Royal Courts of Justice

Last updated

Royal Courts of Justice
Royal Courts of Justice 2019.jpg
The facade onto Strand
Royal Courts of Justice
General information
StatusCompleted
Type Court
Architectural style Gothic Revival
Address Strand
City of Westminster
WC2A 2LL
Town or city London
Country England
Coordinates 51°30′49″N0°06′48″W / 51.51361°N 0.11333°W / 51.51361; -0.11333
Current tenants HM Courts & Tribunals Service
Groundbreaking1873
Opened1882;142 years ago (1882)
Cost< £1 million
Technical details
Material Portland stone ashlar and red bricks with granite, marble and red sandstone dressings and slate and lead roofing
Floor countFive
Design and construction
Architect(s) George Edmund Street
Main contractorMessrs Bull & Sons
Other information
Public transit access Underground no-text.svg Temple
Website
Official website
Listed Building – Grade I
Official nameRoyal Courts of Justice: The Law Courts, Screen Walls, Gates, Railings and Lamps
Designated5 February 1970
Reference no. 1264258

The Royal Courts of Justice, commonly called the Law Courts, is a court building in Westminster which houses the High Court and Court of Appeal of England and Wales. The High Court also sits on circuit and in other major cities. Designed by George Edmund Street, who died before it was completed, it is a large grey stone edifice in the Victorian Gothic Revival style built in the 1870s and opened by Queen Victoria in 1882. It is one of the largest courts in Europe. It is a Grade I listed building. [1]

Contents

It is located on Strand within the City of Westminster, near the boundary with the City of London (Temple Bar). It is surrounded by the four Inns of Court, St Clement Danes church, The Australian High Commission, King's College London and the London School of Economics. The nearest London Underground stations are Chancery Lane and Temple. The Central Criminal Court, widely known as the Old Bailey after its street, is about 12 mile (0.8 km) to the east—a Crown Court centre with no direct connection with the Royal Courts of Justice.

History

Courts of Justice Building Act 1865
Act of Parliament
Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (variant 1, 1952-2022).svg
Long title An Act to supply Means towards defraying the Expenses of providing Courts of Justice and the various Offices belonging thereto; and for other Purposes.
Citation 28 & 29 Vict. c. 48
Dates
Royal assent 19 June 1865
Courts of Justice Concentration (Site) Act 1865
Act of Parliament
Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (variant 1, 1952-2022).svg
Long title An Act to enable the Commissioners of Her Majesty's Works and Public Buildings to acquire a Site for the Erection and Concentration of Courts of Justice, and of the various Offices belonging to the same.
Citation 28 & 29 Vict. c. 49
Dates
Royal assent 19 June 1865
The Great Hall Royal Courts of Justice (6201094569).jpg
The Great Hall

For centuries these courts were located in Westminster Hall; however, in the 19th century, justices decided the courts needed a purpose-built structure. Much of the preparatory legal work was completed by Edwin Wilkins Field including promotion of the Courts of Justice Building Act 1865 (28 & 29 Vict. c. 48) and the Courts of Justice Concentration (Site) Act 1865 (28 & 29 Vict. c. 49). A statue of Field stands in the building. [2] Parliament paid £1,453,000 for the 6-acre (24,000 m2) site upon which 450 houses had to be demolished. [2]

The search for a design for the Law Courts was by way of a competition, a then-common approach to selecting a design and an architect. The competition ran from 1866 to 1867 and the twelve architects competing for the contract each submitted designs for the site. [3] In 1868 it was finally decided that George Edmund Street was the winner. [3] Building was started in 1873 by Messrs Bull & Sons of Southampton. Its masons led a serious strike at an early stage which threatened to extend to the other trades and caused a temporary stoppage of the works. In consequence, foreign workmen were brought in – mostly Germans. This aroused bitter hostility on the part of the men on strike, and the newcomers had to be housed and fed within the building. However, these disputes were eventually settled and the building took eight years to complete; it was officially opened by Queen Victoria on 4 December 1882. [2] [4] [5]

