180. The Ceremony of Beating the Bounds, All Hallows by the Tower, 9 May 2024

Beating the Bounds is an ancient custom dating from Anglo-Saxon times when church parishes reaffirmed their boundaries by processing round them, stopping at each boundary mark.  The clergy, church wardens and parish officials headed a crowd of boys who, armed with willow or birch wands, beat the parish boundary markers. Without maps, this was a way of ensuring the knowledge of boundaries was passed on to future generations.

Our Company Church, All Hallows by the Tower, beat the bounds in the company of Masters and members of the Livery from its associated Companies - the Watermen and Lightermen, Bakers and Water Conservators.  The beating is undertaken by young people from St Dunstan’s College, which used to be located within the parish before moving out to the leafy suburb of Catford in 1888.

The first stop was the Tower of London, a royal palace and place of execution.  It was the site of a dispute between parishes in 1698, which came to blows.  The Thames is a parish and diocesan boundary and so the beaters and clergy took to a boat to mark the boundary. They beat the water but we were told that in the past the choirboys were dipped in the water.

We attracted a significant tourist following as we continued to walk and beat round the parish.  At each marker we had a reading and a prayer, reflecting appropriate aspects of city life.  It was good fun and an opportunity to reflect on the features and pressures of working and living in the city.

We returned to All Hallows by the Tower for a service of Festal Evensong featuring the College Chapel Choir.


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