The East Window
The East Window in St Swithun’s
church was designed by Messrs Hardman in
1879, and was installed following the
restoration of the church from 1874. The
Vicar was the Rev’d Douglas Blakiston.
According to a brass plaque, the east
window was given by Elizabeth H. Clarke of
Frampost. The plaque reads:
‘To the glory of God and in loving memory of her parents, the East window is
dedicated by Elizabeth H. Clarke, with the consent of the lay Rector, on the Feast of St
Michael and All Angels, 1879’.
The window depicts the Crucifixion in the centre, and 4 scenes from the New
Testament: The Agony in the Garden, Christ bearing the Cross, St Mary Magdalen at the
Tomb, and the Disciples on the road to Emmaus.
Stained glass windows can be found in other churches dating from as far back as the
medieval period. They are sometimes known as ‘the poor man’s Bible’ because they
illustrated scenes from the Bible, which not everyone could read, even though they knew
the church services by rote. In England under King Edward VI (1549-53) and again during
the English Civil War period and under the rule of Oliver Cromwell, (1640s and 50s),
stained glass was sometimes smashed deliberately if considered too ‘idolatrous’.
This late nineteenth-century stained glass enhances the church, especially when
sunlight streams in through the coloured panes.
The lay Rector was responsible for the upkeep of the Chancel. Before the Dissolution
of the Monasteries, in 1536 and 1539, Lewes Priory appointed the clergy to this church,
received tithes and was responsible for the upkeep of the chancel. Following the
Dissolution, tithes passed to laymen who were in turn responsible for the upkeep. The lay
Rector at this time may have been the Rev’d C.W.P. Crawfurd, or a member of his family.
The Feast of St Michael and All Angels is on 29 September. Traditionally, Michaelmas
marked the end and the new beginning of the husbandman’s year.
Where was Frampost? According to Google, it was on the West Hoathly Road. The
1881 census has Rebecca Worael Clarke and Annie Barroiw Clarke, (complete with the
quirky spelling), sisters, aged 42 and 39 respectively, Iiving at Frame Post House with 3
cousins and 8 servants. They may, or may not, be connected with Elizabeth H. Clarke, the
donor of the East Window. She was a generous patron, and the coloured glass is very
beautiful, letting in light and illustrating scenes about the life and death of Jesus.
Caroline Metcalf – June 2015