Faith, Charity, and Hope - Badby, Northamptonshire

Attribution
1881
Faith, Charity, and Hope - Badby, Northamptonshire

This three-light stained-glass window, dated 1881 and signed by Ward & Hughes , is located in the church at Badby. It presents allegorical female figures embodying the three theological virtues: Faith, Charity, and Hope.

In the left-hand light, Faith stands holding a cross, symbol of belief in Christ’s redemptive sacrifice and the foundation of Christian doctrine. Her upright and composed stance reinforces the constancy traditionally associated with faith.

The central light depicts Charity, shown as a maternal figure surrounded by children. One child clings to her robe while another reaches toward her, expressing nurture, compassion, and self-giving love — the highest of the virtues in Pauline theology.

The right-hand light represents Hope, identified by the anchor, long established as a symbol of steadfast expectation and trust in divine promise.

In the tracery lights above appears a dove, emblem of the Holy Spirit, together with the Alpha (A) and Omega (Ω), affirming Christ as the beginning and the end. Two pairs of angels recline symmetrically, bearing the inscription “Alleluia”, reinforcing the theme of heavenly praise and divine assurance.

The window exemplifies Ward & Hughes’ later nineteenth-century Gothic Revival style, combining clarity of symbolic language with rich architectural framing and harmonious colour.