Architecture of The Guildhall

Architecture of the Great Hall

The Great Hall was built by the Guild of Corpus Christi, with the three eastern bays of the hall being built around 1400.  The Guild then increased its membership and wealth, resulting in the hall being extended westwards in 1489.  Having the resources to do this shows how important the Guild was. 

The hall would have had an earth floor when it was built.  Originally, there would have been an open hearth and the smoke would have been let out through an opening in the roof.  The hearth has been preserved, and can still be seen today.

Uses of the Great Hall

The Great Hall has been employed for many different uses. Parliament came from London to Leicester three times, including the 1426 Parliament of Bats. 

From 1495 the Great Hall was used regularly for the main meetings of the Borough Council and also for municipal feasts and the entertainment of official visitors. It was even used to celebrate military victories such as the defeat of the Spanish Armada.  Early in the 16th century, Leicester was visited by wandering dramatics companies, who usually performed in the Great Hall. 

The era of feasting and celebration in the Great Hall came to an end entirely with the Municipal Reform Act of 1836.  The last meeting of the Corporation was held here on August 7th 1876.  After this date the Guildhall fell into a state of disrepair.

In 1922, a restoration programme has begun and on May 19th 1926, the Guildhall was reopened as a museum.

Recorders Room

The Recorders room housed the Recorder, a local judicial officer who read the records of the town.  He came to Leicester four times a year to preside over the Borough Court of Quarter Sessions which heard local criminal offences.  The original furniture for this room has not survived, but furniture of the period is on display to give a feel for how it would have looked.

Library

The Earl of Huntingdon had established a collection of books in St Martin’s Church.  In 1632, the collection of books was transferred from St Martin’s to the Guildhall.  The library replaced the bedrooms of the Chantry priests.  The library fell into decline after the 17th century, with few additions and some books being stolen or damaged.  Some of the rarest books are now stored in the Leicestershire Record Office for safekeeping. 

One of the most interesting books in the collection is a copy of the New Testament, which was translated into an American Indian language and printed in Massachusetts in 1661. This is an example of the first Bible to be printed in the New World.

The Courtyard Clock
The clock in the courtyard is a recreation of the automaton clock, which is housed at All Saints Church.  The carved oak case and the reproduction figure were made by Kenneth Rose. The clock features a painting called ‘Old Father Time’.  The Guildhall clock is the same size as the original, but the mechanism that controls it is modern.

Mayor’s Parlour

This wing of the Guildhall was built around 1500. The Mayor’s official seat was installed in 1586, whilst between 1636-7, the carved chimney piece was fixed in place. 

At one stage, a Charles I coat of arms were placed above the Mayor’s chair, but were removed following his defeat in the civil war. The two mace stands in the Mayor’s Parlour date to the reign of Elizabeth I.

In 1953 the Mayor’s Parlour was reconstructed and refurbished, being converted into a three-storey building.

The Stained Glass of the Mayor’s Parlour

The glass in the windows of the Mayor’s Parlour features the Corpus Christi Guild’s emblems; the cinquefoil, the Tudor rose and the designs that go with these most likely date from around 1500. 

Before the reconstruction of the glass in the 1920’s it was clear that the pieces that remained were merely fragments of the original design.  It was impossible to see what the original pattern would have been. However, it is evident that there are designs representing the months of the year in a way that was familiar to the people at that time, looking at the agricultural calendar.

Cells and Assizes

Assizes were court sessions that were held at regular intervals in each county, they tried both civil and criminal cases.  When the town assizes separated from the country assizes, they were regularly held at the Guildhall.  Council meetings and smaller local courts were held there until 1876. 

The Guildhall was used for the temporary imprisonment of offenders since 1836, when the hall became the headquarters of the police.  This was Leicester’s first police force.

A house built of brick on the south side of the courtyard, replaced an earlier timber kitchen block.  This was designed for the accommodation of the Chief Constable.  Three cells were also built, as well as a charge room.

Visitor’s Centre

The modern visitor’s centre was opened to the public by HRH the Duke of Edinburgh.  It is used by both the Guildhall and the Cathedral.  When archaeologists excavated the site in 1993 before the centre was built, a cemetery was found, which is thought to have been part of St Martin’s graveyard.  Study of the bones has also given evidence about the different diseases people suffered from in pre-Industrial Leicester.