The Worshipful Company of Leathersellers is one of the

livery companies A livery company is a type of guild or professional association that originated in medieval times in London, England. Livery companies comprise London's ancient and modern trade associations and guilds, almost all of which are Style (form of a ...

of the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

. The

organisation An organization or organisation ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is an entity—such as a company, or corporation or an institution ( formal organization), or an association—comprising one or more people and having a pa ...

originates from the latter part of the 14th century receiving its

Royal Charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

in 1444, and is therefore the senior leather industry-related City Livery Company. The Leathersellers' Company ranks fifteenth in the

order of precedence An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of importance applied to individuals, groups, or organizations. For individuals, it is most often used for diplomats in attendance at very formal occasions. It can also be used in the context of ...

of City livery companies. Its

motto A motto (derived from the Latin language, Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian language, Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a Sentence (linguistics), sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of a ...

is '' Soli Deo Honor et Gloria'',

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

for ''Honour and Glory to God Alone''.

Activities

The Leathersellers' Company, which originally regulated

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning (leather), tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffal ...

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

s, continues to act as an advocate for the UK leather trade, together with its leather-associated City livery partners: the Cordwainers, Curriers, Girdlers, Glovers and Saddlers. Like these other livery companies, today it is primarily involved in philanthropic, charitable and educational activities.

Schools

The

livery company A livery company is a type of guild or professional association that originated in medieval times in London, England. Livery companies comprise London's ancient and modern trade associations and guilds, almost all of which are Style (form of a ...

is very closely linked with the Leathersellers' Federation of Schools (formerly Prendergast School), now comprising

Prendergast Ladywell School Prendergast Ladywell School is a co-educational all-through academy school located in the Crofton Park area of the London Borough of Lewisham, England. Originally known as Crofton School, it was completely rebuilt between 2007 and 2008. In 2009 ...

Prendergast School Prendergast School is a girls' secondary school and sixth form located on Hilly Fields, Brockley, in the London Borough of Lewisham. It is part of a multi-academy trust. The school motto is from Chaucer's Prologue to ''The Canterbury Tales:' ...

and

Prendergast Vale School ''Prendergast Vale School'' is a co-educational all-through academy situated in the Lewisham area of the London Borough of Lewisham, England. The school provides continuous education for pupils aged 4 to 16, encompassing both primary and secondar ...

, all located within the

London Borough of Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is a London boroughs, London borough in south-east London, England. It forms part of Inner London. The principal settlement of the borough is Lewisham. The local authority is Lewisham London Borough Council, based in Catford. The ...

. Since the mid-seventeenth century the Company has also been closely associated with

Colfe's School Colfe's School, previously Colfe's Grammar School, is a co-educational private day school in Horn Park in the Royal Borough of Greenwich, in southeast London, England, and one of the oldest schools in London. The school is a member of the Headm ...

, today an independent co-educational school located at

Lee Lee may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Lee'' (2007 film), Tamil-language sports action film * ''Lee'' (2017 film), Kannada-language action film * ''Lee'' (2023 film), biographical drama about Lee Miller, American photojournalist * ''L ...

, near

Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In addition the Company supports and maintains its longstanding connection with the Institute for Creative Leather Technologies (now a part of the

University of Northampton The University of Northampton is a public university based in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England. It was formed in 1999 by the amalgamation of a number of training colleges, and gained full university status as the University of Northampto ...

), successor to the college which the Company founded at

Bermondsey Bermondsey ( ) is a district in southeast London, part of the London Borough of Southwark, England, southeast of Charing Cross. To the west of Bermondsey lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe and Deptford, to the south Walworth and Peckham, ...

in 1909 as Leathersellers' Technical College. The Company continues to support

higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...

through

exhibition An exhibition, in the most general sense, is an organized presentation and display of a selection of items. In practice, exhibitions usually occur within a cultural or educational setting such as a museum, art gallery, park, library, exhibiti ...

s (grants) to university students, a practice which began in 1603 when four 'poor scholars', two at

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

and two at

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

, were awarded five pounds and five shillings each ''per annum''. Today around 100 students receive exhibitions which enable them to study at various universities.

Military affiliations

The Leathersellers' Company is affiliated with the Royal Navy's submarine HMS ''Audacious'', the

1st Queen's Dragoon Guards 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards (QDG) is a regiment in the Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) of the British Army. Nicknamed The Welsh Cavalry, the regiment recruits from Wales and the bordering English counties of Cheshire, Herefordshire, and Shropshir ...

and with 230 Squadron RAF.

Almshouses

Like many other City livery companies, the Leathersellers have a long tradition of maintaining

almshouses An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable organization, charitable public housing, housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the povert ...

. The first almshouses run by the Company were built circa 1543-44, close to Leathersellers' Hall, on a site behind St Ethelburga's Church and housed seven elderly people. In 1837 the Company also built almshouses at

Barnet Barnet may refer to: People *Barnet (surname) *Barnet (given name) Places United Kingdom *Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below. *East Barnet, a district of the borough below; anc ...

north London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...

; these were extended in the mid-nineteenth century. In 1866 it was decided to close the almshouses in the City and remove the residents from there to join those already at Barnet. The Company continues to maintain almshouses at Leathersellers' Close in the

London Borough of Barnet The London Borough of Barnet () is a suburban London boroughs, London borough in north London, England. Forming part of Outer London, the borough was formed in 1965 from parts of the ceremonial counties of Middlesex and Hertfordshire. It is the ...

, home to about 20 residents and managed by Harrison Housing on behalf of the Leathersellers' Barnet Charity.

Leathersellers' Hall

The Company had six previous halls throughout its history, and is now based at its seventh hall, which was officially opened by the

Earl of Wessex Earl of Wessex is a title that has been created twice in British history – once in the pre-Norman Conquest, Conquest Anglo-Saxon nobility of England, and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. In the 6th century AD the region of Wessex ( ...

in May 2017. Its first hall was on

London Wall The London Wall is a defensive wall first built by the Ancient Rome, Romans around the strategically important port town of Londinium in AD 200, as well as the name of a #modern, modern street in the City of London, England. Roman London was ...

but in 1543 the Company acquired the former Benedictine convent of St Helen's, off

Bishopsgate Bishopsgate was one of the eastern gates in London's former defensive wall. The gate's name is traditionally attributed to Earconwald, who was Bishop of London in the 7th century. It was first built in Roman times and marked the beginning o ...

, and the subsequent halls have all been on that site, now St Helen's Place. The fifth hall was destroyed in May 1941 during the

London Blitz London is the capital and largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Western Europe, with a population of 14.9 million. London stands on the River Tha ...

. Its sixth hall officially opened in 1960 and was demolished in 2011, though the

façade A façade or facade (; ) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loanword from the French language, French (), which means "frontage" or "face". In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important asp ...

of the building has been saved. The new, seventh hall, has been designed by Eric Parry RA.www.royalacademy.org.uk - Eric Parry
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References

External links

The Leathersellers' Company
{{authority control Leather industry History of the City of London 14th-century establishments in England Corporatism Companies of medieval England Charities based in London Leathersellers