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The Westminster Chime
The Westminster Chime (also called the Westminster Quarters or Cambridge Quarters) is the four-bell tune played by the clock in London's Elizabeth Tower — the one everyone calls Big Ben. It was written for Great St Mary's Church in Cambridge in 1793, adopted at Westminster in 1859, and is now the most recognised clock chime in the world.
Twenty notes on four bells, then the hour bell strikes — here, three o'clock.
How the tune works
The chime uses four bells, tuned to G♯, F♯, E and B. Those four notes are arranged into five different four-note phrases, called changes, and the clock plays more of them as the hour goes on:
| Time | What you hear | Changes |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter past | One phrase — 4 notes | 1 |
| Half past | Two phrases — 8 notes | 2, 3 |
| Quarter to | Three phrases — 12 notes | 4, 5, 1 |
| The hour | Four phrases — 16 notes, then the hour bell strikes the hour | 2, 3, 4, 5 |
So by ear alone you can tell the time to the quarter: the longer the tune, the later in the hour. On the hour, the great bell (the actual Big Ben, about 13.7 tonnes and sounding an E) strikes once for each hour.
The first change on its own — G♯, F♯, E, B.
The words to the Westminster Chime
The tune has a short prayer written for it, which hangs on the wall of the clock room in the Elizabeth Tower:
All through this hour
Lord be my guide
And by Thy power
No foot shall slide
Each line fits one change of the hour chime, which is why the four lines and sixteen notes line up so neatly.
Where it came from
The chime was composed in 1793 for the new clock at Great St Mary's, the University Church in Cambridge. It is usually credited to the Reverend Joseph Jowett, with help from a young William Crotch, and is said to be built on a phrase from Handel's aria I know that my Redeemer liveth from Messiah. That is why the older name is the Cambridge Quarters.
When the Great Clock at the Palace of Westminster began running in 1859, it took the Cambridge tune — and the fame of Big Ben did the rest. Today it rings from grandfather clocks, school bells, town halls and doorbells all over the world.
Big Ben, the tower and the bell
Big Ben is properly the name of the great hour bell, not the tower or the clock. The tower was called the Clock Tower until 2012, when it was renamed the Elizabeth Tower for Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee. The four quarter bells hang around Big Ben in the same belfry.
Questions people ask
What is the Westminster Chime?
The Westminster Chime, also called the Westminster Quarters or Cambridge Quarters, is the four-bell clock tune played by Big Ben in London. It was composed for Great St Mary's Church, Cambridge, in 1793 and adopted at Westminster in 1859.
What notes are in the Westminster Chime?
Four bells tuned to G sharp, F sharp, E and B, arranged into five four-note phrases. The hour bell, Big Ben, strikes an E.
What are the words to the Westminster Chime?
All through this hour, Lord be my guide, and by Thy power no foot shall slide.
Why does the chime get longer during the hour?
It plays one phrase at quarter past, two at half past, three at quarter to and four on the hour, so you can tell the quarter by how long it lasts.
Is Big Ben the bell or the tower?
Big Ben is the great hour bell. The tower is the Elizabeth Tower, known as the Clock Tower until 2012.
Can I get the Westminster Chime on my iPhone?
Yes. The BELFRY app includes the Westminster Quarters and a Big Ben bell voice, and can strike the hours in the background with your phone locked.
Hear it on your iPhone
BELFRY is a bell tower in your pocket: twenty real bell voices, the hours struck the way a church clock strikes them, prayer bells and meditation bells, ringing even with your phone locked. Free to download, no ads, ever.
