The Kingston upon Thames Guildhall is a municipal building in

Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable as ...

in England. It is situated in the High Street, adjacent to the

Hogsmill River The Hogsmill River in Surrey and Greater London, England is a small chalk stream tributary of the River Thames. It rises in Ewell and flows into the Thames at Kingston upon Thames on the lowest non-tidal reach, that above Teddington Lock. Th ...

. The guildhall, which is the headquarters of

Kingston upon Thames London Borough Council Kingston London Borough Council is the local authority for the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. History There have previously b ...

, is a Grade II

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

In the early 20th century the local council was based at municipal offices in "Clattern House", a mansion which had originally been built as judges' lodgings in 1811. The

Coronation Stone A coronation stone is a stone which has taken part in the ceremony of a monarch’s coronation. These stones were primarily used in medieval Europe, but historical examples exist throughout the world. Stones believed to have been used as coronation ...

, which commemorates the

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

of seven

Anglo-Saxon kings The Heptarchy were the seven petty kingdoms of Anglo-Saxon England that flourished from the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain in the 5th century until they were consolidated in the 8th century into the four kingdoms of Mercia, Northumbria, Wes ...

, was moved to its present location, which was just in front of the old mansion, in 1850. After the old municipal offices became inadequate, they were demolished to make way for the current building. Southwest View of the Guildhall at Kingston upon Thames (02)

Southwest View of the Guildhall at Kingston upon Thames (02)

The current building, which was designed by Maurice Webb in the Neo-Georgian style, was built at a cost of £130,000. It was officially opened by

Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone (Alice Mary Victoria Augusta Pauline; 25 February 1883 – 3 January 1981) was a member of the British royal family. She is the List of longest-living members of the British royal family, longest-lived British ...

on 3 July 1935. It is a neo-Georgian red brick building with

Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building sto ...

dressings and tiled roof, laid out to a semi-circular plan. To the centre of the semi-circular elevation is a massive square tower with a low octagonal spire and fluted corner pinnacles. The central entrance is in the base of the tower. Above it is a two-storey, round headed window set in an open pedimented stone niche with simplified

Corinthian columns The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order w ...

rising from a corbelled balcony. Pictorial references to the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

are displayed upon a keystone inside the niche, and on the corbels, capitals and iron gates. The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

of Kingston is set further up the tower. Inside, there is a

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

lined circular entrance hall, and a central staircase with original opaque glass semi-spherical lamps. The building, which was established as the headquarters of the

Municipal Borough of Kingston-upon-Thames Kingston-upon-Thames (spelt with hyphens) was a local government district in north east Surrey, England from 1835 to 1965 around the town now known as Kingston upon Thames. It was alternatively known as Kingston on Thames (spelt with or without ...

, became the administrative headquarters of the enlarged

in 1965. In order to accommodate a larger number of staff, it was extended in 1968. It was further extended by additions known as "Guildhall one" and Guildhall two", which were designed by Ronald Ward & Partners, between 1975 and 1978. The part of the complex associated with the

magistrates' courts A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings. Courts * Magistrates' court (England and Wales) * Magistrate's Cour ...

closed in 2011 and re-opened as a venue for weddings and civil partnership ceremonies known as the "Old Court House" in September 2015.

References

{{LB Kingston upon Thames Grade II listed buildings in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames Guildhalls in the United Kingdom Government buildings completed in 1935 Grade II listed government buildings Local government buildings in London City and town halls in London Event venues in England

History

See also

References