York Guildhall is a municipal building located behind

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

's Mansion House. It is a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

The building was constructed as a meeting place for the City's guilds between 1449 and 1459.

King Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Batt ...

was entertained in the building in 1483, and the Guildhall was the venue for the trial of St

Margaret Clitherow Margaret Clitherow (1556 – 25 March 1586) was an English saint and martyr of the Roman Catholic Church, known as "the Pearl of York". She was pressed to death for refusing to enter a plea to the charge of harbouring Catholic priests. She was ...

, a Catholic martyr, in 1586. it was also the place where a ransom of £200,000 was counted before being given to the Scots in payment for the release of

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

in 1647 during the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

, and where Prince Albert, the Prince Consort to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

was a guest of honour at a royal banquet in the building in October 1850. At the north end of the Guildhall was a stained glass window painted by Henry Gyles in about 1682. In 1811 a building, designed by Peter Atkinson the younger as a council chamber, was erected to the south of the original hall (this is now known as "the Atkinson Room"). Then in 1891, another building, designed by Enoch Mawbey, the city surveyor, accommodating a larger council chamber, was built to the north of the original hall (this building is now known as "the Municipal Offices"). The new council chamber was decorated by Kendal, Milne and Co in the 1890s. The interior of the original building, including the stained glass window, was destroyed during a ''Baedeker'' raid in 1942. After the war the Guildhall was rebuilt and a new stained glass window, depicting five aspects of the city's history (architecture, war, civic affairs, commercial trade and religious education), was designed and installed by Harry Harvey of York. The complex was re-opened by Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother in 1960. Throughout the 20th century meetings of the

City of York Council City of York Council is the municipal governing body of the City of York, a unitary authority in Yorkshire, England. It is composed of 47 councillors, one, two, or three for each of the 21 electoral wards of York. It is responsible for all local ...

were held in the Guildhall; however, in Autumn 2017, when a programme of restoration work began at the Guildhall, temporary arrangements were put in place for the council to meet in the former Salvation Army Citadel on Gillygate.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Guildhall, York Tourist attractions in York Grade I listed buildings in York Grade I listed government buildings Guildhalls in the United Kingdom City and town halls in North Yorkshire Government buildings completed in 1459 St Helen's Square

History

See also

References

External links