Bassishaw
Encyclopedia
Bassishaw is a ward
in the City of London
. This small ward is bounded on the east by Coleman Street
ward, to the south by Cheap
ward, to the north by Cripplegate
ward, and on the west by Aldersgate
ward. Historically, it consisted only of Basinghall Street
with the courts and avenues leading from it, but since the 2003 ward boundary review (after which the ward expanded into Cripplegate
Within) also includes streets further west, including Wood Street
, and, to the north, streets such as London Wall
and St Alphage Garden. It was historically the City's smallest ward.
granted Adam de Bassing "certain houses in Aldermanbury and in Milk-street; the advowson of the church at Bassings hall; with other liberties and privileges". John Leake
's 1667 map of the City of London refers to the ward as "Basinghall ward". The family also spread in Cambridgeshire
and gave their name to a place called Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth
.
. The coopers'
guild hall was first founded in this ward in 1522, at The Swan, a public house, and, from 1547, a purpose-built hall accommodated the coopers. Their hall was destroyed in the Great Fire of London
in 1666, and rebuilt on the same site. They rebuilt again in 1865, selling a part of the site to the City of London Corporation for the expansion of the Guildhall
. This hall was destroyed by fire on the night of December 29, 1940.
The masons'
hall was constructed in 1463 in Mason's Avenue. Their hall was also sold to the Corporation in 1865. The weavers
, and girdlers
also had their guild halls in the ward. The modern livery halls of the pewterers
, salters
, and brewers
are located in the ward.
There were only two churches in this small ward, neither of which remain standing:
The ward contains a large part of the Guildhall
buildings, the main administrative centre for the City of London Corporation. (A small, but important, part of the Guildhall lies in Cheap ward.) The Guildhall Art Gallery
and Guildhall Library
both lie in the ward, as part of the Guildhall buildings.
Also in the ward is the Wood Street
police station, the headquarters of the City of London Police
(which is not to be confused with the Metropolitan Police
whose headquarters is at New Scotland Yard).
to the Court of Aldermen
and Commoners (the City equivalent of a councillor) elected to the Court of Common Council of the City of London Corporation. Only electors who are Freemen of the City of London are eligible to stand for election.
Wards of the City of London
The City of London , in the United Kingdom, is constituted of 25 wards. The City is the historic core of the much wider metropolis of London, with an ancient and sui generis form of local government, which avoided the many reforms enacted to local government elsewhere in the country in the 19th and...
in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. This small ward is bounded on the east by Coleman Street
Coleman Street
Coleman Street is a street and one of the 25 ancient wards in the City of London.- The Ward :Warren Stormes Hale, Lord Mayor of London in 1864, was the Ward’s most notable civic dignitary...
ward, to the south by Cheap
Cheap (ward)
Cheap is a small ward of the City of London. It stretches west to east from King End Street, the border with Farringdon Within to Old Jewry, which adjoins Walbrook and north to south from Gresham Street, the border with Aldersgate and Bassishaw to Cheapside, the boundary with Cordwainer.The...
ward, to the north by Cripplegate
Cripplegate
Cripplegate was a city gate in the London Wall and a name for the region of the City of London outside the gate. The area was almost entirely destroyed by bombing in World War II and today is the site of the Barbican Estate and Barbican Centre...
ward, and on the west by Aldersgate
Aldersgate
Aldersgate was a gate in the London Wall in the City of London, which has given its name to a ward and Aldersgate Street, a road leading north from the site of the gate, towards Clerkenwell in the London Borough of Islington.-History:...
ward. Historically, it consisted only of Basinghall Street
Basinghall Street
Basinghall Street is a street in the City of London, England. It today lies chiefly in the ward of Bassishaw with the southern end in Cheap and Coleman Street wards...
with the courts and avenues leading from it, but since the 2003 ward boundary review (after which the ward expanded into Cripplegate
Cripplegate
Cripplegate was a city gate in the London Wall and a name for the region of the City of London outside the gate. The area was almost entirely destroyed by bombing in World War II and today is the site of the Barbican Estate and Barbican Centre...
Within) also includes streets further west, including Wood Street
Wood Street, London
Wood Street is a street in the City of London, England. The street crosses Gresham Street as it runs north-south. It today lies in the wards of Bassishaw and Cheap ....
, and, to the north, streets such as London Wall
London Wall
London Wall was the defensive wall first built by the Romans around Londinium, their strategically important port town on the River Thames in what is now the United Kingdom, and subsequently maintained until the 18th century. It is now the name of a road in the City of London running along part of...
and St Alphage Garden. It was historically the City's smallest ward.
Etymology
The ward is named for Basinghall, the mansion house of the Bassing family, who were prominent in the city beginning in the thirteenth century. Henry IIIHenry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
granted Adam de Bassing "certain houses in Aldermanbury and in Milk-street; the advowson of the church at Bassings hall; with other liberties and privileges". John Leake
John Leake
Sir John Leake was an English Admiral in the Royal Navy and a politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1708 to 1715.Leake was born at Rotherhithe, the second son of Richard Leake, Master Gunner of England....
's 1667 map of the City of London refers to the ward as "Basinghall ward". The family also spread in Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
and gave their name to a place called Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth
Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth
Bassingbourn cum Kneesworth is a civil parish in the South Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles south-west of Cambridge. Since the 1960s the parish contains the villages of Bassingbourn and Kneesworth and is situated just north of Royston in Hertfordshire...
.
Guilds and churches
Located in this ward was a weekly cloth market, authorized by Richard IIIRichard III of England
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty...
