Wakefield Cathedral, West Yorkshire
Address
Cathedral Church of All Saints, Northgate, Wakefield WF1 1HGTheme
Overview
The standout feature at Wakefield is its collection of 23 windows from the studio of C. E. Kempe, completed over 30 years up to his death in 1907. According to the cathedral architect John Bailey “Perhaps the jewel in the [Kempe] collection are the series of windows in the north and south nave aisles. In the north aisle we have windows depicting Creation (1894) and The Fall of Man (1887), and then five windows depicting prophets and kings from the Old Testament (1886, 87 and 1891). The final window in the north aisle represents the Annunciation (1889) and leads into the south aisle windows which are based on the New Testament. The south aisle windows start with 5 windows showing the Apostles and Saints from the New Testament, all dating from 1873, and one window dedicated to female saints from the New Testament also dated 1873.” – Leeds Anglican – Wakefield’s stained glass
Highlight
West windowArtist, maker and date
Designed by John Hardman Powell for Hardman & Co., c.1868Reason for highlighting
The west window is the third oldest window in the cathedral and one of the best. Designed by John Hardman Powell on the theme of the Resurrection of the Dead, it is full of colour and interest.
Artist/maker notes
Hardman & Co. was founded in 1838 to manufacture ecclesiastical metal work to the designs of AWN Pugin (1812-52), who encouraged the firm’s expansion into stained glass in 1845. Pugin acted as its chief designer until his death, when he was succeeded by his nephew John Hardman Powell.
John Hardman Powell (1827-95) a deeply religious Roman Catholic, was trained as an apprentice by Pugin. A rare privilege given Pugin’s reluctance to employ clerks or take on pupils. The Hardman firm continued to flourish under his leadership, due in part to the individual attention given to commissions and the originality of each design, a contrast to other firms that would often reuse designs numerous times.
Sources:
Hardman of Birmingham, Goldsmith and Glasspainter by Michael Fisher, Landmark Publishing, 2008
The Stained Glass of John Hardman and Company under the leadership of John Hardman Powell from 1867 to 1895 by Mathé Shepheard, which can be downloaded as a 3 volume PDF.
Comments by
Peter Hildebrand