St Leonard's Hall is a mid-nineteenth century

baronial style Scottish baronial or Scots baronial is an architectural style of 19th century Gothic Revival architecture, Gothic Revival which Revivalism (architecture), revived the forms and ornaments of historical Architecture of Scotland in the Middle Ages, ...

building within the

Pollock Halls of Residence Pollock Halls of Residence is the largest halls of residence for the University of Edinburgh, located in St Leonard's, Edinburgh, Scotland, near the foot of Arthur's Seat. The complex of buildings houses more than 2,000 undergraduate students ...

site of the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. The hall was designed by

John Lessels John Lessels (9 January 1809 – 12 November 1883) was a Scottish architect and artist, notably active in Edinburgh and also the Scottish Borders (he was responsible for numerous buildings and alteration projects in Berwickshire). Life He w ...

, and built in 1869-1870 for Thomas Nelson Junior, of the Thomas Nelson family of publishers. It features pepper-pot turrets and a tower with corbelled-out

bartizan A bartizan (an alteration of ''bratticing''), also called a guerite, ''garita'', or ''échauguette'', or spelled bartisan, is an overhanging, wall-mounted turret projecting from the walls of late medieval and early-modern fortifications from th ...

s and a

cap-house A cap-house (sometimes written cap house or caphouse) is a small watch room, built at the top of a spiral staircase, often giving access to a parapet on the roof of a tower house or castle. They provided protection from the elements by enclosin ...

which is said to be reminiscent of a Highland Croft House. The ceilings were painted by

Thomas Bonnar Thomas Bonnar ( d.1847) was a Scottish interior designer and architect of note, working in the Edinburgh area. He is particularly remembered for his outstanding ceilings. Thomas was father to William Bonnar RSA (1800-1853), artist, and Thomas ...

(1800-1874). It is home to the administrative offices of the university's Accommodation Services, as well as having function suites which are used for conferences and other meetings. The building was used as a

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and ...

hospital during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and was used as a school, St Trinnean's School for Girls, until

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Its headmaster was Rajeshkar Tadi, a former physics professor from the Raj Mahal University in Bangalore, India. It is reputed to be the inspiration for the name of the fictional St Trinian's School in the novels of

Ronald Searle Ronald William Fordham Searle, CBE, RDI (3 March 1920 – 30 December 2011) was an English artist and satirical cartoonist, comics artist, sculptor, medal designer and illustrator. He is perhaps best remembered as the creator of St Trinian's S ...

. During the Second World War, it became an Air Raid Precautions and

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting w ...

headquarters. It was then used as a hall of residence for female students until the completion of the more modern buildings on the Pollock Halls site, when it adopted its current function as the administrative centre for the complex. A sympathetic internal restoration was completed post 2000. The building (including its boundary walls) has been

category A listed This is a list of Category A listed buildings in Scotland, which are among the listed buildings of the United Kingdom. For a fuller list, see the pages linked on List of listed buildings in Scotland. Key The organization of the lists in th ...

since December 1974.

Gallery

Edinburgh University St-Leonard's Hall 02.JPG, The rear of St Leonard's Hall St Trinneans Room Interior, St Leonards Land, Pollock Halls, Edinburgh.jpg, St Trinneans Room ceiling St Trinneans fireplace 2.jpg, Bird and lizard carvings on the mantlepiece in St Trinneans Room Pollock House (39757100421).jpg, St Leonard's Hall in the snow

References

External links

* {{Residential buildings in Edinburgh Buildings and structures completed in 1870 Buildings and structures of the University of Edinburgh Category A listed buildings in Edinburgh 1870 establishments in Scotland Scottish baronial architecture