Henry Gyles facts for kids

Henry Gyles (sometimes spelled Giles) was a talented English artist who lived from about 1640 to 1709. He was famous for painting on glass, especially for creating beautiful stained glass windows. Gyles lived and worked in the city of York, England.

Early Life and Artworks

Henry Gyles was born in York, where his father was also a glazier (someone who works with glass). Henry was the fifth child in his family. He lived in an area of York called Micklegate.

Gyles is known for helping to bring back the art of painting pictures on glass in England. This special art form had almost disappeared before he came along.

Some of his earliest known work includes a large window from 1682 at the York Guildhall. One of his most famous pieces is the east window in the chapel of University College, Oxford, which he made in 1687. He also created stained glass for other important places like Wadham College, Oxford, and Trinity College and St. Catharine's Hall in Cambridge. In 1700, he painted a large window for Lord Fairfax in Denton, Yorkshire.

Friends and Fellow Artists

Henry Gyles was good friends with Ralph Thoresby, who was an antiquary (someone who studies old things). Thoresby often wrote about Gyles in his diary, even calling him "the famousest painter of glass perhaps in the world."

Gyles and Thoresby were part of a group called the "York Virtuosi." This was a group of artists and thinkers who met at Gyles's house. Other members included artists like Francis Place and William Lodge, a doctor named Martin Lister, and other antiquarians. Francis Place often helped Gyles find new projects. He also helped Gyles get prints from other countries to inspire his designs. The group's interest in old things is shown in a drawing Gyles made of Stonehenge, which is now in the Tate Gallery.

Later Years and Legacy

In his later years, Henry Gyles faced some health problems. He passed away in October 1709 at his home in York. He was buried in the church of St. Martin-cum-Gregory.

An artist named Francis Place created a portrait of Henry Gyles. Today, a drawing of Gyles, which might be a self-portrait or by one of his friends, is kept at the British Museum. You can also see some of his works at the York Art Gallery.

Sources

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Cust, Lionel Henry (1890). "Gyles, Henry". Dictionary of National Biography 23. Ed. Leslie Stephen and Sidney Lee. London: Smith, Elder & Co.