The Guildhall

A medieval Guildhall, built for the Corpus Christi Guild around 1390, enlarged around 1450, and further extended by the addition of ranges to the east and west around 1490, and a domestic wing around 1836. The buildings now function as a museum, gallery and entertainment venue.

Materials and Construction

The medieval hall and the east and west wings are timber-framed, the framing rising from deep stone plinths. The 19th-century house forming the south range is built of brick. Parts of the west range have painted render coatings. The roof coverings are of Swithland slate, laid to diminishing courses.

Plan

The Guildhall and its attached ranges to the east, west and south form an evolved courtyard plan. Development began with the Great Hall, continuing with the addition of east and west wings to form a U-shaped complex, followed at an unknown date by the construction of a kitchen or service range on the south side of the site. This was later demolished to make way for the 19th-century domestic range which completed the enclosure of the courtyard and the evolution of the present configuration of buildings.

Exterior

The arrangement of the complex of buildings around a courtyard affords each component building a visible front and rear elevation.

Outward-Facing Elevations

The early Great Hall is single-storeyed and is aligned east-west, its principal north elevation facing onto Guildhall Lane. The attached two-storey east wing faces onto St Martins West, and the south elevation of the two-storey brick south wing is now enclosed within a 21st-century lean-to extension. The west wing is two-storeyed with attics and has a stepped wing extending eastwards into the courtyard. This is comprised of three storeys and attic, with a lower two-storey bay to the east end.

The Great Hall range is of five bays. The timber-framing to the north elevation is close studded, with mid-rails and sill beams, the bay divisions marked by posts. The framing sits on a deep plinth of random rubble stonework. The upper tier of framing incorporates window openings to each bay, with 20th-century joinery. The two western bays have full bay width openings of seven lights with timber mullions and diamond-shaped leaded glazing. The remaining three bays each have a three-light casement window with rectangular leaded glazing. At the west end is a wide doorway set below a segmental pediment. It has a four-panel door and a shallow rectangular overlight. Above the doorway is a small gablet with a three-light timber mullioned window.

The five-bay east range has a jettied north gable with jowled corner posts and pairs of long curved down braces flanking a four-light timber mullioned window, and raking struts below a collar beam within the gable apex. The east elevation has a triple-gabled projection within the roof slope to the centre, each gable apex with a three-light window. Below, five-light timber-mullioned windows sit immediately above the eaves. The timber-framed first floor has long down bracing and a four-light timber mullioned window to each bay. The ground floor has four window openings and two doorways, all dating to 20th-century phases of restoration.

The south elevation includes the attached gable of the east and west ranges and the south wall of the 19th-century brick dwelling, the lower section of which is concealed by, but visible within, the 21st-century lean-to site restaurant.

The west range has a timber-framed upper floor above a stone-faced ground floor. The first floor framing incorporates five windows with fixed casement frames, whilst the second floor has three gables each with a single window lighting the attics within.

Courtyard Elevations

The courtyard elevation of the Great Hall has two exposed close-studded bays, each with a three-light leaded window set above the mid-rail. There is a small single-light window below mid-rail level at the east end of the range, the remaining parts of which are obscured by other parts of the complex. The south roof slope incorporates a small triple-gabled louvered ventilator.

The courtyard elevation of the west range has two wide gables, the northernmost gable partially obscured by the stepped extension into the courtyard. The south gable has continuous bands of windows to both floors: the ground floor with two wide five-light windows with transomed leaded lights, the upper floor with two six-light windows also with leaded glazing. The exposed section of the north gable has similarly detailed windows of three lights to the ground floor and four lights at first floor level. There is a clustered octagonal brick chimney at the south end of the west range roof and a domed ridge weather vane turret at its centre.

The five-bay brick south range has four windows to the upper floor and three to the ground floor, all with six-over-six pane sash windows. There are three doorways, the central one set below a gabled canopy. There is an ornamental clock set within a case with a shallow pitched roof. Its upper level has miniature figures set in doorways, the middle level has an illustration of the Grim Reaper, and below, the clock face set within a diagonal surround.

The east range has paired, wide gables, each with transomed four-light windows to the upper floor. There are two wide 20th-century openings to the ground floor, to the south end of the range, an enclosed stair set within a low hipped-roofed projection in the roof slope, and with a balustrade to the first floor. The stair gives access to the upper floor of the east range.

Interior

The Great Hall

The interior of the Great Hall illustrates the two main phases of construction of the earliest building on the site. The three eastern bays which date to around 1390 incorporate two base cruck trusses, with arch braces rising to support collars, and with diminished principals continuing upwards to concealed apexes. Each cruck truss has longitudinal curved braces supporting slender side purlins. Short spur ties link the trusses to the building's close-studded wall framing. The truss collars support short crown posts with four-way bracing supporting a collar purlin.

The two western trusses have cambered tie beam trusses with curved longitudinal braces supporting side purlins. Queen struts rise from the tie beam to support cambered collars, and short curved angle braces link the tie beams to principal rafters extending from the wall plates.

The close-studded wall framing is visible throughout the interior, the west gable detailed as previously described. The east end of the Great Hall is closed by a framed partition with long down braces and jowled posts supporting a collar beam. To the south side of the partition, a later stair gives access to the upper floor of the east range, and to a 20th-century gallery with turned balusters.

In the third bay, an inserted hearth and chimney which blocked the window opening above now carries a commemorative plaque installed during the 1922-26 restoration. The restored painted murals in the fourth bay date originally to the 17th century, and are representations of the Arms of the Borough of Leicester, and those of the then-influential Hastings family. Above the entrance doorway in the south wall is a painted panel honouring Sir Thomas White (1492-1567), incorporating the Arms of the Stuarts and of the Merchant Taylors Company. At the west end are the Arms of Queen Anne.

The West Wing

The doorway in the south wall of the west bay gives access to the ground floor of the west wing, which in 1563 became the Mayor's Parlour. The present interior dates largely to the remodelling of the room in 1637, with square oak panelling to the south, west and north walls, and a range of windows forming the east wall, below which is a continuous bench running the full length of the room. The bench faces a raised ceremonial seat built against the west wall, with raised arm rests, flanking attached columns and elaborate decorative cresting incorporating tall carved figures.

The south end wall incorporates a fine hearth with flanking columns, set within surrounding square panelling and above, a complex carved and painted overmantel formed of three panels with carved strapwork decoration separated by miniature columns and framed at either end by smaller paired columns. Above the panels is a frieze enlivened by depictions of mythical creatures and masks.

The panelled room above, and the attic room above that, are more plainly detailed and are used for meetings and storage.

The East Wing

The ground floor of the east wing was used as a prison in the 19th century, and the present interior incorporates museum displays which include the former cells. The upper floor, thought originally to have been used as accommodation for the Chantry priests of the Corpus Christi Guild, was remodelled to create facilities for the Town Library in 1632, and that collection of volumes is still housed there. The interior at this level has exposed wall framing and a series of cambered and straight arch-braced tie beam trusses, some with braced king posts.

On the west side of the central bay there is a small furnished room, identified as 'the Recorder's bedroom', although the exact location of the room created for the official who presided over the Borough Court of Quarter Sessions has not been verified. The narrow south bay gives access to the stair leading to the courtyard below.

The South Range

The interior of the south range is given over to interpretative museum displays concerning the history of the site, and the wider context of this part of Leicester. Attached at its east end is the 21st-century entrance foyer to the museum.