The City of London, or the ‘Square Mile’, is the ancient historic centre of London, where the Romans established Londinium in the years following the invasion in 43AD. At the heart of the City is Guildhall.
Parts, such as the Guildhall Art Gallery, are open to the public, however other areas are usually not, including the stunning Great Hall. The oldest secular building in the City, the Great Hall has had many uses over the centuries from grand ceremonies and state trials to governance.
They run monthly tours and so, naturally, I booked myself in.
A Quick Introduction to the City of London
The City of London is, today, a bit of a constitutional anomaly.
In some ways it has similar powers to the other 32 boroughs under the Greater London umbrella, but it also has special privileges, including its own Lord Mayor, police force and government.
No-one knows exactly how old the government of the City of London is, but it is thought to have at least Anglo-Saxon origins and certainly pre-dates the government of the country as a whole.
Successive monarchs and governments, over the centuries, have confirmed the rights to self-governance of the City of London, due to its wealth, power and influence. Kings and governments have preferred to keep the City on their side.
The History of Guildhall
Guildhall, essentially the city hall of the City of London, has been on its current site since at least the 13th century. Citizens of the City would come here to pay their taxes, or ‘geld’, which is where we get the word ‘guild’ from.
I am always slightly astounded when I walk into the yard of the Guildhall. It is, to put it simply, an architectural and historical feast for the eyes.
You are stood above the remains of Roman London’s amphitheatre, you can see the beautiful 17th century St Lawrence Jewry church, designed by Wren, the 18th century ‘hindoostani gothic’ entranceway, the post-war brutalist Court of Alderman and library and, of course, the Great Hall.
Behind the amazing entranceway is the medieval Great Hall.
The Great Hall
Dating predominantly from 1411, the Great Hall is the oldest surviving part of Guildhall. This makes it the oldest secular building in the City of London.
The Great Hall is the third largest civic hall in England and has a number of functions in the operations of the City. It is the venue for great ceremonial occasions such as the annual Lord Mayor’s Banquet, the Coronation banquet and meetings of the City’s elected assemblies.
The hall did suffer severe damage during the Blitz, including the destruction of the roof. Much of the interiors are therefore a post-war reconstruction, but the outer structure is largely medieval.
What To Spot
Statues of Gog and Magog
In the Great Hall are two statues representing the mythological figures of Gog and Magog. These are legendary pre-Roman guardians of London. Two wicker representations of these giants, mascots of London, are paraded at the front of the annual Lord Mayor’s Show through the City.
Stained Glass Windows
All around the hall are a series of incredible stained glass windows. They are post-war reconstructions of the windows that were here prior to being blown out during the Blitz.
Look closely and you will see a series of names in the glass. These are the names of all the nearly 700 Lord Mayors over the centuries (two of which were women) and the monarchs that were on the throne when they were in power.
Monuments to famous figures
Dotted around the hall are statues and dramatic monuments to famous national figures. There is a statue of Churchill, as well as monuments to Nelson, Wellington and Pitt the Elder and Younger.
There is also a monument to William Beckford, twice Lord Mayor in the 1760s. In 1770 Beckford broke protocol and admonished the King George III over the unconstitutional expulsion of the elected MP John Wilkes from government by the Kings ministers.
He was considered to be sticking up for the City’s right to speak out and was therefore considered a hero by the City. They erected this monument to him at that time.
He is however a controversial figure today as he was a very wealthy man, the vast majority of this wealth coming from plantations in Jamaica.
Banners of the livery companies
All around the hall are the crests of the 111 livery companies of the City of London. They are sorted into an order of precedence, based on their power and influence and the top twelve are known as the Great Twelve.
The Great Twelve, including the Mercers, Grocers, Drapers, Fishmongers, Goldsmiths etc, have large hanging banners around the hall instead. You can find out more about the livery companies here.
A List Of Those Put On Trial
The Great Hall was the site of some very high-profile state trials over the centuries. In the hall is a list of those that took place here and their sentence.
Trials seem to have taken place here if the City’s authorities were involved in the trial. For example Lady Jane Grey, the famous nine days queen, was tried here in 1553, with the Lord Mayor of the City sitting on the panel.
She was sentenced to be executed and beheaded on Tower Green, inside the Tower of London, in 1554.
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Standards of length
Under one of the windows are the old brass ‘standards of length’. These were the official measurements for one foot, two feet and a yard against which merchandise could be measured.
Cow horn window
Above the standards of length you will see an unusual window.
It may not look like much, however, it is actually a very rare 15th century window made from cow horn. Very thinly shaved cow horn was a cheaper material often used in place of the more expensive glass.
An Ancient Crypt And A Decapitated Statue
On the tour we were also shown the incredible medieval crypts below the Guildhall. The East and West crypts are the largest medieval crypts in London.
The Western part is thought to date back to the 13th century and the Eastern possibly the 11th century!
Amongst other artefacts, we were also shown a huge plaster royal coat of arms that once adorned Wren’s 17th century St Michael Bassishaw. The church was demolished in 1897 but the coat of arms were salvaged and now stored here.
Finally, there is a statue of Margaret Thatcher, tucked away inside the Guildhall. The marble statue was commissioned in 1998 and sculpted by Neil Simmons.
It was originally intended for the Palace of Westminster, but ended up at the Guildhall Art Gallery from 2002.
On the 3rd July 2002 a theatre producer called Paul Kelleher smuggled a cricket bat into the gallery and attempted to decapitate the statue. The cricket bat was however not up to the job and he ended up completing the task with a nearby metal pole from a rope cordon. It was subsequently repaired and moved into the Guildhall itself.
Kelleher waited a few minutes for the police to arrive and arrest him. When they arrived he alleged said ‘I think it looks better like that’!
How To Visit
As mentioned above, City of London guides run monthly tours of the Guildhall on Thursdays.
The ticket costs £10 and the tour last around an hour.
Click here to find out how to book.
Thank you for reading- more London history below!
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An excellent start to the day, many thanks!
Wonderful and so informative. Thank you
I’ve just signed up for your emails – this one today was absolutely fascinating! I’m just sad my late father never saw these, he would have been as enthralled as me!
Hi, thank you for a fascinating article. I do , however, have a query.
I have read that when cattle horns were widely used to make opaque windows because glass was prohibitively expensive, it was obtained thus:
1) The interior marrow of the horn was removed by boiling the whole horn in a solution ofbicarbonate of soda. I’ve done this myself – it’s a long, stinky process, but strangely satisfying when the honeycomb of marrow slithers out.
2) It was then soaked in vinegar, the acid softening the horn until it could be painstakingly unrolled, rather like a paper lollipop stick. I haven’t done this part as my then better half had suffered enough with the smell of stage 1.
Regards,
Mark Elliott