul of the 12 bells in the near future. The Friends have commited themselves to paying for one bell and will be trying to raise £10,000 to pay for this.
The bell-ringers of Cheltenham Minster St Mary's have rung peals to commemorate a number of important national occasions, notably Queen Victoria's funeral (2nd Feb 1901), Armistice Day (11th November 1918), the death of Diana, Princess of Wales (6th September 1997), the death of Princess Margaret (18th February 2002), the death of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother (1st April 2002) as well as the terrorist attack on New York's World Trade Centre on September 11th 2001.
| Dates Serving | Name |
|---|---|
| to 1891 | No information found |
| 1891-1936 | William Thomas Pates |
| 1936-1959 | William Dyer |
| 1959-1997 | Cyril A. Wratten |
| 1997-2004 | Margery A. Wratten |
| 2004-present | Liz Coke |
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