First World War memorial window rededication at York church

St Lawrence Parish Church, on Lawrence Street, will hold a service of Choral Matins at 11am on Saturday, March 21, to mark the rededication of its First World War Memorial Window, which has recently been conserved by specialist Dunnington firm Barley Studio, at a cost estimated to be £80,000.

The service will be attended by the North Yorkshire deputy lieutenant Major General Charlton‑Weedy, the Lord Mayor and Civic Party, the York Guard, D‑Day veteran Ken Cooke, army cadets and organisers are hoping to see serving members of the military.

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The towering 8.5 metre‑high stained glass window, made up of three lancets in the south transept, was created around 1930 by Arts and Crafts artist Joan Fulleylove.

It was donated in memory of former vicar Thomas Abelson Harpley and his son, Lieutenant Robert Abelson Harpley of the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, who was killed on the Somme in July 1916.

Unusually for a First World War memorial, the window depicts the Somme battlefield – including the church at Albert – alongside scenes of York such as Walmgate Bar and All Saints, Pavement, linking the western front to the parish back home.

It also serves as a tribute to more than 100 men of St Lawrence’s parish who died in the war, whose names are recorded on a large marble plaque beneath the glass.

The window re-dedication event takes place at 11am on Saturday, March 21, at St Lawrence Parish Church, Lawrence Street.