York Guildhall is a municipal building located behind York's Mansion House. It is a Grade I listed building.

History

The building was constructed as a meeting place for the City's guilds between 1449 and 1459. King Richard III was entertained in the building in 1483, and the Guildhall was the venue for the trial of St Margaret Clitherow, a Catholic martyr, in 1586. it was also the place where a

ransom Ransom is the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extort money or property to secure their release, or the sum of money involved in such a practice. When ransom means "payment", the word comes via Old French ''rançon'' from Latin ''re ...

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, and where Prince Albert, the Prince Consort to Queen Victoria 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 loc ...

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 Gillygate is a street in York, in England, immediately north of the city centre. History The area occupied by the street lay outside the walls of Roman Eboracum, but evidence of occupation in this period has been found, and it is possible that ...

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