| Thaxted Guildhall | |
|---|---|
 Thaxted Guildhall in 2008 | |
| Location | Thaxted, Essex |
| Coordinates | 51°57′14″N0°20′39″E / 51.9538°N 0.3441°E Coordinates: 51°57′14″N0°20′39″E / 51.9538°N 0.3441°E |
| Built | 1410 |
| Architectural style(s) | Jettied timber framing |
Listed Building – Grade I | |
| Official name | Guildhall, Thaxted |
| Designated | 20 February 1967 |
| Reference no. | 1112905 |
  Location of Thaxted Guildhall in Essex | |
Thaxted Guildhall is a municipal building in Thaxted, Essex, England. It is a Grade I listed building. [1]
By the late 14th century, Thaxted was at the centre of the local cutlery trade. [2] [3] [4] It is thought that the Guild of Cutlers contributed to the cost of the building, which the listed building details prepared in 1967 suggests, was completed between 1390 and 1410. [1] [5] However, dendrochronology indicates that much of the timber used in the building actually dates to the late 15th century. [2] [6]
The design made extensive use of jettied timber framing: on the ground floor the building was arcaded to allow markets to be held; the first floor, which jutted out over the pavement on three sides, featured four small gothic windows on each side and the attic floor, which jutted out further, featured two small bay windows on each side. [1] A large oak post was erected in the centre of the market area on the ground floor area to support the structure above. [6] Internally the principal room was the meeting hall on the first floor at the front of the building; at the back of the building was a staircase on the left and a sealed off area known as the "old cage" on the right. [6] The cage was probably used as a village lock-up as evidenced by its original doorway on the ground floor and the barred window grates on the first floor. [3] [7]
The guildhall was used as meeting place for the town which flourished after receiving a charter from Queen Mary I in the mid-16th century but then declined after the charter was rescinded when King James II fell from power in the late 17th century. [2] The building was restored at that time and converted into a school, [2] remaining in that use, as Thaxted Grammar School, until 1878. [8] Further refurbishment work, including timber restoration, was carried out in 1911 and again, as part of European Architectural Heritage Year, in 1975. [2]
In 2008 the guildhall was used for a Design Statement Exhibition, which sought local opinions to guide local development. [9] Works of art in the guildhall include a portrait of the prominent British Christian socialist and local priest, the Reverend Conrad Noel, by Frank William Carter. [10] [lower-alpha 1] There is also a small museum in the building exhibiting photographs and objects associated with the town and its development over time. [12]
Thaxted is a town and civil parish in the Uttlesford district of north-west Essex, England. The town is in the valley of the River Chelmer, not far from its source in the nearby village of Debden, and is 97 metres above sea level. The town is 15 miles (24 km) north from the county town of Chelmsford, and 5.5 miles (9 km) east from the M11 motorway. The parish contains the hamlets of Cutlers Green, Bardfield End Green, Sibleys Green, Monk Street, and Richmond's Green. Much of its status as a "town" rests on its prominent late medieval guildhall, a place where guilds of skilled tradesmen regulated their trading practices, and its English Perpendicular parish church.
Conrad le Despenser Roden Noel was an English priest of the Church of England. Known as the 'Red Vicar' of Thaxted, he was a prominent Christian socialist.
John Webb’s or Lowe’s Mill is a Grade II* listed tower mill at Thaxted, Essex, England, which had been restored to working order, but is currently out of action following the loss of a sail in April 2010.
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The Church of Saint John the Baptist with Our Lady and Saint Laurence is the parish church of the town of Thaxted in Essex, England. The present church was built over an extended period between c. 1380 and 1510 in the English Perpendicular style. Sitting on top of a hill with a slender spire reaching 181 feet (55 m) high, the church is one of the largest in the county, overlooking the town and the surrounding countryside. Its size is an indication of the former prosperity of the town, because of the medieval cutlery and wool trades that once flourished here. The church has earned the epithet "the Cathedral of Essex". The church is a Grade I Listed Building on the National Heritage List.
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