The tradition of Rushbearing

Originally, it was a practical church tradition rather than a festival.

Before carpets, wooden floors and even properly paved floors, many churches had bare earth or stone floors. Each year, usually towards the end of summer, people gathered fresh rushes from the surrounding countryside and carried them to the church to lay across the floor.

The rushes provided a cleaner, softer and warmer surface for worshippers through the winter. There is evidence of the practice in Yorkshire going back at least to the 1500s

Rushbearing is a centuries-old tradition: a late-summer celebration filled with community spirit, merriment and revelry. The Sowerby Bridge Rushbearing Festival is one of only a few places where this distinctive English custom continues to be celebrated annually.

The tradition dates back to a time when church floors were made of little more than stone flags or beaten earth. Rushes were laid down as insulation during the winter, and each year, in late summer, the old, decaying rushes were removed and replaced with fresh ones, which were transported to the churches by cart. Over time, this practical annual task evolved into a joyful community celebration featuring music, dancing, merrymaking and plenty of strong ale.

Held over a weekend, our festival follows the Rushbearing procession through seven towns and villages. Along the way, it visits numerous churches, local hostelries, cricket clubs and bowling clubs.

At the heart of the procession is the sixteen-foot-high, two-wheeled rushcart, beautifully decorated and thatched. A team of ladies take turns riding on top as the cart is pulled by sixty local men dressed in Panama hats, white shirts, black trousers and clogs. They are joined by supporters in Edwardian dress, some of the region’s finest musicians and teams of Morris dancers, who provide entertainment for the crowds throughout the festivities.