Hadleigh mayor Frank Minns continued a tradition going back more than six centuries when he presented the Clopton Rose tradition at a service at Long Melford church.

Back in 1436, Sir William Clopton, Lord of Toppesfield Manor donated the use of the Guildhall in Hadleigh and land to hold markets, at a rent of one mark per annum.

That was subsequently changed to a single red rose, annually, as mark of respect to honour the father of renowned War of the Roses advocate John Clopton, who built the Long Melford church.

A descendent of the Clopton family discovered in 1984 that Hadleigh had not been paying the rent and asked the town to pay up, which it duly did.

Since then Hadleigh presents a red rose annually, and this year the mayor actually plucked the red rose from his own town centre garden on the morning of the ceremony.

Long Melford councillor Liz Malvisi accepted the payment of the rose, which has been authenticated as the longest, continuous rental agreement in England. The flower was then placed on the effigy of Sir William Clopton.

Deputy mayor Gordon McLeod accompanied Cllr Minns at the service, which was conducted by Reverend Matthew Lawson at the Holy Trinity Church, Long Melford.

Clopton Family Association president Suzanne Sanders, watched the ceremony via You Tube in the USA and said: "We are all so grateful to Reverend Lawson and Richard Michette for the video of the actual ceremony.

"Although it does not take the place of being there in person, a certain satisfaction is felt in knowing that this remarkable tradition continues."

The payment of the 'red rose' as rental to the Cloptons for the use of the Guildhall (owned by Sir William Clopton) has been authenticated as the longest, continuous rental agreement in the whole of England.

The family are benefactors to three historic churches that played key roles in Clopton history: St. Peter's Parish Church in New Kent County, Virginia; Holy Trinity Church in Long Melford, England (through The Friends of Long Melford Church Building Trust); and the Church of St. Bartholomew in Groton, Suffolk, England.

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