Street died before the building was opened, overcome by the work. [6] The building was paid for by cash accumulated in court from the estates of the intestate to the sum of £700,000. Oak work and fittings in the court cost a further £70,000 and with decoration and furnishing the total cost for the building came to under £1 million. [2]

The building was extended to the designs of Sir Henry Tanner to create the West Green building completed in 1912. [2] The Queen's Building followed in 1968 and the Thomas More Courts were completed in January 1990. [2]

The building was used as a "Nightingale Court" for criminal trials during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021. [7]

Architecture

North face of the quadrangle Royal Courts of Justice Quadrangle September 2023.jpg
North face of the quadrangle

The design involves a symmetrical main frontage of facing The Strand; the central section, which is stepped back, features an arched doorway leading to the Great Hall; it has a five-part window in a carved surround on the first floor and a gable containing a rose window above. [1] At the top of the gable is a sculpture of Jesus with a flèche behind. [1] There are also statues of Moses, Solomon and Alfred the Great, the four statues symbolising the pillars of English legal tradition. [8] [9] There are towers containing lancet windows on either side of the central section with side wings beyond. [1] At the eastern end of the Strand frontage is a tall clock tower topped by a pyramidal roof, finial and flagpole; [1] it contains a clock and five bells (weighing a total of 8¼ tons) by Gillett, Bland & Co.. [10]

Internally, courts are arranged off the Great Hall which runs north–south; there is a courtyard to the east with offices for courtroom staff arranged round the courtyard. [1] The Great Hall contains a bust of Queen Victoria by the sculptor, Alfred Gilbert. [11]

Architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner has described the building as "an object lesson in free composition, with none of the symmetry of the classics, yet not undisciplined where symmetry is abandoned". [12] David Brownlee has claimed that it was influenced by the reformist political movement and the High Victorian architectural movement and has described it as a "regular mongrel affair" [13] while Turnor described it as the "last great secular building of the Gothic Revival". [14]

The Government Art Collection contains a painting by Henry Tanworth Wells depicting Queen Victoria opening the building in 1882. [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palace of Westminster</span> Meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom

The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative chambers which occupy the building. The palace is one of the centres of political life in the United Kingdom; "Westminster" has become a metonym for the UK Parliament and the British Government, and the Westminster system of government commemorates the name of the palace. The Elizabeth Tower of the palace, nicknamed Big Ben, is a landmark of London and the United Kingdom in general. The Palace of Westminster has been a Grade I listed building since 1970 and part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Barry</span> British architect

Sir Charles BarryFRS RA was a British architect, best known for his role in the rebuilding of the Palace of Westminster in London during the mid-19th century, but also responsible for numerous other buildings and gardens. He is known for his major contribution to the use of Italianate architecture in Britain, especially the use of the Palazzo as basis for the design of country houses, city mansions and public buildings. He also developed the Italian Renaissance garden style for the many gardens he designed around country houses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamo Thornycroft</span> English sculptor (1850–1925)

Sir William Hamo Thornycroft was an English sculptor, responsible for some of London's best-known statues, including the statue of Oliver Cromwell outside the Palace of Westminster. He was a keen student of classical sculpture and was one of the youngest artists to be elected to the Royal Academy, in 1882, the same year the bronze cast of Teucer was purchased for the British nation under the auspices of the Chantrey Bequest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alfred Waterhouse</span> British architect (1830–1905)

Alfred Waterhouse was an English architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic Revival architecture, although he designed using other architectural styles as well. He is perhaps best known for his designs for Manchester Town Hall and the Natural History Museum in London, although he also built a wide variety of other buildings throughout the country. Besides his most famous public buildings he designed other town halls, the Manchester Assize buildings—bombed in World War II—and the adjacent Strangeways Prison. He also designed several hospitals, the most architecturally interesting being the Royal Infirmary Liverpool and University College Hospital London. He was particularly active in designing buildings for universities, including both Oxford and Cambridge but also what became Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds universities. He designed many country houses, the most important being Eaton Hall in Cheshire, largely demolished in 1961-63. He designed several bank buildings and offices for insurance companies, most notably the Prudential Assurance Company. Although not a major church designer he produced several notable churches and chapels. He was both a member of The Royal Institute of British Architects, of which he served a term as President, and a Royal Academician, acting as Treasurer for the Royal Academy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strand, London</span> Major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster, London, England

