City forced to cancel 900-year-old giant white glove tradition due to elections

A centuries-old tradition of parading a huge white glove through the streets has been canceled due to the upcoming elections.

The city of Exeter in Devon has paraded the big glove on a pole above the city for more than 900 years.

The event is known as the Lammas Fair and this year clashes with the General Election. The ceremony will now be held online only.

The tradition of parading a big white glove through the streets has taken place on the same Thursday in early July for centuries. This year the government called a General Election on the same date as Exeter Lammas Fair was due to take place.

Lord Mayor of Exeter, Cllr Kevin Mitchell, said: “Due to this event (the General Election), we have taken the very hard decision to cancel this year’s ceremony. However the craft fair will still continue on the Cathedral Green and I will have the great pleasure of opening the craft fair on that day.”

Cllr Mitchell will now read the original proclamation of the white glove online.

The upcoming general election is widely expected to lead to a change of government for the first time in 14 years. With many analysts believe it will be one of the country’s most consequential elections since the end of World War II.

In Exeter, Labour are expected to hold the seat but Steve Race will replace MP Ben Bradshaw who is leaving politics having held the seat since 1997.

A redrawing of boundaries means the South West now has 58 constituencies, up from 55 in 2019, and had the last election been fought on these new boundaries it is calculated the Conservatives would have won 50 seats, Labour seven and the Liberal Democrats one.

The seven constituencies Labour are defending in the South West are all in urban areas, with five in Bristol, one in Exeter and one in Plymouth.

The annual ceremony of the Proclamation of Lammas Fair dates back to before the Norman Conquest, more than 900 years ago.

The word Lammas derives from the Anglo-Saxon Hlafmaesse or Loaf Mass. Lammas Day, the festival of St Peter ad Vincula, was when the first fruits of the harvest were offered to the Church in the form of a loaf.

The Lammas Fair White Glove was displayed during the Fair and was a sign of Royal protection of the peace. The large leather, stuffed glove was attached to a long pole and was decorated with ribbons and flowers. Prior to the hoisting of the Glove, a Proclamation was made to declare the Fair open. The Proclamation was issued at the time of Edward III in 1330.

A Court known as the “Pie Powder Court” was appointed for every fair to deal with any complaint or other matter arising within the Fair.