. The coopers'
Worshipful Company of Coopers
The Worshipful Company of Coopers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation of Coopers existed in 1422; it received a Royal Charter of incorporation in 1501...
guild hall was first founded in this ward in 1522, at The Swan, a public house, and, from 1547, a purpose-built hall accommodated the coopers. Their hall was destroyed in the Great Fire of London
Great Fire of London
The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London, from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman City Wall...
in 1666, and rebuilt on the same site. They rebuilt again in 1865, selling a part of the site to the City of London Corporation for the expansion of the Guildhall
Guildhall, London
The Guildhall is a building in the City of London, off Gresham and Basinghall streets, in the wards of Bassishaw and Cheap. It has been used as a town hall for several hundred years, and is still the ceremonial and administrative centre of the City of London and its Corporation...
. This hall was destroyed by fire on the night of December 29, 1940.
The masons'
Worshipful Company of Masons
The Worshipful Company of Masons is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The Masons were formed in mediæval times to regulate stonemasons. They were formally incorporated under a Royal Charter in 1677. Its members have taken part in the construction several famous structures,...
hall was constructed in 1463 in Mason's Avenue. Their hall was also sold to the Corporation in 1865. The weavers
Worshipful Company of Weavers
The Worshipful Company of Weavers is the most ancient of the Livery Companies in the City of London. It existed in the year 1130, and was perhaps formed earlier. The Company received a Royal Charter in 1180. At present, the Company retains a connection to textiles through its contributions to the...
, and girdlers
Worshipful Company of Girdlers
The Worshipful Company of Girdlers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation was awarded the right to regulate Girdlers in 1327; it was granted a Royal Charter in 1449. The Girdlers, or makers of belts and girdles, are no longer closely related to their original trade...
also had their guild halls in the ward. The modern livery halls of the pewterers
Worshipful Company of Pewterers
The Worshipful Company of Pewterers is a livery company of the United Kingdom. It is 16th in the order of precedence of livery companies. It has existed since at least 1348....
, salters
Worshipful Company of Salters
The Worshipful Company of Salters is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London, 9th in order of precedence. The Company originated as the Guild of Corpus Christi, which was granted a Royal Charter of incorporation in 1559...
, and brewers
Worshipful Company of Brewers
The Worshipful Company of Brewers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. London brewers are known to have organised as a group in the 13th century. Their first royal charter was granted by Henry VI in 1437....
are located in the ward.
There were only two churches in this small ward, neither of which remain standing:
- St. Michael BassishawSt. Michael BassishawSt. Michael Bassishaw was a church in the City of London located on Basinghall Street, on land now covered by the Barbican Centre complex. Recorded since the 12th century, the church was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666, then rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher Wren. The rebuilt church...
, dedicated to St Michael, the archangelMichael (archangel)Michael , Micha'el or Mîkhā'ēl; , Mikhaḗl; or Míchaël; , Mīkhā'īl) is an archangel in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic teachings. Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans refer to him as Saint Michael the Archangel and also simply as Saint Michael...
, was founded in the twelfth century. At that time, the rectorship was included in the gift of St Bartholomew-the-GreatSt Bartholomew-the-GreatThe Priory Church of St Bartholomew the Great is an Anglican church located at West Smithfield in the City of London, founded as an Augustinian priory in 1123 -History:...
, but, over time, it came to be associated with St Pauls Cathedral itself. The church was destroyed in the Great Fire of London, and rebuilt in 1679. It was united with St Lawrence JewrySt Lawrence JewrySt Lawrence Jewry is a Church of England guild church in the City of London on Gresham Street, next to the Guildhall.-History:The church was originally built in the twelfth century and dedicated to St Lawrence The church is near the former medieval Jewish ghetto, which was centred...
in 1897; the site was sold in 1899; and the church was demolished in 1900.
- St Alphage London Wall, also damaged in the Great Fire but not rebuilt until 1777, was eventually demolished in 1924.
Points of interest
Guildhall, London
The Guildhall is a building in the City of London, off Gresham and Basinghall streets, in the wards of Bassishaw and Cheap. It has been used as a town hall for several hundred years, and is still the ceremonial and administrative centre of the City of London and its Corporation...
buildings, the main administrative centre for the City of London Corporation. (A small, but important, part of the Guildhall lies in Cheap ward.) The Guildhall Art Gallery
Guildhall Art Gallery
The Guildhall Art Gallery houses the art collection of the City of London, England. It occupies a building that was completed in 1999 to replace an earlier building destroyed in The Blitz in 1941...
and Guildhall Library
Guildhall Library
The Guildhall Library is administered by the Corporation of London, the government of the City of London, which is the historical heart of London, England. It was founded in the 1420s under the terms of the will of Lord Mayor Dick Whittington...
both lie in the ward, as part of the Guildhall buildings.
Also in the ward is the Wood Street
Wood Street, London
Wood Street is a street in the City of London, England. The street crosses Gresham Street as it runs north-south. It today lies in the wards of Bassishaw and Cheap ....
police station, the headquarters of the City of London Police
City of London Police
The City of London Police is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement within the City of London, England, including the Middle and Inner Temple. The service responsible for law enforcement within the rest of Greater London is the Metropolitan Police Service, a separate...
(which is not to be confused with the Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
whose headquarters is at New Scotland Yard).
Politics
Bassishaw is one of twenty-five wards in the City of London, each electing an aldermanAlderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
to the Court of Aldermen
Court of Aldermen
The Court of Aldermen is an elected body forming part of the City of London Corporation. The Court of Aldermen is made up of the twenty five Aldermen of the City of London, presided over by the Lord Mayor...
and Commoners (the City equivalent of a councillor) elected to the Court of Common Council of the City of London Corporation. Only electors who are Freemen of the City of London are eligible to stand for election.
External links
- Map of Early Modern London: Basinghall Ward - Historical Map and Encyclopedia of Shakespeare's London (Scholarly)