Strand is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster, Central London. The street, which is part of London's West End theatreland, runs just over 34 mile (1.2 km) from Trafalgar Square eastwards to Temple Bar, where the road becomes Fleet Street in the City of London, and is part of the A4, a main road running west from inner London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aldwych</span> Human settlement in England

Aldwych is a street and the name of the area immediately surrounding it, in the City of Westminster, part of Greater London, and is part of the West End Theatreland. The 450 metres (1,480 ft) street starts 600 metres (2,000 ft) east-northeast of Charing Cross, the conventional map centre-point of the capital city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Temple Bar, London</span> Monument in London, England

Temple Bar was the principal ceremonial entrance to the City of London from the City of Westminster. In the middle ages, London expanded city jurisdiction beyond its walls to gates, called ‘bars’, which were erected across thoroughfares. To the west of the City of London, the bar was located adjacent to the area known as the Temple. Temple Bar was situated on the historic royal ceremonial route from the Tower of London to the Palace of Westminster, the two chief residences of the medieval English monarchs, and from the Palace of Westminster to St Paul's Cathedral. The road east of the bar within the City was Fleet Street, while the road to the west, in Westminster, was The Strand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manchester Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Manchester, England

Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. It is the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments. The building faces Albert Square to the north and St Peter's Square to the south, with Manchester Cenotaph facing its southern entrance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victorian architecture</span> Series of architectural revival styles

Victorian architecture is a series of architectural revival styles in the mid-to-late 19th century. Victorian refers to the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), called the Victorian era, during which period the styles known as Victorian were used in construction. However, many elements of what is typically termed "Victorian" architecture did not become popular until later in Victoria's reign, roughly from 1850 and later. The styles often included interpretations and eclectic revivals of historic styles (see Historicism). The name represents the British and French custom of naming architectural styles for a reigning monarch. Within this naming and classification scheme, it followed Georgian architecture and later Regency architecture and was succeeded by Edwardian architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmund Beckett, 1st Baron Grimthorpe</span> English lawyer and horologist (1816–1905)

Edmund Beckett, 1st Baron Grimthorpe,, known previously as Sir Edmund Beckett, 5th Baronet and Edmund Beckett Denison, was an English lawyer, mechanician, and controversialist, as well as a noted horologist and architect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St George's Hall, Liverpool</span> Historic building in Liverpool, England

St George's Hall is a building on St George's Place, opposite Lime Street railway station in the centre of Liverpool, England. Opened in 1854, it is a Neoclassical building which contains concert halls and law courts, and is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. On the east side of the hall, between it and the railway station, is St George's Plateau and on the west side are St John's Gardens. The hall is included in the William Brown Street conservation area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Edmund Street</span> English architect (1824–1881)

George Edmund Street, also known as G. E. Street, was an English architect, born at Woodford in Essex. Stylistically, Street was a leading practitioner of the Victorian Gothic Revival. Though mainly an ecclesiastical architect, he is perhaps best known as the designer of the Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand in London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Henry Foley</span> Irish sculptor

John Henry Foley, often referred to as J. H. Foley, was an Irish sculptor, working in London. He is best known for his statues of Daniel O'Connell in Dublin, and of Prince Albert for the Albert Memorial in London and for a number of works in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Hall of the University of Sydney</span> Historic site

The Great Hall of the University of Sydney, is one of the principal structures of The University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, with a public interior used for formal ceremonies, conferences, recitals and dinners. The Hall, located in the Main Quadrangle on the Camperdown campus, is a symbol of the university's stately history and an excellent example of Victorian Academic Gothic revival architecture. Completed in July 1859, the Great Hall soon became a tourist attraction; the writer Anthony Trollope wrote home in 1874 that the Hall was "the finest chamber in the colonies", and that no college of Oxford or Cambridge possessed a hall "of which the proportions are so good".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Architecture of London</span> Overview of the architecture in London

