The History of Glass in the UK

Glass manufacture in the UK throughout the ages

There is evidence that the Romans manufactured and used glass in Britain dating back to the first century AD and while most of this was used primarily for the production of ornate vessels, mosaic tiles and window glass were also produced. The first known use of window glass coincided with the introduction of Christianity and the construction of churches and monasteries. Much of the window glass that was found, which amounted to hundreds of fragments, was coloured.

Windows in the UK began to appear as we know them today in the mid to late 17th century and it was around then, 1696 in fact that William III introduce the window tax. This was a crude instrument to raise revenue based on the number of windows in a property relative to the prosperity of the taxpayer, the bigger the house, the more windows it was likely to have, and the more tax the occupants would pay. The tax was eventually repealed in 1851 to be replaced by a system of rates.

Glass manufacture for windows became more sophisticated and in the UK a variety known as ‘Crown’ glass was refined from its original blown form which produced the well known bull’s eye feature and was first introduced into Britain in 1678. The manufacture of flat drawn sheet glass began in the UK in the early 19th century, usurping most other types of glass and it was after this time that the size of glass windows in the UK began to increase and the sash window first began to appear. This fashion swept across Britain, their popularity continued until the 20th century. During this time, the sash window was the most widely used window, but since the 1st World War, its popularity declined, possibly due to the high labour costs involved in its manufacture compared to cheap, mass produced varieties. The sash window still plays an important role across many homes in Britian particularily in London and this new found love of the sash window has resulted in the developement of many sash window restoration companies in the capital, providing services such as sash window draught proofing and full renovation.

From around 1959 onwards, with the advent of the Pilkington process, cheap and imperfection free, float glass became available and soon became a firm favourite. Toughened and laminated glass has since been produced, and glass continues to evolve and develop, technically and aesthetically. Huge panes of glass appeared in shops and commercial buildings such as office blocks, which began to be constructed largely of glass, the Sage in Gateshead and the Gherkin in London are two examples. Glass windows are aesthetically pleasing, give natural light to a room and provide a pleasant living or working environment and with more modern developements such as self cleaning glass the future looks good for the window!