Beating the bounds (called in Scotland riding the marches) was a popular English ceremony of perambulation round the boundaries of a township or parish on Ascension Day with the view of keeping alive the memory of the places where the boundaries ran. It used to be sometimes customary to whip the boys of the parish school at important spots during the walk, and this practice continued at some places up to the start of the 20th century. Research Beating the Bounds
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Research Beating the Bounds