London's architectural heritage involves many architectural styles from different historical periods. London's architectural eclecticism stems from its long history, continual redevelopment, destruction by the Great Fire of London and The Blitz, and state recognition of private property rights which have limited large-scale state planning. This sets London apart from other European capitals such as Paris and Rome which are more architecturally homogeneous. London's architecture ranges from the Romanesque central keep of The Tower of London, the great Gothic church of Westminster Abbey, the Palladian royal residence Queen's House, Christopher Wren's Baroque masterpiece St Paul's Cathedral, the High Victorian Gothic of The Palace of Westminster, the industrial Art Deco of Battersea Power Station, the post-war Modernism of The Barbican Estate and the Postmodern skyscraper 30 St Mary Axe 'The Gherkin'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bertram Mackennal</span> Australian sculptor and medallist

Sir Edgar Bertram Mackennal, usually known as Bertram Mackennal, was an Australian sculptor and medallist, most famous for designing the coinage and stamps bearing the likeness of George V. He signed his work "BM".

Australian non-residential architectural styles are a set of Australian architectural styles that apply to buildings used for purposes other than residence and have been around only since the first colonial government buildings of early European settlement of Australia in 1788.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buildings and structures in Belfast</span>

The buildings and structures of Belfast, Northern Ireland comprise many styles of architecture ranging from Edwardian through to state-of-the-art modern buildings like the Waterfront Hall. The city's beautiful Edwardian buildings are notable for their display of a large number of sculptures. Many of Belfast's Victorian landmarks, including the main Lanyon Building at Queens University in 1849, were designed by Sir Charles Lanyon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F. W. Pomeroy</span> British sculptor

Frederick William Pomeroy was a prolific British sculptor of architectural and monumental works. He became a leading sculptor in the New Sculpture movement, a group distinguished by a stylistic turn towards naturalism and for their works of architectural sculpture. Pomeroy had several significant public works in London and elsewhere in the United Kingdom, notably in Belfast. His work in London includes the figure of Lady Justice (1905–1906) on the dome of the Old Bailey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria Memorial, Kolkata</span> Memorial-museum in Kolkata, West Bengal, India

The Victoria Memorial is a large marble monument dedicated to Queen Victoria, the Empress of India (1876-1901) facing the Queens Way on the Maidan in Central Kolkata. It was built between 1906 and 1921 by the British Raj.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Historic England. "Royal Courts of Justice: The Law Courts, Screen Walls, Gates, Railings and Lamps (1264258)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Royal Courts of Justice visitors guide". HM Courts Service. Archived from the original on 24 July 2010. Retrieved 15 December 2008.
  3. 1 2 Harper 1983, p. 96.
  4. "Royal Courts of Justice". E-Architect. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  5. "Main (or Great) Hall". The Victoria Web. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  6. "Nosing around the Royal Courts of Justice". Chambers Student Guide 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  7. Kirk, Tristan (11 January 2021). "New 'Nightingale' courts open in High Court in Covid response". www.standard.co.uk.
  8. "Traditions of the future | Ofir Haivry". The Critic Magazine. 15 May 2023.
  9. "Royal Courts of Justice | building, London, United Kingdom". Britannica.
  10. Pickford, Chris, ed. (1995). Turret Clocks: Lists of Clocks from Makers' Catalogues and Publicity Materials (2nd ed.). Wadhurst, E. Sussex: Antiquarian Horological Society. pp. 81–94.
  11. "Bust of Queen Victoria". Victorian Web. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  12. Bradley, Simon; Pevsner, Nikolaus; Schofield, John (2003). London 6: Westminster. Yale University Press. pp. 311–314. ISBN   978-0300095951.
  13. Brownlee, David B. (12 July 2016). "That 'regular mongrel affair': G. G. Scott's design for the government offices". Architectural History. Cambridge University Press. 28: 159–197. doi:10.2307/1568531. JSTOR   1568531. S2CID   159612869.
  14. Turnor, Reginald (1950). Nineteenth Century Architecture in Britain. London: Batsford. p. 86.
  15. Wells, Henry Tanworth. "Queen Victoria Opening of the Royal Courts of Justice, 1882". Art UK. Retrieved 21 October 2020.

Sources

Further reading