Manchester College Oxford Chapel Society

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Registered Charity No. 298701

The Home of Oxford Unitarians

The Stained Glass Windows

STAINED GLASS

The chapel was designed by the Manchester architect Thomas Worthington. The stained glass windows, installed between 1894 and 1899, are all by the firm of the great Victorian craftsman William Morris. Morris himself designed two of the lights ('Joseph' and 'Mary Magdalene') in the chancel window above the communion table. The others were designed by the Pre-Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones.

According to Nikolaus Pevsner, ‘The whole set of windows in Manchester College Chapel is a pure joy’ (The Buildings of England: Oxfordshire).

North Wall Windows (to the right as you face the communion table) The two small windows opposite the organ are appropriately musical in theme. One shows Miriam with cymbals, and the other shows David playing a small harp. The depth of colour is not so striking as in the other windows.


The six Arlosh Windows (given in memory of Godfrey Arlosh, who died in 1890) represent the biblical myth of the Six Days of Creation, depicted by red-robed angels, with the flame of creative energy about their heads, holding globes, in each of which the fresh creation of the day is represented. The model for the angels was reputedly May Morris, daughter of William Morris. As the creation unfolds, so does the wealth of detail and colour increase. Incorporated in the design is a verse from the ‘Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner’ by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (who was at one time a Unitarian minister):

He prayeth well, who loveth well
Both man and bird and beast.
He prayeth best, who loveth best
All things both great and small;
For the dear God who loveth us,
He made and loveth all.

A very Unitarian sentiment – as is the repeated motto from Diderot: Elargissez Dieu (roughly translated as ‘Make God bigger’, or ‘Open your mind to expand your concept of the Divine’).

South Wall Windows (to the left as you face the communion table) A series of symbolic figures, each with an appropriate text of scripture below.

Justice bearing a sword in one hand and scales in the other
Humility in robes of delicate grey and pink
Generosity in the person of St Martin, dividing his cloak to share with a beggar
Courage is portrayed as a soldier with shield and spear
Charity appears in the form of the Good Samaritan tending the wounded traveller
Mercy a woman in blue, is clothing the destitute
Prayer is a figure wearing a priestly vestment
Inspiration in a green robe, writes in a book with a white dove, symbolising the Holy Spirit, on her shoulder
Faith joins hand with God (up in the clouds!)
Prophecy is represented by the character of Elijah

The West Window (above the communion table) Ten figures, representing Jesus, Mary his mother, Joseph, Mary Magdalene, the apostles Peter and Paul, and the four Evangelists (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John).

The East Window (at the back of the Chapel) Three central figures typify Truth, Liberty, Religion (the motto of the college), with an angel in each of the side-lights, and five scenes from the life of Jesus below.

A detailed account of the stained glass windows is printed in a booklet by Alan Middleton on sale in the College Office.

 

Carvings

The oak panelling and carvings are very fine. Visiting children enjoy looking for the pair of doves perched on the screen at the back of the chapel, and identifying the plants, birds, and animals of the Bible at the ends of the pews.

 

Organ

The organ pipes in the chancel are believed to have been decorated by John. H. Dearle, successor to William Morris at Morris & Co. With its rich and sonorous tone, this is considered by many to be the finest English Romantic organ in Oxford.

 

 

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