Elinor Florence, Author

Bestselling Historial Fiction Author

Sacrifices Honoured in Stained Glass

Hundreds of churches, both large and small, installed stained glass windows to thank their defenders after the war ended. This was especially appropriate because so many homesick servicemen found comfort and community in church, especially at Christmas time.

This lovely example, in the Welsh town of Pembroke Dock, features the badges of units from the British and Commonwealth air forces, and the U.S. Navy.

Large stained glass window with arched top shows an airman standing beside a seated sailor at the edge of the sea, both gazing at aircraft flying above.

Not many photographs were taken in churches during the war years, but here is one from the village of Greston, England. Typically wartime church services were crowded with uniforms.

Crowd shot shows rows of airmen in uniform, seated in a large hall with their hats off, holding hymn books and singing.

And here’s another taken during Christmas Eve service in 1944, showing members of one bomber squadron receiving communion at an airbase somewhere in England. 

A row of airmen, one wearing his leather flight jacket, kneel at the altar with their backs to the camera, receiving communion from another man in uniform, while decorated Christmas trees surround the altar.

This unusual window honours those who died in training. The large Christ the King window at St. Paul’s Anglican Church in North Battleford, Saskatchewan was paid for by the Royal Air Force in memory of several dozen comrades killed in training at this single air base alone. A staggering 1,146 trainees died in Canada before they ever joined the battle overseas.

An arched stained glass window in shades of blue show Christ in a blue robe, wearing a golden crown, one hand raised in benediction.

Occasionally memorial windows named individual family members, like this one. The McLeod Memorial Window was dedicated to three members of the McLeod family, from the small town of Melway, Australia. Two died in the First World War, and one in the Second World War.

A triple row of long, narrow, arched stained glass windows, the centre one depicting Christ speaking to his disciples, and the other two with initials only, each window bearing the name along the bottom of one of the three McLeod brothers.

Sometimes windows commemorated a much larger group. This so-named “Spitfire” window was created to honour all members of RAF Fighter Command. It’s located at the former RAF Bentley Priory, headquarters of Fighter Command during the Second World War.

A very large, dramatic stained glass window shows the silhouette of a Spitfire from above, with an airman wearing a yellow lifejacket standing in one corner.

Not all windows were designed to honour the fighting men. This Battle of Britain Memorial Window was commissioned by the Rolls-Royce company to remember the contribution of designers who put in eighty-hour weeks to provide the Merlin engines that equipped the fighter aircraft.

Stained glass window features a man in a blue factory uniform standing on a propeller, a gigantic eagle in flight just behind his shoulders, backlit by a golden sun.

This memorial window in the tiny town of Sainte Mere Eglise, France thanks the American paratroopers (note the parachutes descending) who landed there and helped to put out a massive blaze after a stray incendiary set the town on fire on D-Day, June 6, 1944.

A very intricate stained glass window has a large figure of the Madonna and child in the centre, while images of paratroopers hanging from parachutes descend around her on both sides.

Not all the windows date back to the immediate post-war years. This is a new window, with a more contemporary treatment of poppies, commissioned in 2005 to replace an older wooden memorial, in the Welsh village of Llanyr.

Double stained glass windows set in wooden frames face each other, bearing the words: "At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them," backed with a field of scarlet poppies.

The St. George’s Chapel of Remembrance at former fighter station RAF Biggin Hill is particularly appealing, because it honours the contribution of ground crew along with women in uniform. There are seventeen memorial windows in total.

Four stained glass panels feature people performing wartime duties: aircraft servicing and rescue services show men at work; while ground control and parachute packing show women at work.

If you attend church this Christmas, look around and admire the stained glass windows. You just may find one honouring the memories of the men and women who defended our freedom to worship however we please.

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STAR WEEKLY AT WAR

The Star Weekly was a Canadian newsmagazine published by the Toronto Star. During the Second World War, a beautiful colour illustration appeared on the cover each week with a wartime theme. This one dated October 10, 1942 shows a couple in uniform sharing a hymn book. To see my whole collection of Star Weekly covers, click: Star Weekly At War.

Read about the Star Weekly artist who created this beautiful illustration here: Elizabeth Cutler.

Star Weekly magazine cover shows a coloured illustration of a couple, she in a khaki uniform holding a red hymn book, and he in a blue air force uniform, standing in church singing a hymn, bearing the artist's signature, Elizabeth Cutler.

 

 

About Elinor Florence<br>

Letters From Windermere

I’m a lover of history and all things vintage. My passion for the past is reflected in my novels, my collections, my travels, my home on Lake Windermere, and the monthly letter that I have been sending to my dear followers for the past eleven years. You are warmly invited to join my list. I don’t ask for anything but your email address. However, you are welcome to tell me something about yourself because I love hearing from my readers.
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Lest We Forget

While researching my wartime novel Bird’s Eye View, I interviewed people who lived through the greatest conflict the world has ever known, both on the home front and overseas.
I uncovered some truly inspirational stories, indexed here by subject.
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