Stained Glass of Percy Bacon & Brothers

St John the Baptist, Hillmorton.

St John the Baptist, Hillmorton.

St John the Baptist, Hillmorton.

St John the Baptist, Hillmorton, Warwickshire

Posted 13 September 2022.

In the first half of the 19th century St John the Baptist was firmly cut-off from the village of Hillmorton by the coming of the railways, and is now only accessible by road through an underpass. The village itself is now just a suburb of Rugby. The church is mostly 13th century, with 16th century clearstory. The east window is dated 1640, and the chancel looks pretty knocked about with incongruous windows, but still retaining their deep internal splays, and cement rendering to the outside walls. The east gable wall has clearly been altered with the addition of unsympathetic brick courses above the east window. The tower was described by Bloxham as, "low, heavy, and clumsily built, without any pretension to architectural design"¹. A stone bears the date 1655, but this is likely the date of a restoration, not of its building. There is a western gallery where the organ is situated. There are two fine, but much mutilated c14 stone monuments of a full-sized recumbent knight and lady which were originally brightly painted, members of the Astley Family.

SA1: Left two lights by Frank Holt. Right two attributed to Percy Bacon.

Good Samaritan.

South Aisle 1: A composite window. The two left lights are by Frank Holt of Warwick. The two Good Samaritan lights are possibly by Percy Bacon & Bros. (attribution only).

Posted 13 September 2022.

The window at the east end of the south aisle (SA1) is something of a mystery. The window is square headed of four lights in two pairs separated by a wide mullion, and with simple tracery. The glass appears to be a composite, installed piecemeal in three stages over a period of time.

The two left-most lights are by Frank Holt of Warwick. The furthest left light depicting St John the Baptist was installed in 1885 by Mr T Rathbone in memory of the Rev E M Stanley.² The article in the Leamington Spa Courier for 3rd March 1894 states:

The south aisle east window South Aisle East window by Frank Holt of Warwick, 1885. (SAE) is still in situ. The two left lights of the south aisle 1 window are dedicated to Thomas Rathbone, Churchwarden, who died 18th April 1894, but this article, (written six weeks before his death) does not mention the King David Light. This light has a similar canopy detail, but altogether different painting style for the figure of David. However, it was also executed by Frank Holt, donated by Thomas Rathbone's daughter in 1895.³ The article in the Nuneaton Advertiser of Saturday 28 December 1895, states that King David occupies the "remaining" light in the window. However, what the two rightmost lights contained in 1895 the article does not reveal, so is a still a mystery. Possibly these were plain quarries, but it is certain that sometime after 1911 the two rightmost lights were filled with a memorial to another parishioner, William Ivens.

The two rightmost lights, attributed to Percy Bacon & Bros. depicts across both lights, the parable of the Good Samaritan. The window is dedicated, "In loving memory of William Odoms [Odonnis] Ivens, who passed away 3rd february 1911".⁴ No further information or confirmation of the provenance of the stained glass in the Ivens window has yet come to light, so it will have to remain as an attribution only for now.

None of the glass in the window is signed.

1. Bloxham, M H. The principles of Gothic ecclesiastical architecture. With an explanation of technical terms, and a centenary of ancient terms; 1849: p316
2. Leamington Spa Courier - Saturday 03 March 1894, p3.
3. Nuneaton Advertiser - Saturday 28 December 1895, p2.
4. Report of the valuation of William Odonnis Ivens, Evening Despatch - Monday 20 March 1911; p3.