The stained-glass windows of England’s cathedrals illuminate interior spaces, communicate religious and other messages, and – perhaps – offer us a glimpse of heaven. This book tells the remarkable story of these much-loved works of art.

Divine Light features glass from every Church of England cathedral. It spans 900 years, beginning with the windows installed at Canterbury Cathedral following the murder of Thomas Becket in 1170 and representing every subsequent century in the history of English stained glass. Divine Light encompasses the Middle Ages, the Reformation, the hugely productive ‘long nineteenth century’, the Pre-Raphaelites, the Arts and Crafts movement, the creative commissions of the twentieth century, and the innovative glass being commissioned by cathedrals today.

The book establishes the connections between the artistic beauty of stained glass, its effectiveness as a narrative medium, and the various technical developments that have shaped the work of practitioners over the centuries. The refraction of light through coloured glass emerges as an early form of mass communications that retains its power to move and inspire today.

Janet Gough OBE has written four illustrated paperbacks to encourage wider enjoyment of the extraordinary Churchs and Cathedrals of the Church of England. Janet worked at Sotheby’s for nine years, was a trustee at the Churches Conservation Trust, the Museum of Fulham Palace and the Friends of the V&A and guided and lectured at the V&A.