The Prudential Assurance Building is a

Grade II listed 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 ...

, Victorian

Gothic revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

style office building located on

Dale Street Dale Street is a thoroughfare in Liverpool, England, in the Commercial Centre conservation area. The street together with Castle Street, Old Hall Street, Victoria Street and Water Street are the main commercial streets and occupy an area of ...

in the centre of

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It was designed by local architect

Alfred Waterhouse Alfred Waterhouse (19 July 1830 – 22 August 1905) was an English architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic Revival architecture, although he designed using other architectural styles as well. He is perhaps best known f ...

(also noted for the

Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, climatology, and more. ...

and

Manchester Town Hall Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. It is the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments. The building faces Albert Square to th ...

) and was constructed in 1885-6. The building was commissioned by the country's leading insurance provider Prudential as its new regional offices in Liverpool. It was part of a series of buildings commissioned by the Prudential from Waterhouse, notably the firm's large headquarters in London, now known as

Holborn Bars Holborn Bars, also known as the Prudential Assurance Building is a large red terracotta Victorian building on the north side (138–142) of Holborn in Camden at the boundary of the City of London, England. The block is bounded by Holborn to t ...

. Like the other Prudential commissions, the building is noted for its use of red

architectural terracotta Architectural terracotta refers to a fired mixture of clay and water that can be used in a non-structural, semi-structural, or structural capacity on the exterior or interior of a building. Terracotta pottery, as earthenware is called when not us ...

and brick.The Edinburgh building is an exception in using sandstone. It has a tower which was added to the building by the architect's son Paul Waterhouse in 1905. Gold lettering above the first floor windows near the corner read ''Prudential Assurance Buildings'', and Roman numerals at the same level on the corner bay commemorate the date of completion, 1886. Statue, Prudential Building, Dale Street

Statue, Prudential Building, Dale Street

Alongside the likes of

Liverpool Town Hall Liverpool Town Hall stands in High Street at its junction with Dale Street, Castle Street, and Water Street in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed build ...

, Bank of England Building,

India Buildings India Buildings is a commercial building with its principal entrance in Water Street, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. Mainly an office building, it also contained an internal shopping arcade and the entrance to an underground station. It was b ...

, White Star Building and the Tower Buildings. The Prudential Assurance Building is amongst the most architecturally important buildings in the commercial district which is one of the six areas that constitute Liverpool's status as a

UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. It is currently used by Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunal Service (Social Security and Child Support Tribunal).

References

{{Liverpool B&S Office buildings completed in 1856 Gothic Revival architecture in Merseyside Alfred Waterhouse buildings Terracotta Grade II listed buildings in Liverpool Prudential plc 1856 establishments in England

See also

References