On Sunday 18 January, the Cathedral bellringers successfully rang a quarter peal of Stedman Cinques, completing the performance in 52 minutes.

A quarter peal is a substantial piece of ringing, consisting of at least 1,250 different changes — carefully ordered patterns in which the bells sound without repetition. Achieving this requires sustained concentration, precision, and close teamwork across the band.

The method rung, Stedman Cinques, is regarded as one of the more demanding forms of change ringing. Stedman refers to the underlying structure of the method — its rhythmic pattern — while Cinques describes how it is rung. Although the name suggests “five”, Cinques is actually rung on eleven working bells, with the largest bell — the tenor — added at the end of each change to give the full sound of twelve bells.

🔔 Why “Cinques” (Five) Means Eleven Bells

Change ringing uses a set of traditional names that come from old French. The names do not count how many bells are ringing, but rather how many pairs of bells are changing in each row of the pattern. Over time, those old names simply became labels for ringing on an odd number of bells, up to twelve.

Name	Number of bells🔔	Origin
Singles	3	One pair plus a stray
Double	5	Two pairs moving
Triples	7	Three pairs moving
Caters (from quatres, French for four)	9	Four pairs moving
Cinques (French for five)	11	Five pairs moving
Maximus (Latin for the greatest)	12	6 pairs, the greatest number of bells for a tower

Ringing on twelve bells is significantly more challenging than ringing on fewer bells, requiring faster reactions, sharper listening, and greater mental stamina. Successfully ringing Stedman Cinques places the performance among the more advanced achievements in English change ringing.

This quarter peal was particularly significant as it was the first rung since recent improvement and fine-tuning work was carried out on the Cathedral bells. The ringers were pleased to report a noticeable enhancement to the sound within the tower and across the city.

The ringing was also dedicated in memoriam of John McClenahan, a much-loved Cathedral ringer who died on 24 December 2025.

The Cathedral ringers meet weekly and ring regularly for services, special occasions, and civic moments, continuing a tradition that has shaped the sound of St Albans for centuries.

Find out more
Bellringing combines music, memory, teamwork and tradition — and newcomers are always welcome to find out more.
👉 Learn about the Cathedral bellringers:
https://www.stalbanscathedral.org/bells