Ancient tradition celebrated in Urswick

Urswick residents came together to take part in the annual rushbearing ceremony which took place yesterday. 

Rushbearing is a historic celebration that harks back to the days when rushes were used to cover church floors. 

Rushes would be cut by villagers and used to cover the floor of the church. 

Once a year the rushes would be removed, burnt and replaced. 

To celebrate, people of all ages dressed in their best to meet at Low Furness School to kick start the festivities. 

The parade began at the school and made its way to Little Urswick before heading to the Derby Arms and returning to the church for a service.

The celebrations were led by Alan Barrett, a retired Anglican minister who lives in the village.

He said: "It's an ancient and valued tradition which everyone finds very important. 

"There was a time when it wasn't happening and it was revived because it was felt that it was very important. 

"All sorts of people come together to celebrate and it's great to have the sun out today."

Leading the parade was Dalton Town Band which played a range of traditional brass band music. 

People wore rushes and carried banners which documented the history of the celebration and recognised all previous queen from 1905. 

This year's queen was 13-year-old Mia Sullivan from Urswick. 

She said: "It's really exciting. 

"I've taken part in it for a few years and have found it fun and it's cool being the queen."

Mia will take over from last year's queen, Grace Callaghan, from Swarthmoor. 

Also in the parade were the First Urswick Brownies. 

Jo Ritchie, co-leader of the group, was delighted to be involved. 

She said: "I'm a former queen. 

"My mum and I were both queens and I'm quite proud of that. 

"I think there are only about two or three villages that still do it now but it's always a good day and it always seems to be sunny."

Lynda Perry has been organising the event for many years and spent 25 hours making the crown for this year's queen. 

She said: "It's nice to keep these village traditions going. 

"It's something that's always been done - it's a community thing to keep the village together and doing things together."

<u>What's it all about?</u>

RUSHBEARING is an ancient tradition that is rarely seen in villages today.

• The rushbearing celebration is a historic celebration that takes place at the end of the summer.
• It dates back to a time when church floors were covered in rushes.
• Villagers used to gather rushes that would be spread on the church floor and removed, burnt and replaced once a year.
• It is believed the tradition dates back to the Middle Ages but had started to decline by the beginning of the 19th-century.
• There are just a handful of villages left that still celebrate the tradition and is most prominent in the north of England.
• Each procession has a queen who is chosen from within the local area.
• The queen is dressed in clothing decorated by rushes and is adorned with a crown which is also made out of rushes.
• More than 300 rushes are needed to make the crown and this year's took 25 hours to complete.
• Different groups and organisations take part in the procession and sing traditional rushbearing hymns.
• Specially designed banners that mark its unique history are carried by people from the village.
• One banner has the names of all the queens since 1905. 
• People carry a range of decorations including sticks and hoops adorned with rushes.
• It is considered a great community event that celebrates local traditions. 
• Urswick rushbearing is centred around the school and the church, both of which are central to village life.