Stained Glass at Holy Trinity Parish Church

And God said, let there be light: and there was light.
And God saw the light, that it was good.
(Genesis 1:3-4).

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying,
I am the light of the world:

he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness,
but shall have the light of life.

(John 8:12).

 

Whether its imagery depicts mediaeval religious figures and narratives, or contemporary abstract concepts and emotions, ecclesiastical stained glass has for centuries acted as a powerful metaphor for the first act of God’s creation, and for God’s son, Jesus Christ, as ‘Light of the World’.

It is a unique and beguiling artform in which the artist paints with an ever-changing and eternally-living light: guided, constrained, and – in the best cases – inspired, by the shape, colour and diffractive properties of the glass itself; by the building in which the work is to be installed; and even by the window’s structural skeleton.

There are six stained glass windows at Holy Trinity, Ashford-in-the-Water: three were installed following the major renovation of the church in 1870; and the other three were made in the 20th and 21st centuries. 

The Cottingham Window, 1880.

This two-light composite window with tracery in the west wall of the north aisle was created in 1880 by Morris & Co. It was installed in memory of John Gregory Cottingham (1813-1878), a steward of Hardwick Hall and – latterly – successor to Joseph Paxton as the land agent at Chatsworth, and a Mayor of Chesterfield.

 

The Haworth Window, ca. 1880.

The six-panel window in the south wall, adjacent to the pulpit, was installed in memory of Edmund Haworth, JP (1797-1879). It is the work of Clayton & Bell – one of the most prolific stained-glass window manufacturers of the Victorian era. The panels recite the six Works of Mercy included in the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats in St Matthew’s gospel (Matthew 25:34-46):

I was an hungred and ye gave me meat
I was naked and ye clothed me
I was thirsty and ye gave me drink
I was a stranger and ye took me in
I was sick and ye visited me
I was in prison and ye came to me

 

The Morewood Window, ca 1875.

The most prominent of the 19th-century windows is the east window over the altar. Depicting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, it is the work of Messrs Heaton, Butler & Bayne, another of the large Victorian stained glass manufacturers. This window is dedicated to the glory of God and in memory of Alfred Morewood (1815-1872).

 

The Tinsley Window, 1953

This window was designed by Gerald Edward Roberts Smith (1883-1959), when he was head of the Archibald Keightley Nicholson studio in London. The window was funded via a legacy from Alice Tinsley, née Deane (1860-1942), but its installation was delayed until after the end of the Second World War.

 

The Mary Window, 1960.

The artist of the modest single-light window in the north aisle was Francis Skeat (1909-2000) of St Albans. Its donor, George Harold Wall (1880-1959), gifted the window in memory of his mother Mary Hall Wall, née Read (1843-1923).

The Olivier Window, 2001

The most recent of the windows in Holy Trinity commemorates William Herbert Olivier (1904-1992) – cousin of the actor and director, Sir Laurence Olivier (1907-1989) – and Katherine ‘Kitty’ Mary Olivier, née Jones (1904-1998), who lived in Ashford Hall. It is the work of the French artist Flore Sivell (née Vignet).

Acknowledgements

The author of these notes, Ian Pykett, is indebted to Peter Cormack, MBE FSA HonFMGP, Vice-President of the British Society of Master Glass-Painters, for his attribution of the makers of the Morewood and Haworth windows. The photography is the work of Martin Crampin.

Many more details and photographs the stained glass windows may be found in a recent full-colour brochure, available on the church bookstall, or directly from the author.