Oranges and Lemons
Orange and Lemon Service
‘Oranges and Lemons’, say the bells of St Clement’s
‘You owe me five farthings’, say the bells of St Martin’s
So goes the famous nursery rhyme to a tune which is very important to a particular church in London. On a weekday in late March at the Church of St Clement Danes in the Strand, pupils from local schools gather for a short service before they are given free oranges and lemons to the accompaniment of ‘the tune’ played on the church bells. This ceremony has been going on since 1920 when the church bells were re-hung on a new oak frame and the music could once more ring out from the belfry. However, the association with fruit goes back much further
The present St Clement Danes was built in the 17th century on a site where another church was erected as early as the 10th century. This served the local Danish population, hence the name. When oranges and lemons first came to England in the Middle Ages, they were brought up the River Thames in barges and carried to market through Clement’s Inn, near to the church, where a toll had to be paid. Up until not so long ago, the residents of Clement’s Inn were presented with an orange and lemon and a half-a-crown (2/6d or 12.5p) on New Years day.
Before the present ceremony was inaugurated, the bells had been silent since 1913 and were again put out of action during the Second World War. It was not until 1957 that they were again re-hung and the whole building restored to become a Royal Air Force church. Today, the ‘Oranges and Lemons’ tune can be heard every three hours from 9am until 6pm and, as somebody once remarked, this event has probably got more vitamin C in it than any other you could find!
This page is part of our Beginners’ Guide: British Folk Customs From Plough Monday to Hocktide.
