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St Briavels Bread and Cheese Dole
| The event was first recorded in 1779 and today it involves crowds of locals dressed in medieval costume converging on Saint Mary’s Church. Their aim is to catch dole pieces of bread and cheese which are thrown into the air from brimming baskets. There are no rules for catching the bounty and it has been known for people to wear extraordinarily large hats to catch more bread and cheese. It is thought to have begun in the 1770s whereby every household had to pay one penny towards the cost of bread and cheese. The money was paid to the Earl of Hereford which also entitled them to gather wood from the nearby Hucknoll’s woods and although the tradition of wood collection has since ceased, the Dole lives on in this festival. |
Useful Information
Nearby Towns: Gloucester, Stroud
Nearby Cotswold Hotels: The Bear of Rodborough Hotel, Stonehouse Court, Bowden Hall Hotel, The Gables, The Stroud Hotel, Burleigh Court
Similar Cotswold Attractions: Cheese Rolling at Cooper’s Hill, Randwick Wap, Woolsack Races, Cotswold Olympic Games, The Cotswold Falconry Centre
