A Livery Hall Safari In The City Of London

I recently had the pleasure of being shown around four of the City of London’s historic livery halls.

Livery halls are the headquarters and ceremonial venues of the various livery companies of the City of London. There are 40 halls scattered throughout the City and they are often both architectural hidden gems and packed with history. 

Here is a map of the four I visited.

What is a livery company?

Livery companies are an integral part of the history and story of the city. They started off as medieval trading guilds around various professions: bakers, butchers, fishmongers, ironmongers, drapers etc. The merchants or workers in that trade formed associations to protect quality and standards, to protect who could enter the trade and to look after their members. You would pay your annual subscription or ‘geld’ and if, for example, you died, you would be given a good funeral and your family would be looked after.

Over time they grew in power and influence. They gained uniforms or ‘liveries’, grand halls, coats of arms and they became entwined in the government of the City. Today, if you wish to be Lord Mayor or an Alderman of the City, you need to be a member of one of the livery companies.

There are 110 still going today, many with links to their old trade, although often far more vague than in previous centuries. In the 21st century, the livery companies are predominantly social, charitable and networking institutions that uphold the traditions and ceremonies of the City of London. New ones have been added over the years so, for example, there is now a Worshipful Company of Accountants (1977) and Worshipful Company of Information Technologists (1992). 

There is also an order of precedence, put in place in the early 16th century, meaning they are ranked based on their wealth, power and influence. At number one are the Mercers. I have written about the Mercers previously in a blog post. 

Only 40 of the livery companies have livery halls, as many were destroyed either in the Great Fire of London or the Blitz and not rebuilt. 

Now on with the safari! Let me know in the comments if you have visited any livery halls.

Coopers’ Hall- The Smallest Livery Hall

The first livery hall I visited was Coopers’ Hall on Devonshire Square, near Liverpool Street Station. 

The Coopers’ Company was established for those that made casks for beer, wine and spirits. They received their royal charter in 1501 and are ranked 36th in the order of precedence. 

The company’s earlier livery halls were destroyed in the Great Fire and then the Blitz. After World War Two, they purchased their current site.

This stunning late 17th century townhouse was constructed in 1690 by Nicholas Barbon. It is one of the oldest livery halls and is actually also the smallest, but, I think, one of the prettiest.

You will see lots of clues to their trade throughout. 

On their coat of arms you will see two camels either side of the shield. This is due to the fact that camels are a symbol of transportation, linking with the transportation of liquids in casks. 

Find out more about hiring out or visiting Coopers’ Hall here. 

Brewers’ Hall

Next up I visited Brewers’ Hall on Aldermanbury Square. The Brewers received their royal charter in 1438 and rank 14th in the order of precedence. 

Similar to the Coopers, they have had a couple of halls over the centuries. Their previous hall was destroyed in the Blitz and the current one built in 1960. It has recently been refurbished with extra floors added.

You will see three casks for beer on their coat of arms but also see this lady atop the shield, holding three ears of barley in each hand. She features regularly throughout Brewers’ Hall.

Up the stairs are the names of the previous masters going back to the 1500s and at the top you will find their elegant livery hall.

It is lined with various paintings of breweries that the company has links with.

Something else to spot at Brewers’ Hall is the rare pall cloth from the early 1500s.

This would have been used to cover the coffins of liverymen at their funerals and it is a fantastic example of workmanship from a time when England was producing the finest quality embroidery in Europe.

Many pall cloths were destroyed in the Reformation so only a couple of medieval ones survive.

Find out more about Brewers’ Hall on their website here. 

Plaisterers’ Hall- The Largest Livery Hall

Coming out of Brewers’ Hall you can see a blue plaque marking the spot of the previous 3 Plaisterers’ Halls. The first destroyed in the Great Fire, the next in another fire in 1882 and the third during the Blitz. 

Today you can find Plaisterers’ Hall on London Wall by the Barbican. It is another modern built, dating from the 1970s but designed on the interior in a wonderful neo-classical style. 

The Plaisterers’ Company was set up as a trade association for the City’s plasterers (‘plaisterer’ is the antiquated spelling). It received its royal charter in 1501 and ranks 46th in the order of precedence. 

Their livery hall is huge, with three huge chandeliers down the centre. It is the largest hall in the City.

Most interestingly, the company also looks after a garden next to the hall that contains a stretch of the old city wall, revealed by the Blitz bombs. You can read more about that here on my Roman Wall walk blog.

Find out more about Plaisterers’ Hall here.

Ironmongers’ Hall- A Blitz Survivor

It was then over to Ironmongers’ Hall for our final stop. This was probably my favourite of the four.

Ironmongers’ Hall was constructed in the 1920s after their previous hall had been destroyed during the zeppelin air raids of World War One.

There are actually artefacts inside that were salvaged from that previous hall, still carrying the scars such as these plates with shrapnel marks on them.

Remarkably it survived the bombs of the Luftwaffe in World War Two that totally devastated this area of London. Ironmongers’ Hall is slightly hidden today inside the 1970s Barbican Estate complex.

The Ironmongers were given their royal charter in 1463 and are ranked 10th in the order of precedence, making it one of the ‘Twelve Great Livery Companies’. You can see the full order of precedence here. 

As you can see, it has been designed in a neo-Tudor style. The main hall is particularly amazing, with its dark wood panelling, stained glass windows and minstrels gallery. 

Around the edge are the coats of arms of all the previous masters. There is also a large stained glass window with the coats of arms of all the ironmongers that went on to become Lord Mayors of the City.

Details To Look Out For

Their emblem is the salamander, as it was once believed that salamanders were fire-proof and born in fire. Fire, of course, being a very important element in ironmongery. There are apparently 123 salamanders to find inside the hall.

You can also see this ostrich with a horse shoe in its mouth.

They also used to believe that ostriches ate iron, so it also became an emblem of the Ironmongers. This particular ostrich was carved in the early 1600s and sat at the front of their ceremonial barge.

Spot the old 15th century chest with World War One damage on the back in the entrance hall.

They also have a pleasant drawing room/lounge area with an amazing William Morris wallpaper. They say it is the largest William Morris tapestry, not in a gallery, in the country.

Find out more about Ironmongers Hall here. 

And there we have it: four of the City’s fascinating livery halls. You can also read about the only floating livery hall here.

If you would like to visit the halls, it is always a good idea to keep an eye on Open City’s Open House festival itinerary when lots of venues across London open their doors for free. Lots of the livery halls often open for this. They ordinarily require booking so you sometimes need to get in there pretty quickly! 

Thank you for reading, more of London’s lesser-known historical sites below!