NEWS FOR WOMEN Queen Distributes The Royal Maundy

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27629, 9 April 1955, Page 2

NEWS FOR WOMEN Queen Distributes The Royal Maundy

(N.2 Press Association—Copyright)

(Rae. 8 pjn.) BONBON, April 7. The Queen, following a 500-year-old Easter tradition, today distributed the Royal Maundy—silver coins formerly given to the poor—in Southwark Cathedral. Usually the Maundy service—from early centuries an occastion for acts of humility, in memory of Christ’s washing of the disciples’ feet—is held in Westminster Abbey, but this year the diocese of Southwark, across the Thames, is celebrating its jubilee and the Queen chose to hold the service in the cathedral. She was accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh. This is the first time the service has been held south of the Thames with a Sovereign present since the sixteenth century, when the first Queen Elizabeth attended the ceremony at Greenwich. The great Southwark Cathedral is where Shakespeare worshipped. Dickens described it in “Little Dorrit.” In past centuries the Sovereigns would wash the feet of the poor subjects—the number being decided by

the Sovereign’s age—and then dole out food and clothing. But the poor took to selling their dole, and eventually money was substituted. The Yeomen of the Laundry took over the job of washing the feet. The first Elizabeth would make the sign of the Cross over the clean feet and then kiss them. The ceremony was last carried out in full by James 11. Today there was no washing ceremony, but the Lord High Almoner and his assistants were girded with towels and carried nosegays of sweet herbs. The Maundy money, given to “as many old men and as many old women as the Sovereign is years of age,” was made up of specially-minted silver pennies, twopences, threepences, and fourpences. They were distributed in the traditional white leather purses, fastened with red thongs. In addition to the silver Maundy, given to 58 men and women—because the Queen will be 29 this month—each man received ordinary currency to the value of £4 15s, and each woman £4 ss.