Look to your left for the grand stone building with tall arched windows, tucked into the courtyard. This is the York Guildhall. Built in the mid-1400s, it originally served as a meeting place for the city trade guilds. The human stories attached to this place are incredibly dramatic.
In 1483, King Richard the Third was entertained right here in this space. A few generations later, in 1586, the mood was much darker. This was the venue for the trial of Saint Margaret Clitherow, a Catholic martyr who ultimately lost her life for her faith. Then, in 1647, during the English Civil War, a staggering ransom of two hundred thousand pounds... which is roughly forty million pounds today... was physically counted out on these floors. It was the exact price paid to the Scottish army to hand King Charles the First over to Parliament.
In 1942, tragedy struck. The original hall was destroyed during a Baedeker raid... a World War Two bombing campaign specifically meant to wipe out culturally historic cities. But York refused to let the Guildhall become just a memory. It was beautifully rebuilt, featuring a stunning new stained glass window by Harry Harvey depicting architecture, war, civic affairs, commercial trade, and religious education. The Queen Mother officially reopened the complex in 1960. Following a recent twenty-one million pound renovation, it now hosts startup businesses for the University of York.
If you are visiting on a weekday between eight thirty and four in the afternoon, it is open to the public, though it remains closed on weekends. Take all the time you need here. When you are ready, we will wander just a few steps over to Saint Helen's Square.
